Ogata Katsu

Ogata Katsu
Image of Ogata Katsu, leader of the Kāichrén Democratic State after his coup
Kantoku of the Kāichrén Democratic State
Abolished
In office 1945 – 1950 (Collapse of the KDS)
Deputy	Miya Akihiro
Preceded by	Role Established
Parliamentary group	Kakumei Dōmeitō (Right)
Head of the National Council on War
In office 1945–1950
Preceded by	Kurokawa Isao
Succeeded by	Abolished
Personal details
Born	(1880-03-20)March 20, 1880 Fuzan, Colonial Yánshēn
Died	January 1, 1951(1951-01-01) (aged 70) Jūkei, Esvanovia
Manner of death	Assassination of Ogata Katsu
Political party	Kakumei Dōmeitō (Right)
Education	Kaesong State Academy
Alma mater	Jūkei National Military Academy (1910)
Nickname	Akuma no Kantoku (Devil's Director)
Military service
Allegiance	Kaesong State Army, Kāichrén Democratic State United Forces
Branch/service	Army
Years of service	1915-1929 (KSA), 1929-1950 (KDSUF)
Rank	Generalissimus
Battles/wars	Chamorro War Great War (Esvanovia)

Ogata Katsu (Katsu Ogata, 1880-1951) was the dictator of the Kāichrén Democratic State from 1945-1950, following his coup against Kurokawa Isao. Rising in the military hierarchy throughout the course of both the Chamorro War and the Great War, he would eventually seize power in an anti-defeatist coup after Kurokawa Isao's attempt to negotiate conditional peace with Marquesan. During his period of leadership, he would initiate a violent, nationalistic reorganization of the state under his Dōin Satakka concepts, subordinating politics, economics, and civilian life to the needs of the "Mobilized Nation". He would place the territory of Jungg'o under a defacto military occupation, and collectivize agriculture in a fashion which purposefully withdrew food from perceived "waste-spots" across the country which did not give enough resources to the military or state as a whole, alongside other actions reflective of a deep bias against the individuals living in Jungg'o.

Katsu would be born in Fuzan, under the Marquesan dominated state of the period, and was raised by his nationalistic parents - a situation which informed his deep distaste for Marquesan and other monarchic nations on the Hiakemirian continent. He would be trained as an officer in the Kaesong State Army after his schooling in the Jūkei National Military Academy, serving during the Chamorro War. He would be retained as a member of the military despite his loyalty to the previous stated, owing to his notable tactical innovations during the Chamorro War, and he would be one of the principle actors in the defense of the Chamorro Islands during the Great War. He would be approached by elements of the Kakumei Dōmeitō (Right) due to his high rank and presence on the mainland Yánshēn, who told him of Kurokawa Isao's plans to approach Marquesan for peace negotiations - which Katsu opposed greatly. He would launch a coup a day after Isao's declaration of his decision to seek peace, and would successfully overturn the state using youth-and-police elements in the city to overrun the Ministerial Guard defending the capitol.

After his coup, he would subordinate the state to his self-appointed office as Kantoku, and to his Mobilized Nation concepts as a whole. He would do away with the vestigial elements of democracy possessed by the later Kāichrén Democratic State, abolishing even the sham elections which had been occurring since 1931 and instead declaring himself the permanent leader of the nation for the duration of the conflict. He implemented numerous policies designed to cement this role as the nexus of political power, alongside policies designed to reduce even the rubber-stamp Kakumei's powers in preparation for its eventual abolishment post-war. These actions would greatly influence Pan-Hiakemirism as an ideology, and set the stage for the militaristic nationalism exhibited during the Kaichren Civil War. He would be assassinated in 1951, after the collapse of his control over the Kāichrén Democratic State owing to the Atomic Bombing of Fuzan.

Early Life

Childhood and Education

Katsu would be born on March 20th, 1880, in the city of Fuzan under the then-Marquesan owned Colonial Yánshēn. He was the third of five children born to Ogata Masayuki, and the first born to Ogata Naoko, his second and final wife. He would be raised alongside his siblings in the immediate aftermath of the establishment of Kaesong in 1890, and became the early favorite of his father owing to the calculated and calm nature he possessed, a favoritism which inspired distaste from his older and younger siblings. He would be the only of Masayuki's children to attend the Kaesong State Academy, joining it's opening class in 1895 at the age of 15 (the rest attending the Fuzan Regional Academy), where he would develop a deep loyalty to the state, becoming inspired by the example of Kaesong's then-dictator, Hamamoto Jaeon. Katsu would repeatedly cite a speech given by Hamamoto to the academy's students as a point of inspiration for his later political views.

After graduating from the State University in 1900, aged 20, he would go to the Jūkei National Military Academy for 10 years - training as an officer and gathering a conventional university education at the same time, eventually joining the military after a 5 year break period upon the death of his father (during which time he arranged for the funding of funerary proceedings out of his own pocket). He would spend much of his time before the breaking-out of the Chamorro War absorbing the ideals of noted military innovator Murano Arata, who he perceived as a mentor. Upon the breaking-out of the war, he would be sent to the islands to coordinate joint activity with the CLA.

Chamorro War

Ogata would establish a strong rapport with members of the CLA in his role as a liaison, establishing a strong sense of collaboration between the forces he was attached to and the partisan fighters, who he used as scouts and guides for the region - and as a source of information on how to properly defend said area. During this time, he would assist in the Battle of the Tsumiki Strait, where he coordinated coastal artillery strikes against a Marquesan task force. He would be wounded by shrapnel when a Marquesan shell exploded near his observing position, and would be permanently crippled in one leg throughout the rest of his life - requiring a cane to walk effectively.

He would be congratulated for his bravery and general effectiveness, a reception which left him greatly predisposed to militarism throughout the rest of his life - with him regarding his service in the conflict as the greatest moment of his life, becoming an even stauncher supporter of the state than he had been before. He additionally gained an affinity for Chamorran Culture, and maintained communication with numerous members of the CLA throughout the rest of his life - including three whom he would later include in his unofficial cabinet of advisors (Actassi Shiro, Bendison Aki, and Asano Felu).

Collapse of Kaesong

The collapse of Kaesong would represent a major shift in Katsu's life, with later self-descriptions of the period declaring it was one of his darkest moments. His role in the military would be maintained despite his staunch support of the previous state, but he would find himself listless and generally displeased with the organization of the Kāichrén Democratic State, finding it profoundly abnormal and believing that the systems it propagated were overly-influenced by Anagonia. He would support the short-lived, firmly nationalistic Kokumin Saisei Gurūpu in his private life, and similarly opposed its collaboration with the Kakumei Dōmeitō after the elections, with such causing him to ignore politics for the immediate future, instead focusing on installing nationalist values in the Jūkei Military Academy he had been appointed to lead by the new government.

Prewar Period

He would continue his role as the Headmaster of the Jūkei Military Academy during this period, alongside maintaining his connections in military society through the hosting of social events for former soldiers and leaders during the Chamorran War. He would continue to privately profess distrust in the government during these parties, and would introduce future nationalist thinkers to the works they would derive their ideals from - including the young Hikaru Sakuma, who he found something of himself in, according to his private letters. He would additionally be a minor supporter of the right of the Kakumei, assisting it with private funds and sending members of the JMA to it as a part of supposed "community activities".

Around this period, he would be removed as Headmaster due to his political activites, and instead reintroduced into the army, where he would return to his role as a coordinator with Chamorran military forces, both on the Chamorran Isles themselves and with those divisions present on the mainland. He would be working with native forces on the island when the war broke out, and would assist in the organizing of the Defense of the Chamorro Islands.

Great War

Military Leadership

Ogata would be called upon to play an influential role in the Defense of the Chamorro Islands during the Great War, organizing the logistical and operational planning for all of the battles which occurred upon the island throughout 1931-1945. Through close relationships with key industrial and economic leaders, he would ensure a continuous stream of munitions and material despite the distance between the KDS and the Chamorros, and he would repeatedly deliver speeches to soldiers in an attempt to keep up morale. During this time he would complain greatly of Iminchebol presence in industrial affairs, which he believed was slowing the development of key armaments and resources. He would seize control of all factories located on the Chamorros under the guise of defensive preparations, and use them to construct ammunition and armaments for the population of the island chain, many of whom he would mobilize directly in a logistical or supportive role.

The success of his defenses gave him great acclaim amongst the military staff of the KDS, who would look to his logistical operations as an example for the Janpian Campaign and other offensive operations in the Great War. He would be invited to Kurokawa Isao's war council despite their mutual distrust, and he would serve as a key minister of state during this period, forming connections with the political elite to continue his rationalization efforts in the economic sphere.

Death

See Main Article: Assassination of Ogata Katsu