What was the Japanese government’s wartime decision-making group commonly called the “Big Six”?

The “Big Six” was the Supreme Council for the Direction of the War, Japan’s top wartime decision-making group.

The council consisted of six senior officials: the prime minister, foreign minister, army minister, navy minister, and the chiefs of the Army and Navy General Staffs. Because its members represented both civilian leadership and the military high commands, reaching agreement could be extremely difficult. Emperor Hirohito was not one of the six, although his intervention became decisive during the final crisis.

In August 1945, the council split over how to respond to the Potsdam Declaration after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, the Soviet declaration of war, and the bombing of Nagasaki. Three members favored accepting the Allied terms with a condition concerning the imperial institution, while three senior military leaders demanded additional conditions. Hirohito broke the deadlock by supporting surrender. The group’s formal name is sometimes confused with broad labels such as “Supreme War Council,” but “Supreme Council for the Direction of the War” is the specific name associated with the Big Six.