The fall of the Minseito Cabinet marked the end of an era. The crisis
of 1930-31 had unleashed new forces. And these forces were destined to
mold Japan’s policy in the decade that followed.
At their head was the army. Not _all_ of the army leaders, however. At
times the “army extremists” seemed to be only a small minority. Their
power rose and fell. Yet they took command of Japan’s foreign policy,
and gained more and more control over her domestic policy. And as time
passed, their outlook was increasingly stamped on the army as a whole.