Author of The Emperor and the Spy
The illustrated Blog posts on this website focus on U.S. Japan relations and Japanese history.
Katz was a Specialist in Rare Books and Ephemera when he acquired the personal papers of a Master Spy, Colonel Sidney Forrester Mashbir (1891-1973). These fascinating materials, combined with his passion for history and many years of research resulted in the exciting historical novel THE EMPEROR AND THE SPY, followed by a sequel, an illustrated biography titled: THE ART OF PEACE.
Colonel Sidney Forrester Mashbir (1891-1973) wore many hats during his long career: as a spy, a diplomat, a Japanese linguist, military strategist, and as a scientist/inventor. Hoping to maintain good relations between the U.S. and Japan, during the 1920s and 1930s, he was befriended and allied with top Japanese leaders such as Prince Iyesato Tokugawa (1863-1940, aka Tokugawa Iesato) and Baron Eiichi Shibusawa (1840-1931, aka Shibusawa Eiichi) in the mutual pursuit of peace. Prince Tokugawa held the influential position of President of the Japan’s Upper House of Congress (the House of Peers) for thirty years. Baron Shibusawa was a most influential international businessman who is known as the “Father of the modern Japanese economy”.
As would be expected of an adept intelligence agent, Mashbir’s influence was entirely behind the scenes. He is an unsung patriotic hero to the highest degree that I hope the world will one day realize. The Mashbir Archives spotlights Colonel Mashbir and his allies’ significant roles in history, drawing from Mashbir’s personal letters, official documents, and photos, as well as other fascinating historical materials gathered during the past twenty years of research.
Mashbir’s goal was to avoid international conflict, but he was not a blind optimist in his pursuit of peace, he also headed a still little known about top secret, quasi-governmental company, called the Washington Institute, that bridged the U.S. military’s industrial/technological requirements with the major corporations of that day who could meet those needs, in the event that war could not be avoided.
Mashbir served as an intelligence advisor to top ranking U.S. generals in both world wars, General Pershing and General MacArthur, making contributions pivotal to the Allied victory. He was also the individual who orchestrated the Surrender Signing Ceremony with the Japanese that officially ended WWII. That tragic conflict might have continued onto the Japanese mainland, if not for Mashbir’s personal and persuasive influence on the Japanese leadership thru his radio broadcasts, where he represented General MacArthur. Based on his Japanese linguistic skills he was able to present the peace treaty in a fashion that the Japanese could understand and accept.
During the early days of the U.S. Occupation of post-war Japan, Mashbir was the translator and facilitator for the eleven top secret meetings between General Douglas MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito, where he assisted these two world leaders to establish a renewed diplomatic/political partnership and friendship.
Mashbir would have remained unknown, like many heroes and patriots before and after him, but my acquisition of his personal papers motivated me to spend the past two decades trying to share his story in the hope that his contributions would serve as lessons for the current world of peace diplomacy and international cooperation.
Today, we get a sense of the world’s instability with the recent outbreak of the coronavirus. Up till now, militarily we’ve felt generally safe due to mutually assured destruction, with relative peace on a global scale for the last 75 years – But beneath this current peace, there is a growing level of nationalism that must be recognized and prevented from turning into domestic racism & discrimination, as well as international conflict – Colonel Mashbir’s career offers many helpful insights to better understand and deal with the issues of today.
The below Illustrated Timeline gives an brief overview of Sidney Mashbir’s personal life & some of his significant achievements.
The Emperor and the Spy historical novel brings him to life!
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For centuries, the Shoguns ruled over a relatively isolated feudal society. Prince Iyesato Tokugawa was to become the next shogun, but when that dynasty ended, he instead creatively guided an emerging Japan onto a modern, interconnected world stage.
Description of the book cover photo:
Prince Iyesato Tokugawa (aka Prince Tokugawa Iesato) receives an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from the University of Southern California (USC). Dr. Rufus B. von Kleinsmid President of the university bestows this degree.
As a writer and historian who has studied and written about Colonel Sidney Mashbir, it was my good fortune when Robert Warren and his son William Warren contacted me in 2018 to discuss their close friendship with Colonel Mashbir many years earlier.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
University of California San Diego
Below is a link to this YouTube presentation – This one hour video was followed by a one hour non-recorded question and answer session with inquiries from the one hundred attendees. Hope you enjoy.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute – University of California San Diego presentation
In 1922, Mashbir completed a dangerous mission in Vladivostok, Russia, preventing the outbreak of a regional war between Japan, China, and Russia, which might have expanded further!
The following year on September 1, 1923, the most destructive natural disaster in modern Japanese history occurred, The Great Kantō Earthquake (関東大震災, Kantō daishinsai), a Japanese natural disaster in the Kantō region of the island of Honshū. This earthquake destroyed Tokyo, the port city of Yokohama, surrounding prefectures of Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka, and approximately 140,000 people died. During the challenging first months following that major disaster, Mashbir spearheaded an American Medical Relief Effort to assist many of the injured Japanese – As part of this humanitarian process, Mashbir created the first English – Japanese Medical Translation Dictionary that was used by English speaking health care workers while treating Japanese speaking patients.
Here is an important moment in history, when the leader of the Japanese peace and democracy movement met with his counterparts in the United States during a challenging period of U.S. Japan relations. This rare, perhaps one of a kind photo presents the Japan Society’s Annual Dinner event honoring Prince Tokugawa on Feb. 27, 1934 – This diplomatic goodwill gathering took place at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. [Source of photo: TheEmperorAndTheSpy.com archives – The actual photo is 14 x 22 inches in size.]
This diplomatic gathering is a mystery: no details are available to identify this event and the individuals who attended. You’ll notice that a meal was served in a traditional Japanese style and there are U.S. and Japan flags displayed at the back of the room. Historians/educators/family members are invited to share their insights as to what this event was linked to and who the individuals are. Please send whatever information you might have thru the comment section at the end of this blog post – That would be most appreciated.
This 1908 photo presents an exciting moment in international business relations, the first modern day U.S. Japan trade/economic alliance which helped the U.S. during a period of economic instability, while at the same strengthening U.S. Japan political and cultural relations.
The Shibusawa 1909 Delegation is welcomed by the City of Ithaca.
Front cover to a celebratory Event Program/Dinner Menu (six page brochure) honoring the visit of Baron Eiichi Shibusawa & his wife, and his accompanying Japanese goodwill/business delegation.
The description reads: