Aimaro Satō

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Aimaro Satō
Japanese Ambassador to the United States
In office
1916–1918
Preceded byChinda Sutemi
Succeeded byIshii Kikujirō
Personal details
Born(1857-04-22)April 22, 1857
DiedJanuary 12, 1934(1934-01-12) (aged 76)
EducationDePauw University

Aimaro Satō (佐藤 愛麿, April 22, 1857 – January 12, 1934), also known as Yoshimaro Satō and Henry Satoh, was the Japanese Ambassador to the United States from 1916 to 1918.

Biography[edit]

He was born to a samurai family in Hirosaki, Japan 1857.[1] He migrated to the United States and attended DePauw University, graduating in 1881.[2][1] At DePauw he became a member of Beta Theta Pi.[3] In 1896 he published an English-language work, Agitated Japan: The life of Ii Kamon-no-kami Naosuke, a biography of Ii Naosuke, under the name "Henry Satoh."[citation needed]

Upon graduating from DePauw, he returned to Japan and became a telegraph officer in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[1] He then served in Japan's diplomatic missions to the United States, Great Britain, and France before becoming ambassador to Mexico in 1900.[1]

In 1905, Satō participated in the peace conference at Portsmouth, New Hampshire that ended the Russo-Japanese War. The following year, he was appointed Japanese Ambassador to the Netherlands. Satō later served as ambassador to Austria-Hungary during World War I, and barely escaped from the country alive after he was expelled following Japan's declaration of war on Germany (Austria-Hungary's ally).[1]

Satō was then appointed Japanese Ambassador to the United States from 1916 to 1918, replacing his brother-in-law and fellow DePauw alumnus Chinda Sutemi.[1][2] Satō was recalled from his post when he proved unable to secure a deal for the export of steel plates to Japan.[1] He then retired from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and took up a post in the Imperial Household Ministry, serving as a privy councillor attached to the household of Prince Fushimi.[1]

Satō died of arteriosclerosis on January 12, 1934, in Tokyo.[1][4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Aimaro Sato Dies. Japanese Envoy". The New York Times. January 13, 1934. Retrieved 2015-03-04.
  2. ^ a b The Beta Theta Pi. Beta Theta Pi. 1916. p. 113.
  3. ^ "The Beta Theta Pi". google.com/books. 1917.
  4. ^ Gubler, Greg (2021-02-15). Gentleman Samurai and Internationalist: The Life and Trials of Ambassador Sato Naotake, 1882-1971. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-7936-3277-7.