Douglas MacArthur
1880 – 1964 American army general, administrator
American general who oversaw the postwar reconstruction of Japan, including sweeping education reform.
- Religion
- Episcopalian.
- Affiliations
- Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers in occupied Japan.
As Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, Douglas MacArthur led the occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951. Under his authority, reformers rewrote Japanese education, removing militarist and nationalist content, decentralizing control, and extending compulsory schooling. The 1947 Fundamental Law of Education recast Japanese schooling around democratic and egalitarian principles.
In the timeline
- 1945 The US occupation of Japan begins mentioned
- 1951 Truman Removes MacArthur to Assert Civilian Control mentioned