Hirohito, Japanese emperor (d. 1989)
Emperor Shōwa (昭和天皇, Shōwa-tennō, 29 April 1901 – 7 January 1989), commonly known by his personal name Hirohito (裕仁), was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was succeeded by his fifth child and eldest son, Akihito. By 1979, Hirohito was the only monarch in the world with the title "emperor". He was the longest-lived and longest-reigning historical Japanese emperor and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in the world.
At the start of his reign, the Empire of Japan was already one of the great powers—the ninth largest economy in the world, the third-largest naval power, and one of the four permanent members of the council of the League of Nations. He was the head of state under the Meiji Constitution during Japan's imperial expansion, militarization, and involvement in World War II. After Japan's surrender, he was not prosecuted for war crimes as many other leading government figures were. His degree of involvement in wartime decisions remains controversial. During the post-war period, he became the symbol of the state of Japan under the post-war constitution and Japan's recovery. By the end of his reign, Japan had emerged as the world's second-largest economy.In Japan, reigning emperors are known only as "the Emperor". He is now referred to primarily by his posthumous name, Shōwa, which is the name of the era coinciding with his reign.