Hirohito

Hirohito was the 124th emperor of Japan, reigning from 1926 until his death in 1989. He was the head of state under the Meiji Constitution during Japan's imperial expansion, militarization, and involvement in World War II. Under Hirohito, Japan waged a war across Asia in the 1930s and 1940s, and was allied with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. After Japan's surrender in 1945, Hirohito was not prosecuted for war crimes, but he formally renounced his divinity and oversaw the transition of his country into a constitutional monarchy. He also became a patron of scientific research and a symbol of peace and goodwill. He was married to Nagako Kuni, with whom he had seven children, including his successor, Akihito. He was the longest-reigning monarch in Japan's history, and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in the world. He died of duodenal cancer at the age of 87, and was posthumously honored as Emperor Shōwa.