Black Dragon Society

Black Dragon Society (Japanese, Kokuryukai), secret anti-Russian organization of Japanese ultra-nationalists, active from the early 20th century. Named after the Amur (Black Dragon) River, it was founded by the extreme nationalist right-winger Uchida Ryohei in 1901 to agitate for a war with Russia and a Japanese advance to the Amur River, thus driving Russia out of East Asia. The society was active in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 and subsequently supported Japanese expansionism, as well as Asian revolutionaries such as Emilio Aguinaldo and Sun Yat-sen. It played a major role in the annexation of Korea (1910) and the seizure of Dongbei (1931), thus realizing its expansionist ambition. Though always very small, it had close ties to military, political, and business leaders. Still active during Japan's aggression in China from 1937, the society was finally dissolved by the United States occupational authorities after World War II.