Shido Minzoku SHENYANG INCIDENT (1931) See Mukden incident SHIDO MINZOKU “leading race.” Self-referential term used by Japanese ultranationalists and in wartime propaganda about the putative historical destiny and mission of the Japanese nation It was the rough propaganda and ideological equivalent to the German idea of “Übermensch.” See also Emperor cult; Herrenvolk SHINTO Shinto was the loose system of beliefs that underlay the Emperor cult in Japan From 1880 it became part of a drive by militarists and nationalists to instill a unified Japanese spirit, centered on “Three Principles” of love of home country, emperor reverence (even worship), and civil obedience Shinto priests traveled with Japan’s armies to affirm the “divine mission” of the Japanese race and empire The Yasukuni Shrine was erected to house the remains of all who served the emperor, and to house their “kami” or nation-serving and protecting spirits Before or during combat, Japanese soldiers often promised to meet each other after death at Yasukuni Fourteen Class-A war criminals are buried there The close association of Shinto with the state and sovereign was not broken until 1945, when the Shoˉwa Emperor, Hirohito, publicly disclaimed his divine ancestry to satisfy Allied demands to sever his ties to Japan’s imperial and militarist past, and as part of the constitutional price he paid to avoid charges of war crimes Freedom of belief and disestablishment of Shinto were written into the postwar constitution, contributing almost overnight to a remarkable flourishing of diversity in Japanese religious practices and beliefs Shinto remained taboo at the state level until the Shoˉwa Emperor died Shinto priests served controversially at the investiture of his son, Akihito Japanese prime ministers once again visited Yasukuni starting in the 1990s, bringing widespread protests from other Asian nations that bitterly recalled the association of Shinto ritual with Japanese militarism and aggression SHINYO Japanese suicide attack boats SHIPYARDS Before World War II worldwide shipbuilding was greatly reduced as the Great Depression sharply cut world trade and demand for transoceanic cargo ships The blow was especially hard in Great Britain Even yards that survived the industry downturn that began in 1930 were left undercapitalized and insufficiently modern to meet new demands as war approached In addition, a “scrap and build” program intended to produce more modern ships had the unintended consequence of encouraging ship owners to retain old British ships while buying near-wrecks from abroad to demolish Loss of skilled workers over an eight-year period, along with wartime shortages of materials, kept British shipbuilding producing hulls at levels far below what was needed to replace the tonnage sunk by U-boats even at the peak of wartime production The maximum new shipping per year produced by British yards was 1.5 million GRT (Gross Register Tonnage) 974