Skip to main content

Primary sourcePhotograph6 January 1948

Tojo Testifying Before the International Military Tribunal, Tokyo, 1948

Unknown photographer · 6 January 1948

A photograph of former Prime Minister Hideki Tojo giving testimony at the Tokyo war crimes trial on 6 January 1948.

Shows Tojo testifying at his own war crimes trial, central evidence of his postwar accountability.

Ask Hideki Tojo about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Hideki Tojo, a bald man in round wire-rimmed glasses and a mustache, wearing a gray military-style uniform, stands at a wooden witness stand with microphones. A uniformed officer with a sheet of paper stands to the left, and an MP guard stands in the background.
Unknown photographer, Hideki Tojo testifies before the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, Tokyo, 6 January 1948.

About this source

What it is

This photograph, taken on 6 January 1948 in the former War Ministry building in Tokyo, shows former Prime Minister General Hideki Tojo standing at a witness stand with microphones, testifying before the International Military Tribunal for the Far East. A uniformed officer stands nearby, and a military police guard is visible in the background.

Why it matters

This image documents one of the most significant moments of postwar accountability, as Tojo, Japan's wartime leader, answers for decisions made under his government before an international court. It shows the shift from wartime authority to legal judgment faced by the leaders of Axis nations after World War II.

Look closer

  • What does Tojo's appearance and setting tell us about his new role as a defendant rather than a leader?
  • Why might this trial have been considered important by the Allied powers?
  • What does this single image leave out about the testimony Tojo actually gave?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Hideki Tojo on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Hideki Tojo sources

Meet the AI Hideki Tojo →
Speech

Primary source

Having Received the Imperial Rescript

Hideki Tojo · 8 December 1941

Document

Primary source

Imperial Edict Declaring War on the United States and the British Empire

8 December 1941

Black-and-white photo of the Tokyo war crimes tribunal courtroom. In the foreground, a man in a dark suit sits at a desk. Behind him, seated rows of uniformed officers and suited men occupy a raised gallery, with a row of spectators visible at the top.Photograph

Primary source

Tojo Takes the Stand

United States Department of Defense

Black and white photograph of a bald, bespectacled man with a mustache wearing a plain buttoned military-style jacket and a headset, standing in front of a wood-paneled wall. Behind him stands a uniformed officer in a peaked cap with a badge, looking off to the side.Photograph

Primary source

Tojo Sentenced to Death, Manila Trials Photograph

24 November 1948

Black and white portrait photograph of a man in a military-style cap with a visor and a high-collared uniform jacket, wearing round wire-rimmed glasses and a mustache. He is decorated with medal ribbons and several star-shaped medals on his chest.Photograph

Primary source

Portrait of Hideki Tojo

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Hideki Tojo now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions