was one of four main administrative districts of the pre-war
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 surrender ...
. Its territory included the entire
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it h ...
coastline from northern
Kyūshū
is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...
to western
Hokkaidō
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The la ...
.
History
The strategic importance of the location of
Maizuru
is a city in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 78,644 in 34817 households and a population density of 230 persons per km². The total area of the city is .
Geography
Maizuru is located in northern Kyoto Pref ...
and its potential for development into a military port for operations in the Sea of Japan towards
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and even
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
was early recognized by the Imperial Japanese Navy. During the administrative re-organization of the Navy in 1889, Maizuru was designated as the headquarters of the ''Fourth Naval District'' (, ''dai-yon kaigunku''), and its harbor was dredged, a
breakwater
Breakwater may refer to:
* Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour
Places
* Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia
* Breakwater Island
Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...
constructed and docking facilities for
warship
A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster a ...
s were established.
With 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 po ...
, the port was fortified with the addition of heavy
coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of the armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications.
From the Middle Ages until World War II, coastal artillery and naval artillery in the form of c ...
. However, the naval bases at
Sasebo
is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is also the second largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. On 1 June 2019, the city had an estimated population of 247,739 and a population density of 581 persons p ...
and
Kure
is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan M ...
were geographically more convenient for the Navy during the war, and received the bulk of the Navy's attention and funding. Although naval repair facilities and shipyards
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 defense ...
were opened in 1903, the mountainous terrain around Maizuru port proved an impediment to expansion, and the area languished as somewhat of a backwater.
This continued even through 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 ...
, despite Maizuru's more convenient location to the center of that conflict. In the post-war period, with Korea in Japanese hands, and the threats from Russia and China very much diminished, there were discussions about closing the military port. Although Maizuru was one of the largest military shipyards in Japan (specializing in
destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
construction), 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 ...
of 1923 also considerably reduced the demand for warship construction, and its facilities were largely
mothballed until 1936.
With the
Pacific War
The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
, Maizuru was reactivated as a recruiting, training, and logistical support district. It was also a base for one of the Japan's
Special Naval Landing Forces
The Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF; ja, 海軍特別陸戦隊, Kaigun Tokubetsu Rikusentai) were naval infantry units of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and were a part of the IJN Land Forces. They saw extensive service in the Second Sino ...
, and a Naval Air Station. Maizuru was also the location of the Imperial Japanese Navy Engineering Academy.
The area today is occupied in part by facilities of the
Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
, which has preserved a portion of the original red brick gates and couple of buildings as commemorative museums.
List of commanders
Commanding Officers
Chief of Staff
*Vice-Admiral Baron Tokutarō Nakamizo (1 October 1901 – 12 March 1902)
*Rear-Admiral Ichirō Nijima (12 March 1902 – 10 May 1905)
*Rear-Admiral Shinjirō Uehara (10 May 1905 – 7 April 1906)
*Rear-Admiral Arinobu Matsumoto (7 April 1906 – 22 November 1906)
*Vice-Admiral Suetaka Ijichi (22 November 1906 – 15 May 1908)
*Admiral Baron Sadakichi Katō (15 May 1908 – 9 April 1910)
*Vice-Admiral Kensuke Wada (9 April 1910 – 1 December 1911)
*Rear-Admiral Juzaburo Ushida (1 December 1911 – 1 December 1912)
*Rear-Admiral Seinosuke Tōgō (1 December 1912 – 1 April 1913)
*Vice-Admiral Tomojirō Chisaka (1 April 1913 – 1 December 1913)
*Vice-Admiral Yasujirō Nagata (1 December 1913 – 1 December 1914)
*Rear-Admiral Eitarō Kataoka (1 December 1914 – 1 April 1915)
*Rear-Admiral Tokutarō Hiraga (1 April 1915 – 1 April 1916)
*Rear-Admiral Yushichi Kanno (1 April 1916 – 1 December 1917)
*Rear-Admiral Masaki Nakamura (1 December 1917 – 25 September 1918)
*Vice-Admiral Kenzo Kobayashi (25 September 1918 – 10 November 1918)
*Rear-Admiral Hisamori Taguchi (10 November 1918 – 10 November 1920)
*Vice-Admiral Kosaburō Uchida (10 November 1920 – 1 December 1922)
*Vice-Admiral Yukichi Shima (1 December 1922 – 1 December 1923)
*Rear-Admiral Tanin Ikeda (1 December 1923 – 1 December 1924)
*Admiral Zengo Yoshida (1 December 1924 – 15 April 1925)
*Vice-Admiral Shigeru Matsuyama (20 November 1925 – 1 December 1926)
*Rear-Admiral Shiba Shibayama (1 December 1926 – 10 December 1928)
*Vice-Admiral Yutaka Arima (10 December 1928 – 1 May 1929)
*Vice-Admiral Shigeru Kokuno (1 May 1929 – 1 November 1930)
*Vice-Admiral Umatarō Tanimoto (1 November 1930 – 1 December 1931)
*Rear-Admiral Fuchina Iwaihara (1 December 1931 – 15 November 1933)
*Rear-Admiral Shigekazu Nakamura (15 November 1933 – 16 November 1936)
*Vice-Admiral Ichirō Ono (16 November 1936 – 25 September 1937)
*Vice-Admiral Kanji Ugaki (25 September 1937 – 22 October 1938)
*Vice-Admiral Morikazu Osugi (22 October 1938 – 15 November 1939)
*Vice-Admiral Kiyohide Shima (15 November 1939 – 15 October 1940)
*Vice-Admiral Naomasa Sakonjō (15 October 1940 – 11 August 1941)
*Rear-Admiral Kiyoshi Hamada (11 August 1941 – 10 June 1942)
*Rear-Admiral Sokichi Takagi (10 June 1942 – 25 September 1943)
*Rear-Admiral Akira Sone (25 September 1943 – 11 September 1944)
*Rear-Admiral Shinichi Torigoe (25 September 1944 – Sep 1945)
References
*
{{Japanese Naval Districts
Imperial Japanese Navy