, 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 II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Biography

Marumo was a native of Nagano prefecture. He graduated from the 40th 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 ...

in 1912, ranked 47th out of 144 cadets. As a midshipman, Marumo served on the cruisers and , and as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

, on the battleship . After completion of his

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

and

naval artillery Naval artillery is artillery mounted on a warship, originally used only for naval warfare and then subsequently used for shore bombardment and anti-aircraft roles. The term generally refers to tube-launched projectile-firing weapons and exclude ...

training, he was assigned to the battleship . In 1917, Marumo was assigned to the second Special Task Fleet under Admiral Kozo Sato, a task force of Japanese destroyers deployed to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

as part of Japan’s assistance to the Allied war effort under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. After his return to Japan in 1918, he was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

and assigned to the cruiser . In 1921, he became chief gunnery officer on the destroyer , and later that year was made executive officer on destroyer . He subsequently served as chief gunnery officer on the cruiser and battleships and . After his promotion to

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

in 1924, he was assigned to the cruiser , battleship and destroyer . In 1929, he made commander, and joined 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 ...

in a number of shore assignments. He served as a military attaché to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and Europe from December 1933-July 1934. In December 1937, Marumo was given his first (and only) command: the

heavy cruiser The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in caliber, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval T ...

. From 1938-1939, he was assigned to 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 ...

. Marumo was promoted to rear admiral in November 1939. After the start of the Pacific War, Marumo was on the staff of the IJN 4th Fleet. He commanded the Support Group during the Battle of the Coral Sea.Morison. ''Coral Sea, Midway and Submarine Actions, May 1942-August 1942'' From December 1942, Marumo was assigned as naval attaché to the Empire of Manchukuo, where he spent most of the remainder of the war. He was promoted to vice admiral in November 1943. Repatriated to Japan in July 1947, Marumo in retirement until his death in 1985.

References

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Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marumo, Kuninori 1891 births 1985 deaths Military personnel from Nagano Prefecture Japanese admirals of World War II Imperial Japanese Navy admirals