Admirals of the Nihon Kaigun (Imperial Japanese Navy)
Yamamoto Isoroku
Yamamoto Isoroku was leader of the combined fleet until 1943 and is considered mastermind of the Pearl Harbour attack. His plane was shot down over Bougainville on April 18th, 1943 by American aircraft. This followed American code breaking success in the Pacific.
Yamamoto had studied in America and was well aware of that country's enormous
power. His belief in the power of battleships in the carrier battles around the Solomons with the Americans cost his forces dearly. In the Battle of Midway, he seemed unwilling to capitalise on U.S. weakness by sending in heavy surface ships of the combined fleet for a decisive battle. This lead to a disastrous defeat for Japan.
Nagumo Chuichi
Nagumo Chuichi was profoundly suspicious of carrier based aircraft. He was placed in charge of the most powerful air armada to date, and executed Yamamoto's plan for Pearl Harbour. After Pearl Harbour, he commanded the "Kido Butai" in a reign of terror around the Pacific until he was badly defeated at Midway. More disasters caused his removal from command after the Battle of Santa Cruz. He committed suicide during the Battle of Saipan in 1944.
Mikawa Gunichi
Mikawa Gunichi brought about the U.S. Navy's worst defeat, in the Battle of Sovo Island. Shortly after the U.S. Marines landed On Guadalcanal, Gunichi - with a scratch fleet of aging cruisers and luck and determination - quickly sunk four allied heavy cruisers without incident.
Yamaguchi Tamon
Yamaguchi Tamon was said to be Japan's most gifted Carrier Admiral. He was astutely aggressive and ambitious. He was also heavily steeped in the code of Bushido, and when he lost his carrier during the closing stages of Midway, he committed suicide.
Ozawa Jisaburo
Ozawa Jisaburo Commaned Japan's carrier forces from November 1942 until the edn of the war. He was nicknamed The Gargoyle and was considered one of the three ugliest admirals in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Ozawa was a fine commander but he was doomed by an overload of inferior technology and logistics against the ever expanding U.S. forces. His career ended off the Phillipines with empty flight decks, no planes and no pilots.
Other Japanese Admirals Serving in the Pacific Area
Aritomo Goto
Tamo Yamaguchi
Tameichi Hara
Raizo Tanaka
The futility of it all
The YAMATO was one of the mightiest battleships ever floated, similar to the USSW IOWA class or the Roayl Navy's KING GEORGE V.
The YAMOTO was commissioned in 1941 - she had a displacement of 71,659 tons and a speed of 27 knots.
She now lies at the bottom of the ocean in two pieces.