WWII Tokyo War Crimes Trials Photo Archive

Tthe Tokyo War Crimes Trials photo archive, showing U.S. military and Japanese civilian witnesses during proceedings against Japanese military personnel and government officials in the immediate aftermath of WWII. Twenty-eight Japanese military and political leaders were tried by the court, Archive of six original black and white silver gelatin press photos,5 measuring aprox 4.5" x 3.5" and one 9" x 8 inches. All taken by Thetford for the U.S. Army Signal Corps between 1946 and January 1948, while the trials were beeing held in Tokyo. All are original press photos with captions printed or typed on verso with military stamps. These images wee printed in (truncated) the newspapers at the time of the trial.

Tojo was tried by the International Military Tribunal for war crimes and found guilty of, waging wars of aggression in violation of international law; and ordering, authorizing, and permitting inhumane treatment of prisoners of war. Several of the six photos show a view of the full court for War Crimes Trials for Gen Tojo , we can see the U.S military guards standing by the walls, the prosecution, the defense, witnesses, and spectators all seating at their desks. Tojo who's leadership was marked by widespread violence and mass killings perpetrated in the name of Japanese nationalism had attempted suicide at his arrest. General MacArthur exonerate Emperor Hirohito from prosecutions and shifted ultimate responsibility to Tojo but in testifying before the tribunal on December 31, 1947, Tojo momentarily strayed from the agreed-upon line concerning imperial innocence and referred to the Emperor's ultimate authority. The American-led prosecution immediately arranged that he be secretly coached to recant this testimony. Tojo was eventually sentenced to death on November 12, 1948, and executed by hanging 41 days later on December 23, 1948. Another image shows the Representative From France Apologizes for comments at The War Crimes. Justice Henri Bernard of France had argued that the tribunal's course of action was flawed due to Hirohito's absence and the lack of sufficient deliberation by the judges. He concluded that Japan's declaration of war "had a principal author who escaped all prosecution and of whom in any case the present Defendants could only be considered as accomplices"] and that a "verdict reached by a Tribunal after a defective procedure cannot be a valid one." Our picture has a caption stating the American Official view: " an associate councilor from France regrets the dubious actions of the preceding day in which he was nearly held in contempt of the court." Another image shows The British representatives , including Mc Donald for the U.K. standing next to Australian, Irish New Zealand and Indian representatives, all still wearing their legal black caps. The Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal as the photos show was composed of judges, prosecutors, and staff from eleven countries that had fought against Japan: Australia, Canada, China, France, India, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Philippines, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The two smaller photographs depict courtroom testimony before the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE). In one image, a Japanese man testifies from a box while guarded by a stern-faced U.S. MP. The verso caption identifies him as Shiro Hara, a former lieutenant colonel in the Japanese Army who appeared on December 4, 1947, as a defense witness for General Sato, an accused major Japanese war criminal. The third photo, dated January 9, 1948, shows another Japanese man addressing the court, identified as Godo Takuo, a former technical advisor to the South Manchurian Railway Co., and President of the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce. He was called as a defense witness for Ambassador to Germany Hiroshi Oshima, who was charged with war crimes. The larger image, dated January 13, captures Tomoki Nakamura being escorted from the courtroom in Tokyo by two unidentified American military policemen. Identified in the caption as a "former lieutenant in the Japanese Army and prisoner of war commandant," Nakamura appears tense and handcuffed as he is flanked by MPs with white helmets marked "MP." According to the caption, Nakamura, nicknamed "The Rabbit," was sentenced to 12 years at hard labor for misappropriating RFD Cross supplies and mistreating Allied prisoners of war. It notes, "Nakamura is a graduate of St. John’s and Northwestern Universities in the U.S.," pointing to the complex postwar fates of some Nisei or foreign-educated Japanese officers who found themselves on trial.

Minor creasing to edges, light surface wear to photos, especially near borders and corners. Toning consistent with age. Overall very good condition. A rare photographic record of the Allied prosecution of Japanese war crimes, offering crucial visual testimony to the legal aftermath of W.W.II and the complex identities of those who stood trial or gave testimony—many of them elite members of the wartime bureaucracy and military-industrial complex. (Inventory #: 21956)