was an admiral in the early

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 ...

.Kowner, '' Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War'', p. 370.

Biography

Taketomi was born to a

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

family of Saga Domain. He attended naval artillery training in 1872 and served as a crewman on various vessels before he was commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy in February 1877 as a second lieutenant, but with the Naval Hydrographic Department.Nishida, '' People of the Imperial Japanese Navy'' In November 1879 he was promoted to lieutenant, serving initially in shore postings with the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff and the

Yokosuka Naval District was the first of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included Tokyo Bay and the Pacific coasts of central and northern Honshū from the Kii Peninsula to Shimokita Peninsula. Its headquarters, a ...

, followed by posting to the corvette and cruiser . He subsequently served as a naval attache to

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 ...

and on the staff 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 ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant commander in December 1893. During 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 ...

, Taketomi served on the staff of Yokosuka Naval District. He was assigned to the Governor-General of Taiwan after the end of the war, and served as

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...

on the cruisers and . He was given his first command, the gunboat in 1897. He was promoted to commander shortly thereafter, and then served as aide-de-camp to the

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

. He was promoted to captain in October 1898. From July 1901, Taketomi was captain of the cruiser , holding this position during the first half 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 ...

. In January 1905 he was promoted to rear admiral and was appointed commander of the 5th Division of the IJN 3rd Third Fleet, and was at 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 ...

. From June 1905, he was commander of the

Japanese Fourth Fleet The 4th Fleet was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Fourth Fleet designation was used during three separate periods. The initial designation was for a group of ships that were assigned to work together during the Russo-Japanese conflict a ...

. After the end of the war, he was made commander of the newly formed South China Fleet. He then served in staff positions within the

Ministry of the Navy of Japan The was a Cabinet (government), cabinet-level ministry in the Empire of Japan charged with the administrative affairs of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). It existed from 1872 to 1945. History The Navy Ministry was created in April 1872, along ...

and then commander of the Ōminato Guard District. In August 1909, he was promoted to vice admiral and entered the reserves the same day. He retired in March 1914.

References

;Footnotes ;Sources * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taketomi, Kunikane 1852 births 1931 deaths Military personnel from Saga Prefecture Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite