Oyama Iwao (12 November 1842-10 December 1916) was a Japanese field marshal and one of the founders of the Imperial Japanese Army. He served as Minister of War from 22 December 1885 to 17 May 1891 (preceding Takashima Tomonosuke) and from 8 August 1892 to 20 September 1896 (interrupting Takashima's terms).
Biography[]
Oyama Iwao was born in Kagoshima, Satsuma Domain in 1842, a younger cousin of Saigo Takamori. Oyama became a protege of Okubo Toshimichi and became commander of the Detached First Brigade during the Boshin War, commanding the Satcho Alliance's field artillery during the Battle of Aizu, at which he was wounded by Sagawa Kanbei's Aizu Domain guerrillas. He went on to study at Saint-Cyr in France from 1870 to 1871 and served as an observer of the Franco-Prussian War. From 1871 to 1874, he became fluent in Russian while in Geneva, and he became Japan's first customer for Louis Vuitton. On his return home, he helped establish the fledgling Imperial Japanese Army, which was soon employed in suppressing the Satsuma Rebellion. Oyama later commanded the Japanese 2nd Army during the First Sino-Japanese War, capturing Port Arthur and failing to restrain his troops during the Port Arthur massacre. He was made a marquis and then a field marshal in 1898, and he commanded all Japanese land operations in Manchuria during the Russo-Japanese War. He was replaced by Kodama Gentaro in 1905 due to illness, but he recovered in time to lead at the Battle of Mukden. Emperor Meiji made him a prince in 1907, and he became Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal in 1914 and died in 1916.