Hideki Tojo was born on December 30th, 1884 in Tokyo, Japan. He was born into the family of Hidenori Tojo, an infantry Lieutenant and later a Lieutenant General. At this time in Japan, it was very common for the eldest sons to feel pressure to go into their father's line of work. While Hideki was not the oldest born son, his two older brothers had previously died leaving him with this burden. So, in 1899 at the age of 15, Hideki entered into the Army Cadet School, following in his father's footsteps. After finishing his courses, Hideki attended the Japanese Military Academy in 1904. After graduating from the Military Academy, Tojo became a second Lieutenant in the Infantry for Japan's Military. Five years later, when Tojo was 25, he married Katsuko Ito and had seven children, three boys and four girls. Later in 1912 he attended the Army Staff College where he graduated in 1915. After graduating, he was sent abroad to study in Europe for three years. When he returned to Japan he worked as a Military Science instructor at the War College stating Tojo on his path toward dictatorship. Throughout his various military careers, Tojo had the nickname Razor. This name was due to his decisiveness and impatience while holding these various positions.
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