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General Count extra= 19 November 1844 – 5 August 1915 was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and 5th Governor-General of Taiwan from 11 April 1906 to May 1915. He participated in domestic conflicts, wars with Russia and was a leader of the expedition of Taiwan.
In February 1874, Sakuma participated in the suppression of the Saga Rebellion, during which time he led a column of troops from Kumamoto Castle. He then participated in the Taiwan Expedition of 1874, where on May 22 he commanded the 150 strong force of soldiers that was ambushed by aborigines, initiating the Battle of Stone Gate. During the Satsuma Rebellion, he was commander of the IJA 6th Infantry Regiment. He was promoted to colonel in 1878. In February 1881, Sakuma was promoted to major general in command of the Sendai military district.
In May 1885, Sakuma was given command of the IJA 10th Infantry Brigade and promoted to lieutenant general the following year. The same year, 1886, he was elevated to the title of danshaku (baron) under the kazoku peerage system.
With the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese War, Sakuma commanded the IJA 2nd Division at the Battle of Weihaiwei, and later served as Japanese military governor of Weihaiwei in Shandong Province, China. At the end of the war, he was awarded the Grand Cordon of Order of the Rising Sun, and elevated to shishaku (viscount).『官報』第3644号「叙任及辞令」August 21, 1895
In 1898, Sakuma was appointed commander of the central division of the Imperial Guards, and became a full general. After a brief period on leave, he then became commander of the Tokyo Garrison. In April 1906, after his appointment as 5th Governor-General of Taiwan, Sakuma was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun (1st class with Paulownia Blossoms, Grand Cordon), and in 1907 was elevated to hakushaku (Count).『官報』第7272号「授爵敍任及辞令」September 23, 1907
With the end of armed resistance by Han Taiwanese population, the colonial authorities turned their attention to the suppression of the mountain dwelling aboriginal tribes. One of the reasons Sakuma was selected to head the colonial government was due to his participation in Japan's previous 1874 campaign, and his mission extended Japanese control into the aboriginal regions. During his tenure, Sakuma led several armed campaigns against the Atayal people, Bunun people and Truku people peoples. Sakuma was one of the longest-serving governor-generals of Taiwan. He died of severe wounds inflicted during the war with the Truku tribes. The Japanese used 200 machine guns and 10,000 soldiers against the Aboriginals, but grievous wounds were inflicted upon the Japanese Governor-General Sakuma. He was highly regarded by the Japanese administration for helping develop Taiwan's east coast, especially the port of Hualien City, and the Taroko Gorge area.
He is also credited with introducing baseball to Taiwan in 1910.
After his death, he became a kami under State Shinto, and a shrine was erected in his honor in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, and in Taihoku (present-day Taipei). The shrine in Japan still exists.
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