Kure Naval District: Difference between revisions

Kure Naval District (呉鎮守府, Kure chinjufu) was the second of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the Inland Sea of Japan and the Pacific coasts of southern Honshū from Wakayama to Yamaguchi prefectures, eastern and northern Kyūshū and Shikoku.

The area of the Kure Naval District encompassed Hashirajima Anchoring Area located at the south end of Hiroshima Bay, 30-40 kilometers southwest of Kure. When not in need of repairs ships usually anchored in this area to free up pier space at Kure. Hashirajima was also a major staging area for fleet operations.

Tokuyama port, was also part of Kure Naval District, and had the largest fuel depot in the Japanese Navy.

History

The location of Kure within the sheltered Inland Sea of Japan was recognized of strategic importance in controlling the sea lanes around western Japan by the Meiji government and early Imperial Japanese Navy. With the formation of the navy in 1886, Japan was divided into five naval districts for recruiting and supply. During the administrative re-organization of the Japanese Navy in 1889, Kure was designated as the “Second Naval District”, and its harbor was dredged, a breakwater constructed and docking facilities for warships were established. The following year, work began on the Kure Naval Arsenal, which would eventually expand to become one of the largest shipyards in Japan for the construction of large capital ships. The facilities of Kure Naval District included armories, production factories for torpedoes, naval mines and naval artillery (and associated ammunition), and also a naval hospital and training centers.

The Imperial Japanese Naval Academy and Naval Staff College were relocated from Tokyo to nearby Etajima, and thus also came within the borders of the Kure Naval District, but did not come under the command of Kure Naval District itself.

In 1920, the Japanese navy established its main submarine base and submarine warfare training school in Kure. An air wing was established in 1932, and a telecommunications center in 1937.

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Kure Naval District encompassed the following ^[1]

• Kure Naval District HQ
  • Kure Naval Base
    • Kure Naval Guard Unit
      • destroyer Yakaze
      • Submarine I-52
      • Submarine Ro-30
      • Submarine Ro-31
      • Submarine Ro-32
      • minelayer Katsuriki
      • Ex-Cruiser Yakumo
    • Kure Naval Arsenal
    • Kure Naval Hospital
    • Kure Naval Prison
    • Kure Naval Fuel Deport
    • Kure Special Naval Landing Forces
  • Kure Submarine Base
  • Otake Naval Infantry Barracks
  • Tokuyama Naval Fuel Depot
  • Kure Naval Air Group
  • Saeki Naval Air Group
  • Usa Naval Air Training Unit
  • Submarine Division Six (training)
    • • Submarine Ro-57
      • Submarine Ro-58
      • Submarine Ro-59
  • 12th Combined Naval Air Wing
    • Oita Naval Air Group
    • Hakata Naval Air Group
    • Omuro Naval Air Group

Kure was heavily bombed by United States Navy and United States Army Air Force bombers in the final stages of the Pacific War, and many of its facilities were destroyed. The Kure area came under occupation by Australian and British forces during the occupation of Japan, and was largely demilitarized. A small portion of the area continued to be occupied by the modern post-war Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, which has preserved a portion of the original red brick gates and couple of buildings as commemorative museums.

List of Commanders

Commanding Officers

• Vice-Admiral Baron Nagayoshi Maki (26 Sep 1887 - 8 Mar 1889)
• Vice-Admiral Viscount Kuranosuke Nakamuta (8 Mar 1889 - 12 Dec 1892)
• Vice-Admiral Baron Shinanojo Arichi (12 Dec 1892 - 12 May 1895)
• Vice-Admiral Baron Kiyokazu Abo (12 May 1895 - 26 Feb 1896)
• Fleet Admiral Viscount Yoshika Inoue (26 Feb 1896 - 20 May 1900)
• Admiral Baron Yahachi Shibayama (20 May 1900 - 6 Feb 1905)
• Vice-Admiral Shinichi Arima (6 Feb 1905 - 2 Feb 1906)
• Vice-Admiral Baron Masuji Yamauchi (2 Feb 1906 - 1 Dec 1909)
• Fleet Admiral Viscount Tomozaburo Kato（1 Dec 1909 - 1 Dec 1913)
• Vice-Admiral Kazu Matsumoto　(1 Dec 1913 - 25 Mar 1914)
• Admiral Motaro Yoshimatsu (25 Mar 1914 - 23 Sep 1915)
• Vice-Admiral Suetaka Ijichi (23 Sep 1915 - 1 Dec 1916)
• Admiral Baron Sadakichi Kato (1 Dec 1916 - 1 Dec 1919)
• Admiral Kakuichi Murakami (1 Dec 1919 - 27 Jul 1922)
• Admiral Baron Kantaro Suzuki (27 Jul 1922 - 27 Jan 1924)
• Admiral Isamu Takeshita (27 Jan 1924 - 15 Apr 1925)
• Admiral Baron Kiyokazu Abo (15 Apr 1925 - 10 Dec 1926)
• Admiral Saburo Hyakutake (10 Dec 1926 - 10 Dec 1928)
• Vice-Admiral Koshiro Otani (10 Dec 1928 - 11 Nov 1929)
• Admiral Saburo Hyakutake (11 Nov 1929 - 11 Jun 1930)
• Admiral Kichisaburo Nomura (11 Jun 1930 - 1 Dec 1931)
• Admiral Katsunoshin Yamanashi (1 Dec 1931 - 1 Dec 1932)
• Admiral Ryozo Nakamura (1 Dec 1932 - 10 May 1934)
• Admiral Hisanori Fujita (10 May 1934 - 1 Dec 1936)
• Admiral Takayoshi Kato (1 Dec 1936 - 15 Nov 1938)
• Admiral Shigetaro Shimada (15 Nov 1938 - 15 Apr 1940)
• Vice-Admiral Masaharu Hibino (15 Apr 1940 - 18 Sep 1941)
• Admiral Soemu Toyoda (18 Sep 1941 - 10 Nov 1942)
• Vice-Admiral Ibo Takahashi (10 Nov 1942 - 21 Jun 1943)
• Admiral Chuichi Nagumo (21 Jun 1943 - 20 Oct 1943)
• Admiral Naokuni Nomura (20 Oct 1943 - 17 Jul 1944)
• Admiral Yorio Sawamoto (17 Jul 1944 - 1 May 1945)
• Vice-Admiral Masao Kanazawa (1 May 1945 - 30 Nov 1945)

Chief of Staff

• Rear-Admiral Shizuo Sato (1 Apr 1889 - 13 May 1890)
• Fleet Admiral Marquis Heihachiro Togo (13 May 1890 - 14 Dec 1891)
• Rear-Admiral Tokiyasu Yoshijima (14 Dec 1891 - 20 May 1893)
• Rear-Admiral Fukusaburo Hirao (20 May 1893 - 11 May 1895)
• Rear-Admiral Katsumi Miyoshi (11 May 1895 - 27 Dec 1897)
• Vice-Admiral Baron Masamichi Togo (27 Dec 1897 - 23 Mar 1899)
• Captain Isamu Yajima (23 Mar 1899 - 6 Dec 1900)
• Rear-Admiral Hisamaro Oinoue (6 Dec 1900 - 3 Feb 1904)
• Vice-Admiral Baron Tokutaro Nakamizo (3 Feb 1904 - 10 May 1905)
• Rear-Admiral Ichiro Nijima (10 May 1905 - 2 Feb 1906)
• Admiral Motaro Yoshimatsu (2 Feb 1906 - 22 Nov 1906)
• Rear-Admiral Shinjiro Uehara (22 Nov 1906 - 27 Dec 1907)
• Rear-Admiral Heitaro Takeuchi (27 Dec 1907 - 22 May 1910)
• Admiral Matahichiro Nawa (22 May 1910 - 20 Apr 1912)
• Admiral Kaneo Nomaguchi　(20 Apr 1912 - 10 Jan 1913)
• Rear-Admiral Kishichiro Osawa (10 Jan 1913 - 1 Dec 1913)
• Vice-Admiral Naoe Nakano (1 Dec 1913 - 17 Apr 1914)
• Admiral Kenji Ide (17 Apr 1914 - 13 Dec 1915)
• Vice-Admiral Shibakichi Yamanaka (13 Dec 1915 - 13 Jul 1917)
• Vice-Admiral Junichi Matsumura (18 Jul 1917 - 1 Dec 1918)
• Vice-Admiral Shichigoro Saito (1 Dec 1918 - 1 Dec 1920)
• Vice-Admiral Yoshimoto Masaki (1 Dec 1920 - 1 Dec 1922)
• Vice-Admiral Naomoto Komatsu (1 Dec 1922 - 6 Nov 1923)
• Vice-Admiral Naotaro Nagasawa (6 Nov 1923 - 1 Dec 1924)
• Rear-Admiral Bekinari Kabayama (1 Dec 1924 - 16 Dec 1924)
• Vice-Admiral Tokujiro Tateno (16 Dec 1924 - 1 Dec 1926)
• Vice-Admiral Kiyohiro Ijichi (1 Dec 1926 - 10 Dec 1928)
• Admiral Koshirō Oikawa (10 Dec 1928 - 10 Jun 1930)
• Vice-Admiral Giichi Suzuki (10 Jun 1930 - 1 Dec 1931)
• Vice-Admiral Choji Inoue (1 Dec 1931 - 15 Nov 1932)
• Vice-Admiral Tokutaro Sumiyama (15 Nov 1932 - 15 Nov 1934)
• Vice-Admiral Umataro Tanimoto (15 Nov 1934 - 15 Nov 1935)
• Vice-Admiral Masaichi Niimi (15 Nov 1935 - 1 Apr 1936)
• Vice-Admiral Ichiro Sato (1 Apr 1936 - 1 Dec 1936)
• Vice-Admiral Takamoto Togari (1 Dec 1936 - 15 Dec 1938)
• Vice-Admiral Toshihisa Nakamura 15 Dec 1938 - 10 Oct 1939)
• Vice-Admiral Matome Ugaki (10 Oct 1939 - 20 Aug 1941)
• Vice-Admiral Torahiko Nakajima (20 Aug 1941 - 6 Jan 1943)
• Vice-Admiral Kengo Kobayashi (6 Jan 1943 - 11 Jun 1943)
• Vice-Admiral Shinzo Onishi (11 Jun 1943 - 9 Sep 1944)
• Vice-Admiral Shozo Hashimoto (10 Sep 1944 - 15 Oct 1945)
• Rear-Admiral Tametsugu Okada (15 Oct 1945 - 30 Nov 1945)

References

• Prados, John (1995). Combined Fleet Decoded: The Secret History of American Intelligence and the Japanese Navy in World War II. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-460-02474-4. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• Wendel, Marcus. "Axis History Database". Retrieved 2007-08-25.
• Budge, Kent G. "Pacific War Online Database". Retrieved 2007-08-25.
• Orbat at start of Pacific War

Notes