Uehara was promoted to major general in July 1900, and commandant of the Army Artillery School. From August 1903 to February 1904, he was sent as a military attache to Europe. With the start of the
Russo-Japanese War, Uehara became chief-of-staff of the
Japanese Fourth Army (commanded by General Nozu Michitsura). By many accounts, General Nozu had a difficult personality, and his son-in-law was one of the few people who could get along with him. However, Uehara had many disagreements with General
Kageaki Kawamura and remained on bad terms with Kawamura throughout his career. He was promoted to lieutenant general in July 1906 and ennobled as a
baron (
danshaku) in the
kazoku peerage in September of the following year. In December 1908 he became the commander of the
IJA 7th Division. His appointment was controversial, as it was the first time an engineering officer had been appointed a divisional commander. The appointment had the support of General
Terauchi Masatake, and Uehara specifically requested an assignment far from Tokyo, so that the Choshu-dominated Army Ministry would be unable to interfere. The IJA 7th Division was a garrison force in
Asahikawa, Hokkaido. From September 1911 he commanded the
IJA 11th Division. In December 1912, Uehara was appointed
Army Minister in
Prime Minister Saionji Kinmochi's second cabinet. Since the civilian government was pursuing a tight fiscal policy, it soon came into conflict with the army, which was demanding an increase in funding for another two
infantry divisions. When Uehara resigned as Army Minister over this conflict, the remainder cabinet resigned en masse when the Army refused to nominate a successor, precipitating the collapse of Saionji's government. This event was known as the "Taisho Political Crisis". From March to May 1913, Uehara was commander of the
IJA 3rd Division. In April 1914, he became
Inspector General of Military Training, the third most prestigious post in the Army. In February 1915, Uehara was promoted to general and became a member of the
Supreme War Council; he also became Chief of the
Imperial Japanese Army General Staff, remaining in this post longer than any person before or after (with the exception of a member of the
Imperial House). While in this position, he authorized the
Siberian Intervention in support of
White Russian forces against the
Bolshevik Red Army in the
Russian Civil War. Uehara received the rank of
marshal in April 1921, and his
kazoku title was raised to
shishaku (
viscount). He retired as chief of staff in 1923. Uehara died in 1933 of
peptic ulcer disease and
cardiovascular disease at his home in Tokyo at the age of 77. His grave is at the
Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo. ==Awards and decorations==