Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff

The Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff (軍令部, Gunreibu) was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). In charge of planning and operations, it was headed by an Admiral headquartered in Tokyo.

Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff
軍令部 (Gunreibu)
Imperial Japanese Navy HQ, 1930s
Founded	8 March 1889
Disbanded	15 October 1945
Country	Empire of Japan
Allegiance	Emperor of Japan
Branch	Imperial Japanese Navy
Type	Military staff
Part of	Imperial General Headquarters
Headquarters	Tokyo
Colors	Navy blue   White
Commanders
First Chief	Itō Toshiyoshi
Last Chief	Soemu Toyoda
Insignia
The IJN ensign

History

Created in 1893, the Navy General Staff took over operational (as opposed to administrative) authority over the Imperial Japanese Navy from the Navy Ministry. It was responsible for the planning and execution of national defense strategy. Through the Imperial General Headquarters it reported directly to the Emperor, not to the Prime Minister, National Diet or even the Navy Ministry. It was always headed by an admiral on active duty, and was based in Tokyo.

"The ministry was responsible for the naval budget, ship construction, weapons procurement, personnel, relations with the Diet and the cabinet and broad matters of naval policy. The General Staff directed the operations of the fleet and the preparation of war plans".

After the Washington Naval Conference of 1921–22, where Japan agreed to keep the size of its fleet smaller than that of the United Kingdom and the United States, the Imperial Japanese Navy became divided into the mutually hostile Fleet Faction and Treaty Faction political cliques. The Navy Ministry tended to be pro-Treaty Faction and was anxious to maintain the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. However the Navy General Staff came to be dominated by the Fleet faction, and gradually gained ascendancy in the 1930s with increasing Japanese militarism. The Navy General Staff pushed through the attack on Pearl Harbor against the wishes of the more diplomatic Navy Ministry.

After 1937, both the Navy Minister and the Chief of the Navy General Staff were members of the Imperial General Headquarters.

With the defeat of the Empire of Japan in World War II, the Navy General Staff was abolished together with the Imperial Japanese Navy by the American occupation authorities in November 1945 and was not revived by the post-war Constitution of Japan.

Organization

The General Staff was organized as follows:

• 1st Department: Operations Bureau
  • 1st Section: Operations
  • 2nd Section: Training
• 2nd Department: Weapons and Mobilization Bureau
  • 3rd Section: Weapons
  • 4th Section: Mobilization
• 3rd Department: Intelligence Bureau
  • 5th Section: Intelligence for America
  • 6th Section: Intelligence for China
  • 7th Section: Intelligence for Soviet Union and Europe
  • 8th Section: Intelligence for United Kingdom and Europe
• 4th Department: Communications Bureau
  • 9th Section: Communications
  • 10th Section: Cryptography
• Department of Military History

Chiefs of the General Staff

No.	Portrait	Chief of the General Staff	Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Toshiyoshi, ItōRear Admiral Itō Toshiyoshi 伊藤雋吉 (1840–1921)	8 March 1889	17 May 1889	70 days
2		Shinanojō, ArichiRear Admiral Arichi Shinanojō 有地品之允 (1843–1919)	17 May 1889	17 June 1891	2 years, 31 days
3		Yoshika, InoueRear Admiral Baron Inoue Yoshika 井上良馨 (1845–1929)	17 June 1891	12 December 1892	1 year, 178 days
4		Kuranosuke, NakamutaVice Admiral Viscount Nakamuta Kuranosuke 中牟田倉之助 (1837–1916)	12 December 1892	18 July 1894	1 year, 218 days
5		Sukenori, KabayamaVice Admiral Viscount Kabayama Sukenori 樺山資紀 (1837–1922)	18 July 1894	11 May 1895	297 days
6		Sukeyuki, ItōVice Admiral Itō Sukeyuki 伊藤雋吉 (1843–1914)	11 May 1895	20 December 1905	10 years, 223 days
7		Heihachirō, TōgōAdmiral Tōgō Heihachirō 東郷平八郎 (1848–1934)	20 December 1905	1 December 1909	3 years, 346 days
8		Gorō, IjuinVice Admiral Baron Ijūin Gorō 伊集院五郎 (1848–1934)	1 December 1909	22 April 1914	4 years, 142 days
9		Hayao, ShimamuraVice Admiral Shimamura Hayao 島村速雄 (1858–1923)	22 April 1914	1 December 1920	6 years, 223 days
10		Gentarō, YamashitaAdmiral Yamashita Gentarō 山下源太郎 (1863–1931)	1 December 1920	15 April 1925	4 years, 135 days
11		Suzuki, KantarōAdmiral Kantarō Suzuki 鈴木貫太郎 (1868–1948)	15 April 1925	22 January 1929	3 years, 282 days
12		Kanji, KatōAdmiral Katō Hiroharu 加藤寛治 (1870–1939)	22 January 1929	11 June 1930	1 year, 140 days
13		Naomi, TaniguchiVice Admiral Taniguchi Naomi (ja) 谷口尚真 (1870–1941)	11 June 1930	2 February 1932	1 year, 236 days
14		Hiroyasu, FushimiAdmiral Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu 伏見宮博恭王 (1875–1946)	2 February 1932	9 April 1941	9 years, 66 days
15		Nagano, OsamiAdmiral Osami Nagano 永野修身 (1880–1947)	9 April 1941	21 February 1944	2 years, 318 days
16		Shimada, ShigetarōAdmiral Shigetarō Shimada 嶋田繁太郎 (1883–1976)	21 February 1944	2 August 1944	163 days
17		Oikawa, KoshirōAdmiral Koshirō Oikawa 及川古志郎 (1883–1958)	2 August 1944	29 May 1945	300 days
18		Toyoda, SoemuAdmiral Soemu Toyoda 豊田副武 (1885–1957)	29 May 1945	15 October 1945	139 days

Timeline

See also

• Ministry of the Navy (Japan)

Bibliography

• Asada, Sadao (2006). From Mahan to Pearl Harbor: The Imperial Japanese Navy and the United States. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-042-8.
• Schencking, J. Charles (2005). Making Waves: Politics, Propaganda, And The Emergence Of The Imperial Japanese Navy, 1868-1922. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4977-9.
• Spector, Ronald (1985). Eagle Against the Sun. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-394-74101-3.