Yutaka Ueda

Lord Superior of Dok-lang Yutaka Ueda
Ueda in Sieuxerr in 1936
Nickname(s)	"Napoleon of the Orient"
Born	15 December, 1888 Seto, Dayashina
Died	21 June, 1979 Wakasa, Dayashina
Allegiance	Imperial Dayashinese Army Republic of Dayashina Army
Years of service	1909-1943 1950-1955
Rank	General
Commands held	7th Infantry Regiment, 1930-1933 3rd Division "Ikari Heidan", 1933-1938 Meridian Army, 1938-1943 Chief of Staff, Joint Staff of the Republic of Dayashina Defence Forces, 1950-1955
Battles/wars	Battle of Sundan, 1938 Battle of Amritsar, 1939 Battle of Lahore, 1939 Battle of La Costa, 1940 Battle of Marabella, 1940 Battle of Jahrabad, 1940 Battle of XX, 1941 Battle of XX, 1941 Manang Incident, 1942
Awards	Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum (2nd class) Order of the Rising Sun (1st class) Order of the Sacred Treasure (1st class) Legion of Honour (Sieuxerr) Lord Superior of Dok-lang (Themiclesia) Order of the Star (Themiclesia)
Spouse(s)	Reiko Utsugi
Children	Two sons
Other work	Professor, Sojo Institute of Military History, 1957-1967 Author, The State and the Future, 1965

Yutaka Ueda (1888-1979) was a general in the Imperial Dayashinese Army in the Pan-Septentrion War. He also served as the Chief of Staff, Joint Staff of the Republic of Dayashina Defence Forces from 1950 to 1955. He is one of the most important figures in Dayashinese political and military history, and is renowned across the world for his military exploits and resistance to the policies of Genki Suzuki throughout the Pan-Septentrion War. Furthermore, he is credited as the forefather of the reformed Dayashinese military and its doctrine.

Early life

Yutaka Ueda was born in the Sanbachi District of Seto on 15 December, 1888. He was the first and only child born to a modestly living family within the merchant caste, with a limited military service history. Throughout his early life, he attended the typical system of education, wherein he was introduced to the world of soldiering and warfare, but also trained under his father to eventually ascend to owning the small family fishing business. Ueda was known for his lofty personality, believing himself smarter and better than many of his authority figures, and being comparatively unafraid to ask challenging questions in his early education, which got him reprimanded and punished on numerous separate occasions.

Despite his tendency for defiance and questioning, Ueda completed his early education without massive issue. Despite the indoctrination and romanticisation focused attitudes towards warfare in Dayashinese education at the time, Ueda had developed more of an independent interest for the technicalities of warfare, and was reported to frequent his local library to study military historical texts relating to various places around the world. Subsequently, in 1909, he signed up to Imperial Dayashinese Army Cadet School, which he would graduate from in 1913, ranked 15th out of 400 candidates. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the infantry in the IDA.

High education and ascension

Ueda in Themiclesia during his tenure at the Themiclesian Army Academy, 1916

After graduating from IDACS in 1913, Ueda would be granted permission by authorities to forego some of his duties under the military to pursue further education abroad, being selected as a part of the Imperial Dayashinese Army's initiative to create a profoundly educated base of prospective high ranking officers. Ueda, finding himself dissatisfied with the current situation of IDA code of conduct and practice of law, opted to attend the Themiclesian Army Academy for several years, where he would study the tenets of legal theory. Here, he would learn the intricacies of foreign systems of constitutionality and democracy, and reinforce his silent contempt for what he believed was unjust rigidity within Dayashinese law and society. However, he refrained from expressing this contempt to his superiors, instead opting to publish his findings for the IDA with the objective of updating and modernising a number of outdated and then unpractical laws that were still being enforced. Despite this, he was known within the Themiclesian Army Academy to have published a controversial dissertation critiquing injustice within Dayashinese government at the time.

Partly due to pressure from his superiors, Ueda would depart the Themiclesian Army Academy in 1920, where he would return to Dayashina for two years to receive a promotion and fulfill subsequent duties for having contributed to the legal modernisation of the IDA. From there, he, and other prospective candidates, would be mandated to study in various universities and academies across Casaterra, with orders to identify the intricacies and conventions of modern battlefield efficiency from those who had already been practicing it for centuries. IDA high command had set out to create the most efficient fighting force in the history of the world, and intended to do so by following convention and standard, which Ueda realised as problematic. Despite his orders, Ueda realised the uniqueness of Dayashina's situation, in that there were certain areas that Dayashina would never be able to compete with external powers with, as a newly industrialised stated and fledgling military by comparison to those that the IDA sought to eclipse. Thus, he set out with the personal objective of identifying current conventions and devising unconventional ways to defeat them with specific thought given towards Dayashina's capacity and composition.

Through studying in academies, primarily in Tyran, Ostland, and Sieuxerr, it became apparent to Ueda that a convention of armoured warfare would emerge, with Casaterran countries putting an unprecedented emphasis on the development of armour and mechanisation of infantry for both higher speed and more destructive power. With massive, time-tried, and developed industrial bases, along with a competitive nature between very closely located states, the Casaterran countries had the capacity and willingness to stress these types of developments, and Ueda reckoned they would represent the future of land based warfare. Reporting these findings back to the IDA, he (and other officers who had identified similar issues) had caused a fair amount of stir and panic amongst high command, who realised that they were being out-competed in the line of armour and mechanisation, due to both incentive and industrial capacity. Ueda presented the argument that the IDA, with these factors taken into account, would need to defy the developing convention if it wanted to remain competitive, and develop a systematic method of bridging the century long gap between the industrial development of Dayashina and their competitors. After much debate, such arguments were accepted as reality by the IDA. Ueda, by now, had ascended to the rank of Major General, in command of the 3rd Infantry Division, "Ikari Heidan." He, along with others, were ordered to begin work among themselves and with their units to devise a method at which the IDA would be able to overcome their setbacks and bridge the gap between their competitors. Ueda, accounting for both political and military trends in Casaterra, opted to ground his studies in Sieuxerr.

Studies in Sieuxerr

Ueda's contributions to Sieuxerran doctrine were a major part of Sieuxerran-Dayashinese friendship during the PSW

Ueda and the IDA's 3rd Division were granted access to train in Sieuxerr under an agreement of favourable doctrinal and technological sharing between the two countries. Ueda had already caught the eye of a number of famed and high ranking Sieuxerran officers, and thus was granted special access to the country, being the among the only Dayashinese officers who were also allowed to bring their subsequent units with them to train with the Sieuxerran armed forces. Here, Ueda would maintain a constant dialogue with said Sieuxerran officers, whom which he would collaborate with to develop both Dayashinese and Sieuxerran ground based doctrine out of mutual interest and similar predicaments (with tensions between Sieuxerr and the very armour-focused Ostland mounting).

Development of IDA doctrine and tactics

Through much trial and error, running scenarios and games between the Ikari Heidan and units across the Sieuxerran armed forces, Ueda and his counterparts were able to develop a sound strategic overlay and develop small-unit tactics grounded in infantry-based mobility and heavy focus on infantry based anti-armour weapons and movements. Staples of this development were wide employment of mortars, anti-tank rifles, and mobile guns, with specific movements developed down to the squad level for most imaginable scenarios where an infantry unit would need to fight against an oncoming hostile armoured unit. He spent over six years in Sieuxerr perfecting this doctrine, streamlining his findings back to Dayashina, which responded by incorporating such training at home, and vastly changing weapons procurement schedules and developments to align with what would be needed en masse to actually fulfill such a strategy. His developments would be put to the ultimate test only a year after his return to home, with Dayashina entering the Pan-Septentrion War with a declaration of war on Tyran and Sylva.

National Military Academy

Ueda's transfer of information and ideas back to Imperial Dayashina after his studies in Sieuxerr not only led to the overhaul and refining of IDA training, but also led to the development of the National Military Academy, a standardised network of military acadamies spanning the population centres of Dayashina. It is said that Ueda mused about the idea of a standard military academy after his studies at the Themiclesian Army Academy, and had pitched the idea in private to agreeable colleagues, Generals Akira Nagata and Eito Uehara. Nagata and Uehara would go on pass the idea onto High Command, where it was received well enough to be considered officially by Ascendancy Party officials. After terms were agreed upon, as dictated by the Party, the proposition was authorised, and High Command launched the academy system preceding Dayashina's entry into the Pan-Septentrion War. The National Military Academy would prove vital in the rapid production of quality servicemembers and non-commissioned officers up until the end of the war, when Ascendancy Party officials interfered with the Academy to hasten its qualification standards and vastly increase emphasis on political indoctrination, abandoning the principles which allowed it to produce quality soldiers quickly.

After the war, the National Military Academy was reconstructed and repurposed into the Republic of Dayashina Military Academy, where students ages 13-18 are offered heavily subsidised, competitively ranked secondary education in addition to preparatory skills and military-oriented training. The RDMA still follows the same principles of the NMA - to produce future servicemembers at the highest quality possible. However, it is not a requirement for RDMA students to try out for the Armed Forces, they may just as easily apply for a traditional tertiary education, making use of a high degree of state benefits.

Success at Sundan

After the Imperial Dayashinese military reclaimed the Divine Island Chain, they set their sights on Sundan, a major and built up Tyrannian holding in the East. Following the Battle of Portcullia Strait, the Royal Navy intended to retreat to the friendly ports of Sundan, but the Imperial Dayashinese Navy had already moved into place, inflicting further losses on the retreating Royal Navy vessels as they slipped through to Dickenson. Furthermore, the IDN had been waging unrestricted submarine warfare on Tyrannian-Sundanese shipping, cutting the hundreds of thousands of troops on the islands off from resupply. Nevertheless, the Tyrannians refused to surrender the territory, and the IDN, with their aviation, launched a bombing campaign on the nation's political and industrial centres, particularly the capital, Penang.

General Ueda was called in to command the operations in Penang. As Dayashinese troops landed on a half-decimated Penang, the early stages of the fighting were largely governed by close quarters infantry combat. IDN Marines were able to win multiple critical set piece battles and clear the coastal outskirts of the city. Though, as the Marines started to push inland towards the center of the city, they were beginning to encounter clusters of Tyrannian armour and their progress slowed significantly, as Dayashinese armour were outclassed by that of the Tyrannians and were forced to avoid direct confrontations, and the Marines found themselves ill equipped to deal with the enemy armour. This was Ueda's first opportunity to put his doctrine into action. He the IDN Marines and armour to the back line to perform reinforcement and fire support functions, while landing the IDA 3rd Division, the Ikari Heidan, who were equipped with vast amounts of portable anti-armour equipment.

IDA personnel operate light artillery outside Penang

The 3rd Division established light artillery positions in the areas surrounding Penang to perform precision fire support functions, while sending infantry armed with anti-tank rifles, towed guns, mortars, and anti-tank bundle grenades into the center of the city to confront the Tyrannian armoured units. The tactics developed proved to be effective, as the 3rd Division made usage of their high mobility and scattered entrenchment within buildings to confuse and overwhelm the enemy armoured units, forcing constant retreat to avoid destruction. When units of the 3rd Division got stalemated in a firefight, Ueda would assign a unit of IDN Marines to assist them and break the stalemate and continue the press against the retreating armour. After about a week and a half of steady progress, Ueda's forces had captured about two thirds of the city, narrowing down Tyrannian held territory to a slim 1/3 of the city's land. Dayashinese victories elsewhere in Sundan meant that reinforcements from the capital had been cut off or expended elsewhere, and so there were no resupplies or reinforcements coming to the Tyrannians from inland. The Tyrannians still held fast and refused offers of surrender.

After deliberation with Admiral Kantaro Yamaguchi, Ueda called all of his troops to the coastal region of the city, allowing the IDN group present to unleash a hellish two day long naval and aviation bombardment of the remaining Tyrannian territory in the city. After a ceasefire was ordered on the part of the Dayashinese, the commanding officer of the Tyrannian forces emerged and agreed to terms of surrender for Penang and Sundan as a whole (this was because six of the eight people who held the power to discuss terms of surrender had been killed, and the remaining two were being held by the IDN, refusing to surrender). Ueda had won his first battle as a general, and won the trust in his doctrine by the IDA, as its implementation directly led to the first major theatre victory of Dayashina over a Casaterran opponent. Dayashina suffered approximately 7,000 deaths in Penang, with the Tyrannisn suffering 11,000, and approximately a further 15,000 amongst local colonial forces. Over 130,000 troops, including 40,000 Tyrannian Army personnel and 90,000 local embeds, had been taken prisoner from Sundan. With this victory under his belt, Imperial Dayashina was more than prepared to entrust him with wider operations on the Meridian continent.

Meridian War

Maracaibo negotiations 1938

Yutaka Ueda was one of two leading negotiators in Imperial Dayashina's negotiations with the Democratic Republic of Maracaibo, his counterpart being General Takuro Mutaguchi - a member of High Command, the newly appointed governor of Sundan, and one of the Ascendancy Party's closest confidantes. Maracaibo, intimidated by the rapid seizrue of Sundan by Dayashina under Ueda's command, arranged to negotiate a deal with the Empire in an attempt to secure their sovereignty and avoid subjugation. Chancellor Siguenza of Maracaibo arranged to meet with Ueda and Mutaguchi in Maracaibo City for the discussions to take place. The negotiations are recognised for their rapid pace, as Ueda and Mutaguchi were pressed to secure a deal the country quickly so that Dayashinese armies could land on Meridia and give chase to Casaterran forces.

In the negotiations themselves, Ueda and Mutaguchi were markedly and irregularly compromising and willing to give a level of lenience to the Maracaiban delegation, a convenience that Dayashinese negotiators did not give the Anglians in Sundan - this was something that some Maracaiban politicians rightly took with a level of suspicion. The end result of the deal, as written and signed, was one that favoured nearly every sentiment held by the Maracaiban delegation, with some concessions given to the Dayashinese. It demanded the indefinite cessation of hostilities between DRM and IDA forces, the sale of petroleum products from Maracaibo to Dayashina and its holdings below market price, and the recognition of Maracaiban neutrality on the global stage. Furthermore, it entailed that Maracaibo would remain free of Dayashinese military personnel and the forbidding of IDN combat elements from access to Maracaiban ports, with a grant of permission of Dayashinese advisors into the country to ensure the prevention of hostilities.

Soon after the negotiations, it is known that Ueda and Mutaguchi convened again at Mutaguchi's residence in Sundan, where they both agreed that Imperial Dayashina could not afford to uphold the terms of the deal as written. After short consideration and calculation, Yutaka Ueda had concluded that Dayashina would need complete and uncontested access to the entirety of the Maracaiban oil market to supply its projected movements across Meridia and the Helian - the oil coming from Shijuku would not be enough. Moreover, he postulated that Dayashina could not afford to allow Maracaibo to continue exporting oil to its enemies. Takuro Mutaguchi believed that the deal granted Maracaibo with a level of sovereignty unacceptable to the Empire and unsustainable in the long term, and that the forbidding of Dayashinese troops to enter the country at any time was an insult to the Empire. As such, the two drafted plans to informally integrate Maracaibo into the Meridia Co-Prosperity Sphere (MCPS).

The result of Ueda and Mutaguchi's deliberation was the wholesale restriction of Maracaiban exports by the Imperial Dayashinese Navy, forcing Maracaiban merchant vessels to turn away and issuing demands upon the Maracaiban government for export focus on Dayashinese and Menghean markets. Furthermore, Dayashinese "advisors" assigned to posts in Maracaibo would take on a function more akin to administrators, who worked to bolster Maracaiban port, shipping, road, and rail infrastructure by using local and POW labour in order to speed up the rate of exports from the country. Later in the war, Imperial Dayashinese military forces would demand temporary access to southern Maracaiban ports to prepare for an invasion of Verpletterant, a demand that was satisfied much to the chagrin of the local population. Dayashinese officials would regularly prepare studies and reports on Maracaiban officials to ensure compliance and identify friends and potential enemies.

All in all, the decision to ignore the terms of the negotiation, made in part by Ueda, would set the stage for Imperial treatment of Maracaibo for the next 5 years. While it is true that it resulted in wide scale modernisation and enrichment through trade and public works projects to improve infrastructure, it also vastly infringed upon the sovereignty of the nation, a concept so ever-important to its populace. It would ultimately lead to the 1943 coup d'etat by Villeda, who would demand that the Empire return to upholding the terms of the deal, a call which would only be answered by a subsequent invasion and genocide.

Khalistan 1939

Ueda in Khalistan during the Siege of Lahore, 1939

Sefrou 1940

By the turn of the year in 1940, Imperial Dayashina was positioned both politically and militarily for a landing on and subsequent conquest of continental east Meridia. Having forced Maracaibo into vassal status through predatory diplomacy and having augmented Menghe in a surge of Axis victories across Khalistan, the nation had amassed millions of troops in Sundan in preparation a gigantic operation set to span across the entirety of east Meridia. After months of discussion, High Command resolved that Imperial Dayashina should continue its fairly unhindered onslaught onto the continent, with the goal of completely eradicating Casaterran colonial presence from the region and establishing a Meridian Co-Prosperity Sphere, to be governed from Sundan. General Ueda had been tasked with leading the ground element of the operation as a whole, and was guaranteed a high degree of control over the Meridian Co-Prosperity Sphere once it was established. On 9 January, 1940, Dayashina launched Operation Immaculate Vindication, mobilising in several landings across the coastline of Sefrou, in pursuit of the Sylvan Meridian Army.

IDA troops encountered scattered and disorganised resistance from native militants and colonial police forces in Concepcion, Antofagasta, Puerto Narates, and Costa Dorado, who faced many of the same coordination issues as the Anglians and Sundanese did in 1939, if not to a higher degree. The islands fell entirely to Dayashinese control within weeks, allowing imperial forces to conduct naval and aerial reconnaissance from Costa Dorado into mainland Sefrou. Having gathered that the Sylvan Meridian Army was not positioned on the island of Sefrou, Imperial Dayashinese Air Force elements conducted reconaissance and probing flights on coastal mainland Sefrou cities, which resulted in the rapid discovery of the Sylvan Meridian Army deeply entrenched and fortified at La Costa. Here, Ueda reasoned that he would be able to conduct a two-pronged entrapment approach, much like he did with his campaign in east Khalistan. Alongside a direct landing on the coastline of La Costa, Ueda would simultaneously land a sizeable troop element slightly east of the city. The main force, 1st Division, engaged with the Sylvans in bloody street-to-street, door-to-door fighting, while the flanking force to the east, 3rd Division, branched out in a vast hook formation in the surrounding area. Despite fierce resistance from the Sylvans, Dayashinese forces made very steady progress through the city, aided by total air superiority. Paul Crepeau, an independent Sieuxerran journalist attached to Dayashinese forces in the area wrote in his diary describing Dayashinese troops as "diabolically proficient in an urban setting" and "reminiscent of the crack shock units of Sieuxerr."

After a week and a half of fighting, Sylvan battle lines began to collapse, and they conducted an organised retreat downriver under the cover of night, away from the city. Knowing that they had been surrounded by a second Dayashinese force during the engagement at La Costa, they were faced with no other option but to cross the river and head west, which was exactly what Ueda had intended. 3rd Division was ordered to take up pursuit of the Sylvans immediately, while elements of 1st Division departed the city and shadowed the opposing army to the north, ensuring that they would not be able to reposition anywhere with northern coastal access. Ueda stressed 3rd Division's logistics immensely in order to keep them in threatening distance of the Sylvan Meridian Army, which had the liberty of access to allied logistics flowing from Azbekistan as well as prior knowledge of terrain, allowing them to move westward through thick jungle relatively quickly, at a pace which the Dayashinese could just barely keep up with. Elements of both divisions reported limited engagements with Sylvan forces, often localised small-scale skirmishes or hit-and-run incidents, but the Sylvans tended to avoid any large scale engagement, being outnumbered and with the knowledge that they would likely end up surrounded if they stopped moving. Dayashinese aircraft bombarded enemy locations and logistics chains extensively, but despite their concerted efforts, the Sylvans continued moving through the jungle at an amazingly quick pace. Eventually, Dayashinese reconaissance determined beyond a reasonable doubt that the Sylvan Meridian Army had every intention to reach the port city of Marabella and bail out of Sefrou to Azbekistan.

Worried that they would be successful in this escape, General Ueda attempted to deliver several offers of surrender to the opposing forces, offers which were subsequently ignored by the Sylvan generals. Following these rejections, Ueda attempted to move elements of the 1st Division in the way of the Sylvans and initiate an encirclement before reaching Marabella, forcing large set piece engagements, However, these movements also failed to stop the Sylvans, who were easily able to establish screens and continue movement south-westward, albeit at slightly slower pace. After multiple weeks of chasing the enemy which would not stop, staffers reported that Ueda became noticeably and uncharacteristically angered with the situation, especially as troops of his personally trained and prized 3rd Division suffered increasing hardships due to their logistical limitations and various medical issues sourcing from prolonged exposure to the jungle. Eventually, Ueda ordered the 1st and 3rd Divisions to unify and slow their pursuit to a rate where the men would be able to recover from their logistical and medical stress. Meanwhile, Imperial Dayashinese Air Force planes conducted a bombing campaign on the city of Marabella in an effort to deny the Sylvan Meridian Army the ability to depart, virtually flattening the city after striking critical infrastructure, leaving dozens of thousands of people displaced from their homes.

Imperial Dayashinese Army personnel in a firefight with Sylvan soldiers during the Battle of Marabella, 1940

Upon arrival to Marabella, the Sylvans encountered the legions of displaced civilians caused by the Dayashinese bombing campaign. It also became quickly clear that they would not be able to leave Sefrou from Marabella, but with Dayashinese infantry in pursuit, they had no option but to make a stand. Having abandoned almost all hope for escape, Sylvan command dug in around the city limits and began a concerted operation to evacuate the displaced civilians on whatever small and makeshift boats they could muster up to make the crossover to Azbekistan. Dayashinese pilots conducting reconnaissance over the city observed the phenomenon, and mistakenly assumed that it was Sylva departing its troops. TBD

Removal from command

After repeated refusals over the course of five years to carry out orders from back home which he deemed inhumane or lacking in foresight, Ueda was already on thin ice with High Command. Ueda's repeated defiance to their orders had triggered an all but psychotic reaction, but the High Command repeatedly voted against removing him from his position, as what was indisputable was that Ueda's campaign in Meridia had seen unprecedented and rapid success, and that he was the best tactician the IDA had to offer at that point. However, the line in the sand was finally drawn when the Ascendancy Party entered the conflict directly, overruling the votes of the High Command.

In 1943, at which point Ueda was on the brink of having completely conquered all of East Meridia (points of concentrated resistance remained in inland Verpletterant), direct Ascendancy Party orders to carry out a genocide on the Maracaiban people reached his desk. Ueda, like his moralist character, and reinforced by ideals he'd learnt in the Themiclesian Army Academy, categorically refused to carry out this order, even though it came from an Ascendancy Party motion signed by the Emperor himself. With haste, High Command was forced to another vote on whether or not to remove him from command of the Meridian Army, and this time, they voted in favour of his removal under immense pressure from the Ascendancy Party.

Many predicted that Ueda would initiate a revolt and split Dayashinese Meridia off from the Empire, given his trend of defiance over the course of the campaign. Despite this, he did not take any such action, and simply abided by the notice of his relief of duty, and returned to Dayashina. He spent a brief time in Nakazara, where he was questioned and chastised by the Ascendancy Party, but leveraged his allies in High Command to protect his sanctity and force a halt on escalation to avoid a split inside the High Command. Later, he would prove instrumental in leading and organising a coup d'etat that would lead to the Bleeding Sun Incident, subsequently bringing an end to the Pan-Septentrion War.

Controversies

Ueda's character has been viewed with a varying degree of scepticism from both international and domestic critics alike. While he is famed mostly for his benevolent leadership, morally sound decision making and military genius, he is also at the center of several controversial thinking points in history.

Primarily, he is coined by some as the "Butcher of Meridia" due to the lasting effect that the Imperial Dayashinese Army under his command had on the continent, from a personal to a geopolitical level. Ueda's armies tore across Meridia, subjugating dozens of nations and assisting the subjugation of many others, entirely changing Meridian political landscapes and social orders, the lasting effects of which can still be seen today. Imperial Dayashinese Army destruction and taxation has been repeatedly cited as a major factor in the stifling of propensity for economic growth for several Meridian nations, while other Meridian nations, particularly Shijuku, continue to reap the benefits of these actions. Ueda's compliance in Imperial Dayashina's short and long term plans for the subjugation of Meridia are viewed as nothing short of criminal by multiple international organisations.

D/ISOG sharpshooters Eiji Takamura and Shinjiro Uehara pictured in the mountains of Khalistan, 1941

Ueda is also famed for the formation of the Dayashinese/Imperial Special Operations Group (D/ISOG), which was an Imperial Dayashinese Army organisation formed specifically to enact and counter irregular warfare tactics employed by allied powers. The group utilised a mix of elite infantry, those with relevant background skills, and knowledgeable natives to both conduct and prevent raids, hit-and-runs, and other such irregular tactics. The group was fairly successful throughout the war with several important victories across both the Helian War and Meridian War, and famously fighting a brutal irregular conflict with Anglian troops till the last day of the war in the mountains of Khalistan. Furthermore, D/ISOG provided the basis for the reformation of a Dayashinese special forces group in 1950. Despite the group's successful record, it is also confirmed to be the organisation behind numerous war crimes committed across the world, from the burning of villages in Khalistan up to assassination attempts upon the Themiclesian emperor. The group was also cited to consistently use the threat of violence upon civilians to force the hand of opposition forces, luring them into kill zones. Although it was evidenced in Ueda's Sakurajima trial that Ascendancy Party officials had a hand in corrupting D/ISOG's original purpose, Ueda is still cited as complicit in the sense that he had created the organisation to begin with. The pardoning of Ueda, along with numerous other D/ISOG personnel, for these actions, remain to this day one of the most controversial aspects of the Sakurajima trials.

Lastly, Ueda openly discussed having been a primary proponent of the minimisation of post-war reparations to allied-aligned countries. Ueda and other high ranking officials in occupied Dayashina worked primarily with the Glasic delegation to ensure that Dayashina paid the least post-war reparations as possible. He and others tirelessly vied for the mitigation of reparations beyond those paid to Tir Glas and Anglia for the Helian War, completely neglecting to acknowledge the ravaged Meridia as needing or worthy of post-war reparations. Nations such as Khalistan and Maracaibo, which shouldered some of the worst consequences of the IDA's rampage across Meridia, have been and continue to be extremely vocal in their demands for the payment of appropriate reparations by Dayashina. As the Anglian delegation was unable to wrestle further reparations from Dayashina for Meridia and other allied countries (compounded with the fact that the situation on the ground in Menghe was increasingly demanding), they eventually backed out of the joint occupation of Dayashina with Tir Glas. This would directly lead to a hastier end to the occupation and a subsequent assisted jump-start of the Dayashinese military-industrial complex in 1950, an issue that also remains controversial to this day.

Reformation of the Dayashinese Armed Forces

Yutaka Ueda took a leading role in the post-occupation formation of the Republic of Dayashina Defence Forces, serving as its first Chief of Staff, Joint Staff from 1950 to 1955, laying out the structure as well as short and long term plans for the RDDF, which Dayashinese military planners continue to follow on a broad level. His status as the most successful Dayashinese Pan-Septentrion War General and commitment to the ideals of liberal democracy made him a shoo-in for the position. It is reported that he was repeatedly beckoned to serve further tenures as Chief of Staff, Joint Staff, but he indeed refused all of them, asserting in a 1956 interview that he had given everything he possibly could have to the institution of the military during his 53 years of service.

Professorship

Yutaka Ueda was a frequent lecturer at the Officer Candidate Academy

Ueda signed a ten year contract to teach as a professor at the Sojo Institute of History in the University of Nakazara, with an emphasis on contemporary military history. A fairly unconventional professor, Ueda was appreciated by his students for the discussion and debate he routinely encouraged and facilitated in his classe, drawing inspiration from his learning experience in the Themiclesian Army Academy. He was a frequent guest lecturer in universities across the world.

Authorship

In 1965, Yutaka Ueda's published his book The State and the Future. Today considered one of the most important written documents in Dayashinese political history, the book has been cited politicians as foundational to Dayashinese interpretations of democracy since its release. It is part of required learning in Dayashinese secondary school curriculum and is featured in tertiary programmes across the world. The State and the Future contains a mix of academic and autobiographical accounts of Dayashinese history up from 1910 until 1950, including the Pan-Septentrion War. In the book, Ueda attempts to identify every reason why the Empire of Dayashina collapsed as a result of the Pan-Septentrion War. The four major reasons which he illuminates, with personal accounts from people involved with each, are as follows: poor industrial coordination, abuse and neglect of civil institutions, radical politics degrading governmental, military, and institutional quality, and irrational decision-making (specifically - the hasty pursuance of war with West Vinya before any consolidation or true material preparation effort). He posits that the combination of these factors meant that the Empire's fate was sealed the minute it entered the war, and that good-faith actors within the system could only hope to soften the inevitable blow.

"No matter how effective a fighting unit was made through the National Military Academy and training, how many ships and planes were produced in our factories, or how many new resources were seized, the Empire, as it was, could not have emerged victorious from such a conflict."

He argues that the Ascendncy Party which controlled the Empire corrupted the nation's culture, traditions, and ways of life and turned them into a hollow amalgamation meant only to serve the Party's own ends. Lastly, and most importantly (by his account), he takes the position that the Empire not just lost, but never once had gained the true will of the people, thanks to the innumerable cases of abuse and failure to provide on a level that those in developed, progressive countries find most basic. He assumes that the reader agrees on three points: that such a total failure must not be allowed to happen again, that it is the responsibility of the state to guide the people as far in the opposite direction as possible, that it is the responsibility of the people to demand that the state works in the enhancement and protection of their interests at all times. To these ends, Ueda proposes the following nine major concepts (each presented with their own chapter):

• Strict and unwavering adherence to liberal democracy
• Rejection of radical politics
• Adoption of mixed-market capitalism with deference to collective interest
• Empowerment of common people through welfare, civil institutions, political liberty, and social unity
• Acknowledgement of national tradition and culture as sacrosanct and inherently valuable
• Collaboration and cooperation with the international community
• Maintenance of a premier military force to protect the interest of the common people
• Deference to institutional expertise, individual experience, and strategic reality where necessary
• Requirement and facilitation of intellectual and professional development for all citizens

Using a plethora of examples both foreign and domestic for each, Ueda posits that following these nine principles may afford a country's people with both comfortability and security. The book has been met with both heaping praise and criticism in dialogues across the world.

Assassination attempts

Ueda was the subject of 18 known separate assassination attempts after the Pan-Septentrion War and his victorious defence by Ree Ree Ree and Partners in one of the most controversial trials to date. Two attempts came from independent domestic actors, four attempts from independent Anglian, Gothian, and Hallian actors, and an overwhelming 12 came from both state affiliated and independent Meridian actors, primarily from Maracaiban, Husseinartian, and various southeast Meridian actors. While 13 of the attempts were stifled by private or civil security, five were carried out, two of which came dangerously close to success.

On one of the two close occasions, a bomb was planted by seasoned partisans linked to anti-colonial movements in Husseinarti on an international flight from Dayashina to Sieuxerr set to depart from Nakazara in 1961. Ueda was bound to be on this flight to complete a series of guest lectures in Sieuxerran and Gothian universities. The bomb exploded over the Meridian Ocean, killing everyone on the flight. Ueda survived because he had cancelled his flight and moved to one scheduled to depart one week later due to an unstated medical issue. On the other close occasion, a cell of Kainanese agents linked to former IDA General and PSW-era rival Kaoru Amachi conducted a drive-by attack on Ueda at a restaurant in Mogami, Shijuku in 1963. Four people were killed in the attack. 17 more were wounded, including Ueda who was grazed twice with bullets fired from AKMs. Amachi was discreetly extradited by Kainan to Shijuku and forced into monitored exile for the rest of his life on the islands of Kitaizumi.

Retirement and late life

Yutaka Ueda retired in the company of his wife and two sons in Wakasa in 1970. He was noted to struggle deeply with trauma and isolation, but took an active role in his community and his family. He routinely traveled to his hometown of Seto on holidays where locals often saw him fishing alone or with members of his family.

Death and burial

Ueda passed away of old age on the evening of 21 June, 1979, at the age of 91. His funeral and burial was a international spectacle, with a national day of mourning declared by the Dayashinese government. Upon his passing, the cities of Seto and Nakazara erected life-size monuments in celebration of his life and contributions. Both feature Ueda in military uniform, while the Seto monument features him smiling in a waving-hand position, while the Nakazara monument features him looking towards the sky in the direction of the sunrise with one hand on the hilt of his sheathed shin guntō.

Legacy

TBD