Suematsu Kencho
| Suematsu Kenchō | |
|---|---|
Viscount Suematsu Kenchō, ca.1898
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| Home Minister of Japan | |
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In office 1900–1901 |
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| Preceded by | Saigō Tsugumichi |
| Succeeded by | Utsumi Tadakatsu |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
September 30, 1855 Buzen Province, Japan |
| Died | October 5, 1920 (aged 65) |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Spouse(s) | Ikuko Itō |
Viscount Suematsu Kenchō (末松 謙澄?, September 30, 1855 – October 5, 1920) was a Japanese politician, intellectual and author, who lived in the Meiji and Taishō periods. Apart from his activity in the Japanese government, he also wrote several important works on Japan in English. He was portrayed in a negative manner in Ryōtarō Shiba's novel Saka no ue no kumo.
Suematsu was born in the hamlet of Maeda in Buzen Province, now part of Yukuhashi, Fukuoka Prefecture. He was the fourth son of the village headman (shōya), Suematsu Shichiemon. His name was initially Ken'ichirō (謙一郎?), he later changed it to the shorter Kenchō.
At the age of ten he enrolled in a private school where he pursued studies in Chinese (kangaku 漢学). Suematsu went to Tokyo in 1871, and studied with Ōtsuki Bankei and Kondō Makoto. In 1872, he briefly entered the Tokyo Normal School, but left it soon after. It was around this time that he made the acquaintance of Takahashi Korekiyo.
In 1874, at age 20, Suematsu began working for the Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun newspaper (predecessor to the Mainichi Shinbun), writing editorials under the pen name Sasanami Hitsuichi (笹波篳一). During his time working for the newspaper, he was befriended by its editor, Fukuchi Gen'ichirō.
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