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Imperial Japanese Navy

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   Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN)
   大日本帝國海軍
   (Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun)
   Ensign of the Imperial Japanese Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense
   Force.
   Active 1869- 1947
   Country Empire of Japan
   Allegiance Empire of Japan
   Type Navy
   Battles/wars Sino-Japanese War
   Russo-Japanese War
   World War I
   World War II
   Commanders
   Notable
   commanders Isoroku Yamamoto, Togo Heihachiro, Hiroyasu Fushimi and many
   others.

   The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ( Kyūjitai: 大日本帝國海軍 Shinjitai: 大日本帝国海軍
   Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun  or 日本海軍 Nippon Kaigun) or sometimes referred
   to as the Japanese Navy or Combined Fleet was the Navy of Empire of
   Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's
   constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling
   international disputes. It was the third largest navy in the world by
   1920 behind United States Navy and Royal Navy, and perhaps the most
   modern at the brink of World War II. It was supported by Imperial
   Japanese Navy Air Service for aircraft and airstrike operation from the
   fleet.

   The origins of the Imperial Japanese Navy trace back to early
   interactions with nations on the Asian continent, beginning in the
   early medieval period and reaching a peak of activity during the 16th
   and 17th centuries at a time of cultural exchange with European powers
   during the Age of Discovery. After two centuries of stagnation during
   the country's ensuing seclusion policy under the shoguns of the Edo
   period, Japan's Navy was comparatively backward when the country was
   forced open to trade by American intervention in 1854. This eventually
   led to the Meiji Restoration, a period of frantic modernization and
   industrialization accompanied by the re-ascendance of the emperor. The
   navy's history of successes, sometimes against much more powerful foes
   as in the 1895 Sino-Japanese war and the 1905 Russo-Japanese War, ended
   in almost complete annihilation during the concluding days of World War
   II. The IJN was officially dissolved in 1945.
   Kanji for "Imperial Japanese Navy"
   Enlarge
   Kanji for "Imperial Japanese Navy"

Origins

   Naval battle of Dan-no-Ura in 1185.
   Enlarge
   Naval battle of Dan-no-Ura in 1185.

   Japan has a long history of naval interaction with the Asian continent,
   involving transportation of troops between Korea and Japan, starting at
   least with the beginning of the Kofun period in the 3rd century.

   Following the attempts at Mongol invasions of Japan by Kubilai Khan in
   1281, Japanese " Wakō" pirates became very active in plundering the
   coast of the Chinese Empire.

   Japan undertook major naval building efforts in the 16th century,
   during the Warring States period, when feudal rulers vying for
   supremacy built vast coastal navies of several hundred ships. Around
   that time, Japan may have developed one of the first ironclad warships,
   when Oda Nobunaga, a Japanese daimyo, had six iron-covered Oatakebune
   made in 1576.

   During the Japanese invasion of Korea (1592-1598), a navy of about 700
   ships and manned by 10,000 sailors was organized by Toyotomi Hideyoshi
   for the transportation and support of a land force of about 160,000.
   The transportation ships were subject to the attacks of the powerful
   Joseon Dynasty navy. The Japanese Navy suffered a series of defeats, at
   the hands of Korean Admiral Yi Sun-sin, using turtle ships, or
   Geobukson. After re-organizing the Navy, Japan won an engagement
   against Admiral Won Kyun of the Joseon Dynasty navy, and several
   skirmishes against Admirals Yi Eok Ki and Choi Ho of the Ming China
   navy. The sea route between the Japanese mainland and the Korean south
   coast was maintained by the activity of the navy throughout the
   campaign, allowing for the circulation of men and goods.
   A 1634 Japanese Red seal ship, combining eastern and western naval
   technologies.
   Enlarge
   A 1634 Japanese Red seal ship, combining eastern and western naval
   technologies.

   Japan built her first large ocean-going warships in the beginning of
   the 17th century, following contacts with the Western nations during
   the Nanban trade period. In 1613, the Daimyo of Sendai, in agreement
   with the Tokugawa Bakufu, built Date Maru, a 500 ton galleon-type ship
   that transported the Japanese embassy of Hasekura Tsunenaga to the
   Americas, which then continued to Europe. From 1604, about 350 Red seal
   ships, usually armed and incorporating some Western technologies, were
   also commissioned by the Bakufu, mainly for Southeast Asian trade.

   From 1640, Japan chose the policy of Sakoku (seclusion), which forbade
   contacts with the West, eradicated Christianity, and prohibited the
   construction of ocean-going ships on pain of death.

   The study of Western shipbuilding techniques resumed in the 1840s
   during the Late Tokugawa shogunate ("Bakumatsu"). In 1853 and 1854,
   U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Perry made a demonstration of force with
   the newest steam warships of the U.S. Navy. Perry finally obtained the
   opening of the country to international trade through the 1854
   Convention of Kanagawa. This was soon followed by the 1858 " unequal"
   U.S.-Japan Treaty of Amity and Commerce, which allowed the
   establishment of foreign concessions, extra-territoriality for
   foreigners, and minimal import taxes for foreign goods.
   Kanrin Maru, Japan's first screw-driven steam warship, 1857.
   Enlarge
   Kanrin Maru, Japan's first screw-driven steam warship, 1857.

   As soon as Japan agreed to open up to foreign influence, the Tokugawa
   shogun government initiated an active policy of assimilation of Western
   naval technologies. In 1855, with Dutch assistance, the Shogunate
   acquired its first steam warship, the Kankō Maru, which was used for
   training, and established the Nagasaki Naval Training Centre. In 1857,
   it acquired its first screw-driven steam warship, the Kanrin Maru.
   Naval students were sent to study in Western naval schools for several
   years, such as the future Admiral Takeaki Enomoto (who studied in the
   Netherlands from 1862–1867), starting a tradition of foreign-educated
   future leaders such as Admirals Heihachiro Togo and, later, Isoroku
   Yamamoto. In 1865, the French naval engineer Léonce Verny was hired to
   build Japan's first modern naval arsenals, at Yokosuka and Nagasaki.

   By the end of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1867, the Tokugawa navy was
   already the largest of Eastern Asia, organized around eight
   Western-style steam warships and the flagship Kaiyō Maru, which were
   used against pro-imperial forces during the Boshin War, under the
   command of Admiral Enomoto. The conflict culminated with the Naval
   Battle of Hakodate in 1869, Japan's first large-scale modern naval
   battle, and ended with the defeat of the last Tokugawa forces and the
   restoration of Imperial rule.

Creation of the Imperial Japanese Navy (1869)

   Kotetsu (ex-CSS Stonewall), Japan's first modern ironclad, 1869.
   Enlarge
   Kotetsu (ex-CSS Stonewall), Japan's first modern ironclad, 1869.

   From 1868, the restored Meiji Emperor continued with reforms to
   industrialize and militarize Japan to prevent the United States and
   European powers from overwhelming her. On 17 January 1868, the Ministry
   of Military Affairs (also known as the Army-Navy Ministry) was
   established, with Iwakura Tomomi, Shimazu Tadayoshi and Prince Komatsu
   Yoshiakira as the First Secretaries. On 26 March 1868, the first Naval
   Review was held in Japan (in Osaka Bay), with 6 ships from the private
   domainal navies of Saga, Chōshū, Satsuma, Kurume, Kumamoto and
   Hiroshima participating. The total tonnage of these ships was 2252
   tons, which was far smaller than the tonnage of the single foreign
   vessel (from the French Navy) that also participated. The following
   year, in July 1869, the Imperial Japanese Navy was formally
   established, two months after the last combat of the Boshin War.

   In 1871, the private domainal navies were abolished, and their 11 ships
   were added to the 7 surviving vessels of the defunct Tokugawa bakufu
   navy to form the core of the new Imperial Japanese Navy. In 1872, the
   Ministry of Military Affairs was replaced by a separate Army Ministry
   and Navy Ministry. In October 1873, Katsu Kaishu became Navy Minister.
   The new government drafted an ambitious plan to create a Navy with 200
   ships organized into 10 fleets. It was abandoned within a year due to
   lack of resources. Domestic rebellions, especially the Satsuma
   Rebellion (1877) forced the government to focus on land warfare. Naval
   policy, expressed by the slogan Shusei Kokubō (Jp:守勢国防, lit. "Static
   Defense"), focused on coastal defenses, a standing army, and a coastal
   Navy, leading to a military organization under the Rikushu Kaijū
   (Jp:陸主海従, Army first, Navy second) principle.

British support

   During the 1870s and 1880s, the Imperial Japanese Navy remained an
   essentially coastal defense force, although the Meiji government
   continued to modernize it. The Jho Sho Maru (soon renamed Ryūjō Maru)
   commissioned by Thomas Glover was launched at Aberdeen, Scotland on
   March 27, 1869. In 1870, an Imperial decree determined that Britain's
   Royal Navy should be the model for development. Ships such as the Fusō,
   Kongō and the Hiei were built in British shipyards specifically for the
   Imperial Japanese Navy. A British naval mission visited Japan in 1873,
   headed by Comdr. Archibald Douglas. Later, Comdr. L.P. Willan was hired
   in 1879 to train naval cadets. Private construction companies such as
   Ishikawajima and Kawasaki also emerged around this time.

   Two large warships were ordered from British shipyards. Naniwa and the
   Takachiho were 3,650 ton ships. They were capable of speeds up to
   18 knots (33 km/h) and were armed with 2 to 3-inch deck armor and two
   10.2-in (260 mm) Krupp guns. The naval architect Sasō Sachū designed
   these on the line of the Elswick class of protected cruisers but with
   superior specifications. An arms race was taking place with China
   however, who equipped herself with two huge German battleships of 7,335
   tons ( Ting Yüan and Chen-Yüan). Unable to confront the Chinese fleet
   with only two modern cruisers, Japan resorted to French assistance to
   build a large, modern fleet which could prevail in the upcoming
   conflict.

Influence of the French "Jeune Ecole" (1880s)

   The French-built Matsushima, flagship of the Imperial Japanese Navy at
   the Battle of Yalu River (1894).
   Enlarge
   The French-built Matsushima, flagship of the Imperial Japanese Navy at
   the Battle of Yalu River (1894).

   During the 1880s, France took the lead in influence, due to its " Jeune
   Ecole" ("Young school") doctrine favoring small, fast warships,
   especially cruisers and torpedo boats, against bigger units. The Meiji
   government issued its First Naval Expansion bill in 1882, requiring the
   construction of 48 warships, of which 22 were to be torpedo boats. The
   naval successes of the French Navy against China in the Sino-French War
   of 1883–85 seemed to validate the potential of torpedo boats, an
   approach which was also attractive to the limited resources of Japan.
   In 1885, the new Navy slogan became Kaikoku Nippon (Jp:海国日本, lit.
   "Maritime Japan").

   In 1886, the leading French Navy engineer Emile Bertin was hired for
   four years to reinforce the Japanese Navy and to direct the
   construction of the arsenals of Kure and Sasebo. He developed the
   Sanseikan class of cruisers; 3 units featuring a single powerful main
   gun, the 12.6 in (320 mm) Canet gun. Altogether, Bertin supervised the
   building of more than twenty units. They helped establish the first
   true modern naval force of Japan. It allowed Japan to achieve mastery
   in the building of large units, since some of the ships were imported,
   and some others were built domestically at the arsenal of Yokosuka:
     * 3 cruisers: the 4,700 ton Matsushima and Itsukushima, built in
       France, and the Hashidate, built at Yokosuka.
     * 3 coastal warships of 4,278 tons.
     * 2 small cruisers: the Chiyoda, a small cruiser of 2,439 tons built
       in Britain, and the Yaeyama, 1800 tons, built at Yokosuka.
     * 1 frigate, the 1600 tons Takao, built at Yokosuka.
     * 1 destroyer: the 726 tons Chishima, built in France.
     * 16 torpedo boats of 54 tons each, built in France by the Companie
       du Creusot in 1888, and assembled in Japan.

   This period also allowed Japan "to embrace the revolutionary new
   technologies embodied in torpedoes, torpedo-boats and mines, of which
   the French at the time were probably the world's best exponents" (Howe,
   p281). Japan acquired its first torpedoes in 1884, and established a
   "Torpedo Training Centre" at Yokosuka in 1886.
   The torpedo boat Kotaka (1887).
   Enlarge
   The torpedo boat Kotaka (1887).

   These ships were the last major orders placed with France. Japan turned
   again to Britain, with the order of a revolutionary torpedo boat, the
   1887 Kotaka, which is considered the first ever effective design of a
   destroyer (Evans Kaigun, p17), and with the purchase of the Yoshino,
   built at the Armstrong works in Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, the
   fastest cruiser in the world at the time of her launch in 1892.

Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895)

   Japan continued the modernization of its navy, especially as China was
   also building a powerful modern fleet with foreign, especially German,
   assistance, and the pressure was building between the two countries to
   take control of Korea. The Sino-Japanese war was officially declared on
   August 1, 1894, though some naval fighting had already taken place.
   Video footage of a naval battle during the first Sino-Japanese war
   Enlarge
   Video footage of a naval battle during the first Sino-Japanese war

   The Japanese navy devastated Qing's Beiyang Fleet off the mouth of the
   Yalu River at the Battle of Yalu River on September 17, 1894, in which
   the Chinese fleet lost 8 out of 12 warships. Although Japan turned out
   victorious, the two large German-made battleships of the Chinese Navy
   remained almost impervious to Japanese guns, highlighting the need for
   bigger capital ships in the Japanese Navy (the Ting Yuan was finally
   sunk by torpedoes, and the Chen-Yuan was captured with little damage).
   The next step of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion would thus
   involve a combination of heavily armed large warships, with smaller and
   innovative offensive units permitting aggressive tactics.

   As a result of the conflict, under the Treaty of Shimonoseki (April
   17th, 1895), Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands were transferred to
   Japan. The Imperial Japanese Navy took possession of the island and
   quelled opposition movements between March to October 1895, and the
   islands continued to be a Japanese colony until 1945. Japan also
   obtained the Liaodong Peninsula, although she was forced by Russia to
   return it to China, only to see Russia take possession of it soon
   after.

   The Imperial Japanese Navy further intervened in China in 1900, by
   participating together with Western Powers to the suppression of the
   Chinese Boxer Rebellion. The Navy supplied the largest number of
   warships (18, out of a total of 50 warships), and delivered the largest
   contingent of Army and Navy troops among the intervening nations
   (20,840 soldiers, out of total of 54,000).
     * IJN Naval battle
          + Video footage of a naval battle during the First Sino-Japanese
            war (1894)
     * .

Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)

   Mikasa, the most powerful battleship of her time, in 1905.
   Enlarge
   Mikasa, the most powerful battleship of her time, in 1905.

   Following the Sino-Japanese War, and the humiliation of the forced
   return of the Liaotung peninsula to China under Russian pressure (the "
   Triple Intervention"), Japan began to build up its military strength in
   preparation for further confrontations. Japan promulgated a ten-year
   naval build-up program, under the slogan "Perseverance and
   determination" (Jp:臥薪嘗胆, Gashinshōtan), in which it commissioned 109
   warships, for a total of 200,000 tons, and increased its Navy personnel
   from 15,100 to 40,800. The new fleet consisted of:
     * 6 battleships (all British-made)
     * 8 armored cruisers (4 British, 2 Italian, 1 German, and 1
       French-made)
     * 9 cruisers (5 Japanese, 2 British and 2 US-made)
     * 24 destroyers (16 British and 8 Japanese-made)
     * 63 torpedo boats (26 German, 10 British, 17 French, and 10
       Japanese-made)

   Admiral Togo at the age of 58, at the time of the Russo-Japanese War.
   Enlarge
   Admiral Togo at the age of 58, at the time of the Russo-Japanese War.

   One of these battleships, Mikasa, the most advanced ship of her time,
   was ordered from the Vickers shipyard in the United Kingdom at the end
   of 1898, for delivery to Japan in 1902. Commercial shipbuilding in
   Japan was exhibited by construction of the twin screw steamer Aki-Maru,
   built for Nippon Yusen Kaisha by the Mitsubishi Dockyard & Engine
   Works, Nagasaki. The imperial Japanese cruiser Chitose was built at the
   Union Iron Works in San Francisco, California.

   These dispositions culminated with the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905).
   At the Battle of Tsushima, Admiral Togo onboard Mikasa led the combined
   Japanese fleet into what has been called "the most decisive naval
   battle in history". The Russian fleet was almost completely
   annihilated: out of 38 Russian ships, 21 were sunk, 7 captured, 6
   disarmed, 4,545 Russian servicemen died and 6,106 were taken prisoner.
   On the other hand, the Japanese only lost 116 men and 3 torpedo boats.
   These victories broke Russian strength in East Asia, and triggered
   waves of mutinies in the Russian Navy at Sevastopol, Vladivostok and
   Kronstadt, peaking in June with the Battleship Potemkin uprising,
   thereby contributing to the Russian Revolution of 1905.
   Japan's first fleet of submarines (No1 to No5, all Holland designs), in
   the Naval Review of October 1905.
   Enlarge
   Japan's first fleet of submarines (No1 to No5, all Holland designs), in
   the Naval Review of October 1905.

   During the Russo-Japanese war, Japan also made frantic efforts to have
   a fleet of submarines. Submarines had only recently become operational
   military engines, and were considered to be special weapons of
   considerable potential. The Imperial Japanese Navy acquired its first
   submarines in 1905 from the United States Electric Boat Company, barely
   four years after the U.S. Navy had commissioned its own first
   submarine, USS Holland. The ships were Holland designs. They were
   shipped in kit to Japan and then assembled at the Yokosuka Naval Yard,
   to become hulls No1 through 5, and became operational at the end of
   1905.

Towards an autonomous national Navy

   Japan continued in its efforts to build up a strong national naval
   industry. Following a strategy of "Copy, improve, innovate", foreign
   ships of various designs were usually analysed in depth, their
   specifications often improved on, and then were purchased in pairs so
   as to organize comparative testing and improvements. Over the years,
   the importation of whole classes of ships was progressively substituted
   by local assembly, and then complete local production, starting with
   the smallest ships, such as torpedo boats and cruisers in the 1880s, to
   finish with whole battleships in the early 1900s. The last major
   purchase was in 1913 when the battlecruiser Kongō was purchased from
   the Vickers shipyard. By 1918, there was no aspect of shipbuilding
   technology where Japanese capabilities fell significantly below world
   standards. By 1920, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the world's third
   largest navy, and was a leader in many aspects of naval development:
   Satsuma, the first ship in the world to be designed and laid down as an
   "all-big-gun" battleship
   Enlarge
   Satsuma, the first ship in the world to be designed and laid down as an
   " all-big-gun" battleship
     * The Japanese Navy was the first navy in the world to use wireless
       telegraphy in combat (following its 1897 invention by Marconi), at
       the 1905 Battle of Tsushima.
     * In 1906, it launched the battleship Satsuma, at the time the
       largest warship in the world by displacement, and the first ship in
       the world to be designed, ordered and laid down as an "all-big-gun"
       battleship, about one year before the British HMS Dreadnought.
     * Between 1905 and 1910, Japan started to build battleships
       domestically. The 1906 battleship Satsuma was built in Japan with
       about 80% parts from Britain, but the next battleship class, the
       1910 Kawachi was built with only 20% imported parts.

World War I

   Japan entered World War I on the side of the Allies, against Germany
   and Austria, as a natural prolongation of the 1902 Anglo-Japanese
   Alliance. After the Battle of Tsingtao, an Anglo-Japanese siege, the
   Japanese Navy seized the German naval base of Tsingtao on the Shantung
   peninsula in China, in November 1914. Concurrently a battle group was
   sent to the central Pacific in August and September to pursue the
   German East Asiatic squadron, which then moved into the Southern
   Atlantic, where it encountered British naval forces and was destroyed
   at the Battle of the Falkland Islands. Japan seized the former
   possessions of Germany in Micronesia on this occasion (the Mariana
   Islands (excluding Guam), Caroline Islands and Marshall Islands), which
   remained Japanese colonies until the end of World War II, under the
   League of Nations' South Pacific Mandate.
   Japanese armoured cruiser Nisshin in the Mediterranean (Malta, 1919).
   Enlarge
   Japanese armoured cruiser Nisshin in the Mediterranean (Malta, 1919).

   Hard pressed in Europe, where it had only a narrow margin of
   superiority against Germany, Britain had requested, but was denied, the
   loan of Japan's four newest Kongō-class battleships ( Kongō, Hiei,
   Haruna, Kirishima), the first ships in the world to be equipped with
   14-inch (356 mm) guns, and the most advanced capital ships in the world
   at the time of their launch.

   Following further request to contribute to the conflict, and the advent
   of unrestricted German submarine warfare from 1917, the Imperial
   Japanese Navy sent a special force of destroyers to the Mediterranean
   in March 1917. The fleet, consisting of one armoured cruiser, Nisshin,
   and eight of the Navy's newest destroyers under Admiral Satō Kōzō, was
   based in Malta and efficiently protected allied shipping between
   Marseilles, Taranto and ports in Egypt until the end of the War. One
   destroyer, Sakaki, was torpedoed by an Austrian submarine with the loss
   of 59 officers and men.

   After the conflict, the Japanese Navy received seven German submarines
   as spoils of war, which were brought to Japan and analysed,
   contributing greatly to the development of the Japanese submarine
   industry.

Interwar years

   In the years before WW II the IJN began to structure itself
   specifically to fight the United States. A long stretch of militaristic
   expansion and the start of the Second Sino-Japanese war in 1937 had
   alienated the United States, and the country was seen as a rival of
   Japan.
   Hosho, the first purpose-designed aircraft carrier in the world to be
   completed (1922)
   Enlarge
   Hosho, the first purpose-designed aircraft carrier in the world to be
   completed (1922)

   The Imperial Japanese Navy was faced, before and during World War II,
   with considerable challenges, probably more so than any other navy in
   the world. Japan, like Britain, was almost entirely dependent on
   foreign resources to supply its economy, so that the Imperial Japanese
   Navy had to secure and protect sources for raw material (especially
   Southeast Asian oil and raw materials) that were far away, and
   controlled by foreign countries (Britain, the United States and the
   Netherlands). To achieve this goal, she had to build large warships
   capable of a long range.

   To achieve Japan’s expansionist policies, the Imperial Japanese Navy
   also had to fight off the largest navies in the world (The 1922
   Washington Naval Treaty allotted a 5/5/3 ratio for the navies of
   Britain, the United States and Japan). She was therefore numerically
   inferior and her industrial base for expansion was limited (in
   particular compared to the United States). Her battle tactics therefore
   tended to rely on technical superiority (fewer, but faster, more
   powerful ships), and aggressive tactics (daring and speedy attacks
   overwhelming the enemy, a recipe for success in her previous
   conflicts).
   Japan's innovative Fubuki-class destroyer (1928), introducing enclosed
   turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire and the 24-inch (610 mm) oxygen
   fuelled Type 93 torpedo, was a design later emulated by other navies.
   Enlarge
   Japan's innovative Fubuki-class destroyer (1928), introducing enclosed
   turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire and the 24-inch (610 mm) oxygen
   fuelled Type 93 torpedo, was a design later emulated by other navies.

   During the interwar, Japan therefore took the lead in many areas of
   warship development:
     * In 1921 it launched the Hōshō, the first purpose-designed aircraft
       carrier in the world to be completed, and subsequently developed a
       fleet of aircraft carriers second to none.
     * In keeping with its belief in big-gun action, the Imperial Japanese
       Navy was the first navy to mount 14-in (356 mm) guns (with the
       Kongō), 16-in (406 mm) guns (with the Nagato), and the only Navy
       ever to mount 18.1-in (460 mm) guns (with the Yamato).
     * In 1928, it launched the innovative Fubuki-class destroyer,
       introducing enclosed turrets capable of anti-aircraft fire and the
       24-inch (610 mm) oxygen fuelled Type 93 torpedo. The new destroyer
       design was soon emulated by other navies.
     * Japan developed the oxygen fuelled Type 93 "Long Lance" torpedo,
       generally recognized as the best torpedo in the world, down to the
       end of World War II (Westwood, Fighting Ships).

   Japan sometimes continued to solicit foreign expertise in areas where
   it needed to catch up with the West: in 1921 it welcomed for a year and
   a half the Sempill Mission, a group of British aeronaval instructors
   who trained the Imperial Japanese Navy on several new aircraft, such as
   the Gloster Sparrowhawk, and various techniques such as torpedo bombing
   and flight control.

   During the pre-war years, two schools of thought battled over whether
   the Navy should be organized around powerful battleships that could
   ultimately win over American ones in Japanese waters, or around an
   aggressive fleet of aircraft carriers. Neither really prevailed, and
   both lines of ships were developed, with the results that neither
   solution displayed overwhelming strength over the American adversary. A
   consistent weakness of Japanese warship development was the tendency to
   incorporate too much armament, and too much engine power, in comparison
   to ship size (a side-effect of the Washington treaty), leading to
   shortcomings in stability, protection and structural strength.

World War II

   The Imperial Japanese Navy in World War Two was administered by the
   Ministry of the Navy of Japan and controlled by the Chief of the
   Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff at Imperial General Headquarters.
   In order to combat the numerically superior American navy, the IJN
   devoted large amounts of resources to creating a force superior in
   quality to any navy at the time. Consequently, at the beginning of
   World War II, Japan probably had the most sophisticated Navy in the
   world. Betting on the speedy success of aggressive tactics, Japan did
   not invest significantly on defensive organization: she should also
   have been able to protect her long shipping lines against enemy
   submarines, which she never managed to do, particularly under-investing
   in anti-submarine escort ships and escort aircraft carriers.

   The Japanese Navy enjoyed spectacular success during the first part of
   the hostilities, but American forces ultimately managed to gain the
   upper hand through technological upgrades to its air and naval forces
   and a vastly stronger industrial output. Japan's reluctance to use
   their submarine fleet for commerce raiding and failure to secure their
   communications also added to their defeat. During the last phase of the
   war the Imperial Japanese Navy resorted to a series of desperate
   measures, including Kamikaze (suicide) actions by a variety of Special
   Attack Units.

Battleships

   Yamato, the largest battleship in history, in 1941.
   Enlarge
   Yamato, the largest battleship in history, in 1941.

   Japan continued to attribute considerable prestige to battleships and
   endeavoured to build the largest and most powerful ships of the period.
   Yamato, the largest and most heavily-armed battleship in history, was
   launched in 1941.

   The second half of World War II saw the last battleship duels. In the
   Battle of Guadalcanal on November 15, 1942, the United States
   battleships South Dakota and Washington fought and destroyed the
   Japanese battleship Kirishima. In the Battle of Leyte Gulf on 25
   October 1944 six battleships, led by Admiral Jesse Oldendorf of the
   U.S. 7th Fleet fired upon and claimed credit for sinking Admiral Shoji
   Nishimura's battleships Yamashiro and Fusō during the Battle of Surigao
   Strait; in fact, both battleships were fatally crippled by destroyer
   attacks before being brought under fire by Oldendorf's old battleships.

   Nevertheless, the Battle of Samar on 25 October 1944 during the Battle
   of Leyte Gulf showed that battleships could still be useful, albeit
   inefficient weapons. Only the indecision of Admiral Takeo Kurita and
   the fight by American destroyers and destroyer escorts saved the
   American aircraft carriers of " Taffy 3" from being pounded to the
   bottom by the gunfire of Yamato, Kongō and Nagato and their cruiser
   host. Miraculously for the Americans, only USS Gambier Bay along with
   two destroyers and one destroyer escort were lost due to surface
   action. The Yamato, for all the expense that went into building her,
   failed to score even a single hit.

   Ultimately, the advent of air power spelled doom for the battleship.
   Battleships in the Pacific ended up primarily performing shore
   bombardment and anti-aircraft defense for the carriers. The Yamato and
   Musashi were sunk by aircraft attacks long before they could come
   within striking range of the American fleet. As a result of the
   changing technology, plans for even larger battleships, such as the
   Japanese Super Yamato class, were cancelled.

Aircraft carriers

   Shinano, the largest aircraft carrier of World War II.
   Enlarge
   Shinano, the largest aircraft carrier of World War II.

   Japan put particular emphasis on aircraft carriers. The Imperial
   Japanese Navy started the Pacific War with 10 aircraft carriers, the
   largest and most modern carrier fleet in the world at that time. Its
   two Shōkakus were superior to any carrier in the world until the
   wartime appearance of the American Essex-class aircraft carrier.
   However, a large number of the Japanese carriers were of small size in
   accordance to limitations placed upon the Navy by the London and
   Washington Naval Conferences. There were 7 American aircraft carriers
   at the beginning of the hostilities, only 3 of them operating in the
   Pacific, and 3 British aircraft carriers, of which a single one
   operated in the Indian Ocean.

   However, following the Battle of Midway, in which four Japanese
   carriers were sunk, the Japanese Navy suddenly found itself short of
   full fleet carriers, resulting in an ambitious set of projects to
   convert commercial and military vessels into escort carriers such as
   the Hiyō and Shinano, which became the largest aircraft carrier of
   World War II. The Navy also attempted to build a number of full fleet
   carriers, though most of these projects were not completed by the end
   of the war.

Naval aviation

   Planes from the Japanese aircraft carrier Shokaku preparing the attack
   on Pearl Harbor.
   Enlarge
   Planes from the Japanese aircraft carrier Shokaku preparing the attack
   on Pearl Harbour.

   Japan began the war with a highly competent naval air force designed
   around some of the best airplanes in the world: the " Zero" was
   considered the best carrier aircraft of the beginning of the war, the
   Mitsubishi G3M bomber was remarkable for its range and speed, and the
   Kawanishi H8K was considered as the world's best flying boat. The
   Japanese pilot corps at the beginning of the war were of high caliber
   as compared to their contemporaries around the world due to intense
   training practices and frontline experience in the Sino-Japanese War.
   The Navy also had a competent tactical bombing force based around the
   Mitsubishi G3M and G4M bombers, which astonished the world by being the
   first planes to sink enemy battleships under way, in the sinking of
   Prince of Wales and Repulse.

   As the war dragged on, the Allies found weaknesses in Japanese Naval
   Aviation. Though most of the Japanese aircraft were characterized by
   having great operating ranges, they had very little in the way of
   defensive armament and armor. As a result, the more numerous, heavily
   armed and armored American aircraft were able to develop techniques
   that nullified the advantages of the Japanese aircraft. Although there
   were delays in engine development, several new competitive designs were
   developed during the war, but industrial weaknesses, lack of raw
   materials and disorganization due to Allied bombing raids hampered
   their mass-production. Furthermore, the IJN didn't have an efficient
   process for speedily replacing lost aviators, as several years of
   training were usually considered necessary. Therefore, they weren't
   able to effectively replace their seasoned pilots as they were lost
   through attrition following their initial successes in the Pacific
   campaign. The IJN pilot's later inexperience was especially evident
   during the Battle of the Philippine Sea when their aircraft were
   shot-down in droves by the American naval pilots in what the Americans
   later called the, "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot". Following the Battle
   of Leyte Gulf, the Japanese Navy increasingly opted towards deploying
   aircraft in the kamikaze role.
   Japan's first jet-powered aircraft, the Imperial Japanese Navy's
   Nakajima Kikka (1945).
   Enlarge
   Japan's first jet-powered aircraft, the Imperial Japanese Navy's
   Nakajima Kikka (1945).

   Towards the end of the conflict, several competitive plane designs were
   developed, such as the 1943 Shiden, but such planes were produced too
   late and in insufficient numbers (415 units for the Shiden) to affect
   the outcome of the war. Radical new plane designs were also developed,
   such as the canard design Shinden, and especially jet-powered aircraft
   such as the Nakajima Kikka and the rocket-fighter Mitsubishi J8M. These
   jet designs were partially based on technology received from Nazi
   Germany, usually in the form of a few drawings only, and Japanese
   manufacturers had to play a key role in the final engineering. These
   developments also happened too late in the conflict to have any
   influence on the outcome. The Kikka only flew once before the end of
   the war.

Submarines

   An Imperial Japanese Navy's I-400 class submarine, the largest
   submarine type of World War II.
   Enlarge
   An Imperial Japanese Navy's I-400 class submarine, the largest
   submarine type of World War II.

   Japan had by far the most varied fleet of submarines of World War II,
   including manned torpedoes ( Kaiten), midget submarines ( Ko-hyoteki,
   Kairyu), medium-range submarines, purpose-built supply submarines (many
   for use by the Army), long-range fleet submarines (many of which
   carried an aircraft), submarines with the highest submerged speeds of
   the conflict ( Senkou I-200), and submarines that could carry multiple
   bombers (WWII's largest submarine, the Sentoku I-400). These submarines
   were also equipped with the most advanced torpedo of the conflict, the
   oxygen-propelled Long Lance. A plane from one such long-range fleet
   submarine, I-25, conducted what is still the only aerial bombing attack
   on the continental United States when Warrant Flying Officer Nobuo
   Fujita attempted to start massive forest fires in the Pacific Northwest
   outside the town of Brookings, Oregon on September 9th, 1942. Other
   submarines undertook trans-oceanic missions to German-occupied Europe,
   such as I-30, I-8, I-34, I-29 and I-52, in one case flying a Japanese
   seaplane over France in a propaganda coup. In May 1942, Type A midget
   submarines were used in the Attack on Sydney Harbour, and the Battle of
   Madagascar.
   Submarine I-8 in Brest, France in 1943.
   Enlarge
   Submarine I-8 in Brest, France in 1943.

   Overall, despite their technical prowesses, Japanese submarines were
   relatively unsuccessful. They were often used in offensive roles
   against warships, which were fast, maneuverable and well-defended
   compared to merchant ships. In 1942, Japanese submarines managed to
   sink two fleet carriers, one cruiser, and a few destroyers and other
   warships, and damage several others. They were not able to sustain
   these results afterwards, as Allied fleets were reinforced and became
   better organized. By the end of the war, submarines were instead often
   used to transport supplies to island garrisons. During the war, Japan
   managed to sink about 1 million tons of merchant shipping (184 ships),
   compared to 1.5 million tons for Britain (493 ships), 4.65 million tons
   for the US (1,079 ships) and 14.3 million tons for Germany (2,840
   ships).

   Early models were not very maneuverable under water, could not dive
   very deep, and lacked radar. Later in the war units that were fitted
   with radar were in some instances sunk due to the ability of US radar
   sets to detect their emissions. For example, Batfish (SS-310) sunk
   three such equipped submarines in the span of four days. After the end
   of the conflict, several of Japan's most original submarines were sent
   to Hawaii for inspection in "Operation Road's End" ( I-400, I-401,
   I-201 and I-203) before being scuttled by the U.S. Navy in 1946 when
   the Soviets demanded to have access to the submarines as well.

Special Attack Units

   A kamikaze Mitsubishi Zero, about to hit the USS Missouri.
   Enlarge
   A kamikaze Mitsubishi Zero, about to hit the USS Missouri.

   At the end of the Second World War, numerous Special Attack Units
   (Japanese: 特別攻撃隊, tokubetsu kōgeki tai, also abbreviated to 特攻隊,
   tokkōtai) were developed for suicide missions, in a desperate move to
   compensate for the annihilation of the main fleet. These units included
   Kamikaze ("Divine Wind") bombers, Shinyo ("Sea Quake") suicide boats,
   Kairyu ("Sea Dragon") suicide midget submarines, Kaiten ("Turn of
   Heaven") suicide torpedoes, and Fukuryu ("Crouching Dragon") suicide
   scuba divers who would swim under boats and use explosives mounted on
   bamboo poles to destroy both the boat and themselves. Kamikaze planes
   were particularly effective during the defense of Okinawa, in which
   1,465 planes were expended to damage around 250 American warships.

   A considerable number of Special Attack Units were built and stored in
   coastal hideouts for the desperate defense of the Home islands, with
   the potential to destroy or damage thousands of enemy warships.

Self-Defense Forces

   Japanese Sailors beside the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF)
   training vessel JDS Kashima, in Pearl Harbor, May 4, 2004.
   Enlarge
   Japanese Sailors beside the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF)
   training vessel JDS Kashima, in Pearl Harbour, May 4, 2004.

   Following Japan's surrender to the United States at the conclusion of
   World War II, and Japan's subsequent occupation, Japan's entire
   imperial military was dissolved in the new 1947 constitution which
   states, "The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right
   of the nation and the threat or use of force as a means of settling
   international disputes." Japan's current navy falls under the umbrella
   of the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) as the Japan Maritime
   Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).
   Imperial Japanese Navy
   Major battles List of ships List of aircraft List of weapons Main
   admirals

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