Saitō Makoto Viscount was a Japan ese naval officer and politician . Saitō was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy . He was two - time Governor - General of Korea from 1919 to 1927 and from 1929 to 1931 , and the 30th Prime Minister of Japan from May 26 , 1932 to July 8 , 1934 . Biography . Early life . Saitō was born in Mizusawa Domain , Mutsu Province ( part of present day Ōshū City Iwate Prefecture ) , as the son of a " samurai " of the Mizusawa Clan . In 1879 , he graduated from the 6th class Imperial Japanese Naval Academy , ranking third out of a class of 17 cadets . He was commissioned an ensign on September 8 , 1882 , and promoted to sub - lieutenant on February 25 , 1884 . Military career . In 1884 , Saitō went to the United States for four years to study as a military attaché . Promoted to lieutenant on July 14 , 1886 ; in 1888 , after returning to Japan , he served as a member of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff . After his promotion to lieutenant commander on December 20 , 1893 , he served as executive officer on the cruiser and battleship . During the First Sino - Japanese War , Saitō served as captain of the cruiser s and . He received rapid promotions to commander on December 1 , 1897 and to captain on December 27 . On November 10 , 1898 , he became Vice Minister of the Navy , and was promoted to rear admiral on May 20 , 1900 Political career . Saitō was again Vice Navy Minister at the start of the Russo - Japanese War of 1904 - 1905 . He was promoted to Vice Admiral on June 6 , 1904 . He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun ( 1st class ) in 1906 . After the end of the war , he served as Navy Minister for 6 years , from 1906 – 1914 , during which time he continually strove for expansion of the navy . On September 21 , 1907 , Saitō was ennobled with the title of " danshaku " ( baron ) under the " kazoku " peerage system . On October 16 , 1912 , he was promoted to full admiral . However , on April 16 , 1914 , Saitō was forced to resign from his post as Navy Minister due implications of his involvement in the Siemens scandal , and officially entered the reserves . In September 1919 , Saitō was appointed as the third Japanese Governor - General of Korea . Rising to the post right after the culmination of the Korean independence movement , he was subject to an immediate assassination attempt by radical Korean nationalist s . He served as governor - general of Korea twice — in 1919 – 1927 , and again in 1929 – 1931 , implementing a series of measures to moderate Japan ' s policies on Koreans . He was awarded the Order of the Paulownia Flowers in 1924 . On April 29 , 1925 , his title was elevated to that of " shishaku " ( viscount ) . In 1927 , Saitō was a member of the Japanese delegation at the Geneva Naval Conference on Disarmament , and he later became a privy councillor . Prime Minister . Following the assassination of Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi on May 15 , 1932 by fanatical navy officers who thought Inukai far too conciliatory ( the May 15 Incident ) , Prince Saionji Kinmochi , one of the Emperor ' s closest and strongest advisors , attempted to stop the slide towards a military take - over of the government . In a compromise move , Saitō was chosen to be Inukai ' s successor . Sadao Araki remained as War Minister and immediately began making demands on the new government . During Saitō tenure , Japan recognized the independence of Manchukuo , and withdrew from the League of Nations . Saitō ' s administration was one of the longer - serving ones of the inter - war period , and it continued until July 8 , 1934 ; when the cabinet resigned en masse because of the Teijin Incident bribery scandal . Keisuke Okada succeeded as prime minister . Saitō continued to be an important figure in politics as Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal from December 26 , 1935 but was assassinated during the February 26 Incident of 1936 at his home in Yotsuya , Tokyo . Takahashi , his predecessor was shot dead the same day , along with several other top - rank politicians targeted by the rebels . Saitō was posthumously awarded Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum . Honours . " From the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia "