was a Japanese Admiral 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 po ...

and 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 ...

. He commanded the ''

Suma Suma may refer to: Places * Suma, Azerbaijan, a village * Suma, East Azerbaijan, a village in Iran * Sowmaeh, Ardabil, also known as Şūmā, a village in Iran * Suma-ku, Kobe, one of nine wards of Kobe City in Japan ** Suma Station, a railway ...

'' during the

Battle of Tsushima The Battle of Tsushima (Japanese:対馬沖海戦, Tsushimaoki''-Kaisen'', russian: Цусимское сражение, ''Tsusimskoye srazheniye''), also known as the Battle of Tsushima Strait and the Naval Battle of Sea of Japan (Japanese: 日 ...

and also a member of the House of Peers.

Biography

Born in Ueda Village,

Iwate Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture at , with a population of 1,210,534 (as of October 1, 2020). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefectur ...

as the second son of Rihei Tochiuchi, a samurai of the

Morioka Domain 300px, Ruins of Morioka Castle was a '' tozama'' feudal domain of Edo period Japan. It was ruled throughout its history by the Nanbu clan. It was called during the early part of its history. It was located in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū, ...

. After going through the preparatory course of

Sapporo Agricultural College was a school in Sapporo, Hokkaidō established in September 1875 for the purpose of educating students in the agriculture industry. History The first president of the college was Zusho Hirotake. Dr. William Smith Clark, a graduate of Amhers ...

and , he graduated from 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 stu ...

from its 13th class on 1886. On 1891, he graduated from the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associat ...

and served in the

as squad leader of '' Kongō'', squad leader of the Lushun Port Torpedo Laying Corps, and torpedo leader of '' Fusō''. After the war, he became a torpedo training school instructor. In 1897, he went on a business trip to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

as a member of the '' Asama'' navigation committee and returned to Japan in 1899 as the chief of the ''Asama'' torpedoes. In 1900, he served Gonnohyōe Yamamoto as Adjutant to the Ministry of the Navy and Secretary to the Minister of the Navy . At the start of the

, he initially served as captain of the '' Miyako'' but after the ''Miyako'' was sunk by a mine. After temporarily serving as captain of '' Musashi'' and the temporary cruiser ''Hachimanmaru'', he served as captain of the ''

'' during the

. After the war, he served as a military attaché to the

British Embassy This is a list of diplomatic missions of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, excluding honorary consulates. The UK has one of the largest global networks of diplomatic missions. UK diplomatic missions to capitals of other Com ...

for three and a half years. In 1909, he returned to Japan and became Rear Admiral of the Navy and Director of the in the same year. In addition, he successively served as Commander of the 2nd Fleet, Commander of the 1st Fleet, Commander of the 4th Squadron, Commander of the 3rd Squadron, Chief of the Technical Headquarters and in 1917, became Vice Minister of the Navy . In 1920, he was appointed Admiral of the Navy, served as Chief of the 1st Fleet, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, Commander-in-Chief of the

Sasebo Naval District was the third of five main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the western and southern coastline of Kyūshū, the Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan and Korea, as well as patrols in the East China Sea and t ...

, and Military Counselor, and was transferred to the Reserve in 1924. Afterwards, he was in opposition to the

London Naval Treaty The London Naval Treaty, officially the Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament, was an agreement between the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Italy, and the United States that was signed on 22 April 1930. Seeking to address is ...

. He became a member of the House of Peers on March 15, 1932, but on July 8 of the same year, he collapsed while giving a lecture at the time of his inauguration as the principal of the in Morioka City and died there.

Court Ranks

*Senior Eighth Rank (December 14, 1891) *Junior Seventh Rank (January 31, 1893) *Senior Seventh Rank (November 26, 1895) *Junior Sixth Rank (October 31, 1898) *Junior Fifth Rank (February 14, 1905) *Senior Fifth Rank (February 21, 1910) *Junior Fourth Rank (June 30, 1914) *Senior Fourth Rank (July 31, 1919) *Junior Third Rank (August 20, 1921) *Senior Third Rank (March 24, 1924) *Junior Second Rank (July 12, 1932)

Awards

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight ...

, 6th Class (November 18, 1895) *Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd Class (December 28, 1901) *

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 th ...

, 4th Class (April 1, 1906) *One (February 16, 1912) *One (March 23, 1921) *

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest ...

, 2nd Class (November 30, 1914) *Order of the Rising Sun, 1st Class (November 7, 1915)"Official Gazette" No. 1067 "Appointment and Appointment" February 24, 1916. *Taishō 34th Military Service Medal (November 7, 1915) *Emblem of Great Honor (November 10, 1915) *First National Census Commemorative Emblem (July 1, 1921)"Official Gazette" No. 2858, appendix "Appointment" February 14, 1922.

Foreign Awards

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, Knight (April 4, 1901)

References

Bibliography

*''Combined Fleet Commander-in-Chief'' Senki Series No. 61, Shinjin Oraisha, 2003. *

Ikuhiko Hata is a Japanese historian. He earned his PhD at the University of Tokyo and has taught history at several universities. He is the author of a number of influential and well-received scholarly works, particularly on topics related to Japan's role ...

, ''Japanese Army and Navy Comprehensive Encyclopedia'', 2nd Edition, University of Tokyo Press , 2005. *Misao Toyama (ed.), ''Army and Navy General Personnel Overview'', Navy Edition, Fuyo Shobo Publishing, 1981. *Hideki Fukukawa, ''Dictionary of Japanese Naval Officers'', Fuyo Shobo Publishing, 2000. *Hiromi Sano, ''A Study of Tochiuchi Sojiro'', Hokkaido University of Education, Kushiro Campus, Japanese Language Education Laboratory, 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tochiuchi, Sōjirō 1866 births 1932 deaths People from Iwate Prefecture People of Meiji-period Japan Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Imperial Japanese Naval Academy alumni Japanese military personnel of the First Sino-Japanese War Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd class Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun Knights of the Legion of Honour