Katō Sadakichi
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Baron was an admiral in the
Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...
during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. His brother, Katō Yasuhisa, was a general in the
Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
, and his adoptive son was the biological son of Admiral
Dewa Shigetō Baron was a Japanese admiral in the early days of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Biography Dewa was born as the son of a ''samurai'' of the Aizu domain (present day Fukushima prefecture). As a youth, he enlisted in the ''Byakkotai,'' a reserve ...
.


Biography

Katō was born in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
, as the third son of Katō Yasukichi, a ''
hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the shogunates in Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred to as '' gokenin.'' Howev ...
'' retainer of the
Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...
. He attended the Numazu Military Academy, and in October 1883 graduated at the top of his class from the 10th class of the
Imperial Japanese Naval Academy The was a school established to train line officers for the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was originally located in Nagasaki, moved to Yokohama in 1866, and was relocated to Tsukiji, Tokyo in 1869. It moved to Etajima, Hiroshima in 1888. Students st ...
. One of his classmates was Yamashita Gentarō. He served as a torpedo officer on the ''Jingei'', and . With the opening of the Sasebo Naval District, he was appointed secretary to Admiral
Akamatsu Noriyoshi Akamatsu (written: lit. "red pine") is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Akamatsu clan is a Japanese samurai family of direct descent from Minamoto no Morifusa of the Murakami-Genji. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. ...
. From July 1891 to March 1893, Katō served as chief weapons officer on the cruiser . He was then sent to Germany as part of the entourage of
Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu was a scion of the Japanese imperial family and was a career naval officer who served as chief of staff of the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1932 to 1941. Early life Prince Hiroyasu was born in Tokyo as Prince Narukata, the eldest son of Prin ...
. He remained with the prince in Germany through the duration of the
First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the ...
. After his return to Japan, he served as weapons officer on the cruiser and on the staff of the Readiness Fleet. In August 1897, Katō was assigned as secretary to Navy Minister
Saigō Tsugumichi Saigō may refer to: Places * Saigō, Shimane * Saigō, Miyazaki People * Saigō-no-Tsubone (Lady Saigō) (1552–1589), consort of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the samurai lord and shōgun * Saigō Takamori * Saigō Tanomo * Teruhiko Saigō was a ...
, who was soon promoted to fleet admiral. Katō was promoted to commander. Katō returned to sea duty from December 1898 to April 1901, serving as executive officer on the cruisers and . He then returned to Germany to oversee the completion of the cruiser , and was executive officer on her voyage to Japan. From April 1901, he served with the
Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff The was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy. In charge of planning and operations, it was headed by an Admiral headquartered in Tokyo. History Created in 1893, the Navy General Staff took over operational (as opposed to adminis ...
, where he enjoyed the confidence of Admiral
Itō Sukeyuki Marshal-Admiral Count (20 May 1843 – 16 January 1914) was a Japanese career officer and admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy in Meiji-period Japan. Biography Born in what is now part of Kagoshima City as the son of a ''samurai'' of the ...
. Katō met with business and political leaders, reviewed the designs of new warships, and was consulted on political developments and naval strategy. In October 1902, he was promoted to captain and returned to sea in April 1903 as captain of ''Akitsushima''. At the start of the
Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
, Katō was captain of the cruiser , an obsolete vessel not regarded as capable for front-line combat duties. However, in January 1905 he was transferred to command the cruiser and was thus able to participate in the crucial Battle of Tsushima. After the end of the war, Katō served for ten months in the Naval Personnel Department before returning to sea to captain the cruiser , followed by the battleships and . In May 1908, he became chief-of-staff of the
Maizuru Naval District was one of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the entire Sea of Japan coastline from northern Kyūshū to western Hokkaidō. History The strategic importance of the location of Maizu ...
. He was then promoted to rear admiral, and spent the next three years as commandant of the
Maizuru Naval Arsenal was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. History The Maizuru Naval District was established at Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture in 1889, as the fourth of the naval districts responsible for the defens ...
. In May 1911, Katō became commander of the Training Fleet and in April 1912 became commander of the Sasebo Naval Arsenal, followed in December 1912 by promotion to vice admiral and the post of commander of the
Yokosuka Naval Arsenal was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka, Kanagawa prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama. History In 1866, the Tokugawa shogunate government established the ...
. In December 1913, Katō returned to sea as commander-in-chief of the Second Fleet. With the start of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the IJN 2nd Fleet was deployed to the
Siege of Tsingtao The siege of Tsingtao (or Tsingtau) was the attack on the German port of Tsingtao (now Qingdao) in China during World War I by Japan and the United Kingdom. The siege was waged against Imperial Germany between 27 August and 7 November 1914. ...
. At Tsingtao, Katō commanded a fleet of four battleships, two cruisers, 15 destroyers along with submarines, torpedo boats and other auxiliary vessels.Tucker, The Great War 1914-1918, page 196 In July 1916, Katō was elevated to the ''
kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. They succeeded the feudal lords () and court nobles (), but were abolished with the 1947 constitution. Kazoku ( 華族) should not be confused with ...
'' peerage with the title of baron (''danshaku''). He was also awarded the
Order of the Golden Kite The was an order of the Empire of Japan, established on 12 February 1890 by Emperor Meiji "in commemoration of Jimmu Tennō, the Romulus of Japan". It was officially abolished 1947 by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) during the ...
, 2nd class and the Order of the Rising Sun. That December, he was appointed commander of the
Kure Naval District 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 K ...
and in July 1918 was promoted to full admiral. In December 1919, he was appointed a naval councilor and entered the reserves from January 1923. As a naval councilor, Katō spoke out frequently in politics, and was a strong advocate of the “big guns and big battleships” clique within the Navy. Despite his experiences at Tsingtao, he derided the development of
naval aviation Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based ...
as of only minor importance. Katō was especially vehement in his opposition to the
Washington Naval Treaty The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was a treaty signed during 1922 among the major Allies of World War I, which agreed to prevent an arms race by limiting naval construction. It was negotiated at the Washington Nav ...
and was thus a prominent member of the
Fleet Faction The was an unofficial and informal political faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy in the 1920s and 1930s of officers opposed to the conditions imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty. Background The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the ...
within the Imperial Japanese Navy. Katō collapsed while in a meeting with Prince Fushimi in September 1927 and died shortly afterwards.


References

*


Notes


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kato, Sadakichi 1860s births 1943 deaths People from Tokyo Kazoku Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Japanese military personnel of World War I Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Japanese military personnel of the Boxer Rebellion