| Nobutake Kondō | |
|---|---|
Admiral Nobutake Kondō
| |
| Born | 25 September 1886 Osaka, Japan |
| Died | 19 February 1953 (aged 66)[1] |
| Allegiance |  Empire of Japan |
| Service/branch |  Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Years of service | 1907-1945 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands held | Kako, Kongō Southern Force, Southern Force Main Body, 2nd Fleet, 1st NGS Division Operations, IJN 5th Fleet, Naval General Staff, IJN 2nd Fleet, 4th Cruiser Division,China Area Fleet[2] |
| Battles/wars | Second Sino-Japanese War * Hainan Island Operation * Swatow Operation World War II * Battle of Midway * Indian Ocean Raid * New Guinea campaign * Guadalcanal campaign * Solomon Islands campaign |
| Awards | Order of the Rising Sun (2nd class) Order of the Golden Kite (1st class and 3rd class) Order of the Sacred Treasure (3rd class) |
| Other work | Supreme War Council (Japan) |
In this Japanese name, the family name is "Kondō ".
Nobutake Kondō (近藤 信竹 Kondō Nobutake?, 25 September 1886 – 19 February 1953), was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navyduring World War II. As commander of IJN 2nd Fleet, the Navy's principal detached force for independent operations, Kondō was regarded as second in importance only to Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto.
World War II[edit]
After the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Kondō commanded the IJN 5th Fleet in the Hainan Island Operation andSwatow Operation off of southern China.
At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Kondō commanded the IJN 2nd Fleet, participating in the invasions of Malaya, thePhilippines and the Dutch East Indies.[3] He was overall commander for the Indian Ocean Raid.[3] During the Battle of Midway, he commanded the Midway Occupation Force and Covering Group.[3] Subsequently, his forces played a leading role during the Guadalcanal campaign, seeing combat in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons (23–25 August 1942) and theBattle of the Santa Cruz Islands (26–27 October). Kondō also led Japanese forces at the Battle off Savo Island (12–13 November 1942).
After the first Naval Battle of Guadalcanal (15 November 1942), Kondō personally led the battleship Kirishima along with cruisers Atago, Nagara, Sendai, and Takao, in what was to have been a decisive attack to eliminate the threat fromHenderson Field through a massive nocturnal shelling. Instead, Kondō was confronted by an American task force with battleships USS Washington and USS South Dakota, and was defeated, losing Kirishima. This defeat marked a turning point of the entire Guadalcanal campaign.[3]
Kondō was apparently tainted by the Guadalcanal failures, and was soon removed from seagoing commands, or indeed any positions of real authority. Yamamoto's demotion of Kondō was nonetheless less harsh than that of his predecessor,Hiroaki Abe, due to Imperial Navy culture and politics. Kondō, who also held the position of second in command of the Combined Fleet, was a member of the upper staff and "battleship clique" of the Imperial Navy while Abe was a career destroyer specialist. Admiral Kondo was not reprimanded or reassigned but instead was left in command of one of the large ship fleets based at Truk.[4]
Kondō was appointed Deputy Commander of the Combined Fleet in October 1942 and was promoted to full admiral on 29 April 1943. He became Commander in Chief of the China Area Fleet from December 1943 until May 1945, when it was appointed to the Supreme War Council (Japan).
| Tamon Yamaguchi | |
|---|---|
Japanese Vice Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi
| |
| Native name | 山口 多聞 |
| Born | August 17, 1892 Tokyo, Japan |
| Died | June 4, 1942 (aged 49)[1] Pacific Ocean near Midway Island |
| Allegiance | Empire of Japan |
| Service/branch | Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Years of service | 1912-1942 |
| Rank | Vice Admiral |
| Commands held | Isuzu, Ise IJN 5th Fleet, 2nd Carrier Division |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
|
In this Japanese name, the family name is "Yamaguchi".
Tamon Yamaguchi (山口 多聞 Yamaguchi Tamon?, 17 August 1892 – 4 June 1942) was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy inWorld War II and an alumnus of Princeton University (1921–1923).
Biography[edit]
Born in Koishikawa Tokyo, Yamaguchi graduated from the 40th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1912, ranked second out of 144 cadets. As a midshipman, he served on the cruiser Soya andbattleship Settsu. After his commissioning as an ensign, he was assigned to the cruiser Chikuma and battleship Aki.
Yamaguchi attended naval artillery and torpedo school in 1915–1916, and was then assigned to the destroyer Kashi.
By 1918, Yamaguchi had been promoted to lieutenant and was assigned to a navigation unit with the naval squadron escorting Imperial German Navy submarines received by the Japanese government as part of reparation payments from Germany at the end of World War I. He then traveled to the United States and attended Princeton Universityfrom 1921-1923. On his return to Japan the following year, he served on the battleship Nagato for six months, before graduating from theNaval Staff College with honors in 1924. Yamaguchi was promoted tolieutenant commander in 1924.
A member of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff in 1927, Yamaguchi was promoted commander the next year and later assigned to the Japanese delegation at the London Naval Conference in 1929-1930. On his return to Japan, he was assigned as executive officer on the cruiser Yura.
Promoted to captain in 1932, Yamaguchi was the naval attaché toWashington, DC from 1934-1937. On his return to Japan, he was assigned as captain to the cruiser Isuzu (from 1936–1937), followed by the battleship Ise (from 1937–1938).
Promoted to rear admiral on 15 November 1938, he was commander of the First Combined Air Group during the early stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War. He directed the saturation bombing campaign in central China through 1940, until his appointment as commander of the2nd Carrier Division, consisting of the aircraft carriers Sōryū andHiryū.[3]
Yamaguchi′s carrier force was part of the attack on Pearl Harbor, sheltering many of the planes that would attack the port. Yamaguchi commanded a force of planes at the Battle of Wake Island, saving his comrade Eiji Gotō's force from destruction, and subsequently participated in the Indian Ocean Raid.
During the Battle of Midway, Yamaguchi sparred with his superior officer, Admiral Chūichi Nagumo, upon a reconnaissance plane discovering an American aircraft carrier (USS Yorktown) near Midway. At the time, the Japanese carriers′ planes were armed with bombs. Nagumo wished to switch the armament to torpedoes. Yamaguchi demanded that no time be wasted and that the planes be launched to attack the American carrier with bombs. Nagumo rejected this; shortly afterward, American carrier aircraft destroyed all the Japanese carriers except Yamaguchi′s flagship Hiryū. Yamaguchi quickly ordered two successive attacks on Yorktown which crippled it. Shortly afterward, another carrier air strike against Hiryū resulted in hits by aircraft from USS Enterprise.
Yamaguchi was killed in action, choosing to go down with the sinking aircraft carrier. Legend has it that he and the captain of Hiryū went down with the stricken carrier while calmly admiring the moon. He was posthumously promoted to the rank ofvice admiral.
Kobayashi, Michio, Lieutenant-wwii1291.jpg
Caption:
Imperial Japanese Navy Lieutenant Michio Kobayashi before the Battle of Midway. Kobayashi flew a D3A1 type 99 dive bomber (Allied code name "Val") from IJN Hiryu as the commander of her Kanjo Bakugekikitai (bombing squadron) during the successful attack on USSYorktown (CV-5) on June 4, 1942. He piloted plane number lying BII-201, with his gunner along, Warrant Officer Ono Yoshinori. After the destruction of IJN Akagi, IJN Kaga and IJN Soryu at 1022, Kobayashi led eighteen dive bombers against Task Force 17 built around Yorktown. The Americans' Combat Air Patrol of Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat fighters did not all receive the radio call for help from Yorktown and only six fighters engaged at 1155. Since the D3A1s lacked adequate fighter cover (the four Zeroes had pulled away after returning Douglas SBD Dauntlesses) Kobayashi jettisoned his bomb and engaged the Wildcats. Meanwhile, his flight braved the heavy antiaircraft fire and scored three hits with armor-piercing 551-pound (250-kilogram) bombs. Yorktown lost her boilers and stopped dead in the water. Yorktown had many casualties and made emergency repairs that were so effective that a B5N2 torpedo bomber (allied code name "Kate") attack later in the day reported that it was a different carrier. Out of twenty-two attacking planes, thirteen dive bombers and three fighters were destroyed. Kobayashi, circling the engagement and reporting via radio, was shot down by Wildcats from Enterprise's Fighting Six (VF-6) flown by Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Thomas C. Provost III and Ensign James A. Halford, Junior.
| Raymond A. Spruance | |
|---|---|
Spruance in April 1944
| |
| Birth name | Raymond Ames Spruance |
| Born | July 3, 1886 Baltimore, Maryland |
| Died | December 13, 1969 (aged 83) Pebble Beach, California |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch |  United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1907–1948 |
| Rank |  Admiral |
| Commands held | United States Pacific Fleet |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Navy Cross Navy Distinguished Service Medal (3) Army Distinguished Service Medal |
| Other work | Ambassador to the Philippines |
Raymond Ames Spruance (July 3, 1886 – December 13, 1969) was aUnited States Navy admiral in World War II.
Spruance commanded US naval forces during two of the most significant naval battles that took place in the Pacific theater, the Battle of Midway and the Battle of the Philippine Sea. The Battle of Midwaywas the first major victory for the United States over Japan and is seen by many as the turning point of the Pacific war. The Battle of the Philippine Sea was also a significant victory for the US. The Navy's official historian said of the Battle of Midway "...Spruance's performance was superb...(he) emerged from this battle one of the greatest admirals in American naval history".[1] After the war, Spruance was appointedPresident of the Naval War College, and later served as Americanambassador to the Philippines.
Spruance was nicknamed "electric brain" for his calmness even in moments of supreme crisis: a reputation enhanced by his successful tactics at Midway.
Early life[edit]
Spruance was born in Baltimore, Maryland to Alexander and Annie Spruance. He was raised in Indianapolis, Indiana.[3] Spruance attended Indianapolis public schools and graduated from Shortridge High School. From there, he went on to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1906, and received further, hands on education in electrical engineeringa few years later.
Career prior to World War II[edit]
Spruance's first duty assignment would be aboard the battleship USS Iowa (BB-4), an 11,400 ton veteran of the Spanish-American War.
In July 1907 he transferred to the battleship USS Minnesota (BB-22) and was aboard her during the historic around the world cruise of the Great White Fleet from 1907 to 1909.
Spruance's seagoing career included command of the destroyer USS Bainbridge (DD-1) from March 1913 to May 1914, theUSS Osborne (DD-295), three other destroyers, and the battleship USS Mississippi (BB-41).
In 1916 he aided in the fitting out of the USS Pennsylvania and he served on board her from her commissioning in June, 1916 until November 1917. During the last year of World War I he was assigned as Assistant Engineer Officer of the New York Naval Shipyard, and carried out temporary duty in London, England and Edinburgh, Scotland.[4]
Spruance ran a quiet bridge, without chit-chat; he demanded that orders be given concisely and clearly. In one incident a distraught officer rushed to report, "Captain, we've just dropped a depth charge over the stern!" "Well, pick it up and put it back," was Spruance's measured response.[5]
Spruance began attendance at the Naval War College in 1926, and graduated in 1927. He served as executive officer of the USS Mississippi from October 1929 to June 1931. He also held several engineering, intelligence, staff and Naval War College positions up to the 1940s. He served as an instructor at the Naval War College from 1935 to 1938. He commanded the battleship USS Mississippi from April 1938 to December 1939, when he was promoted to Rear Admiral. On February 26, 1940 Spruance reported as Commandant of the TENTH Naval District with headquarters at San Juan, Puerto Rico. On August 1, 1941, he finished his tour in Puerto Rico.
World War II[edit]
See also: United States Navy in World War II
Before Midway[edit]
In the first months of World War II in the Pacific, Spruance commanded the four heavy cruisers and support ships of Cruiser Division Five from his flagship, the USS Northampton . His division was an element of the task force built around the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise commanded by Vice Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr. Early on, Halsey had led his task force on hit and run raids against the Japanese in the western Pacific: striking the Gilbert and Marshall islands in February, 1942, Wake Island in March, and projecting the air power of the Doolittle Raid against the Japanese homeland in April. These raids were critical to morale—setting a new tone of aggressiveness by US commanders while providing invaluable battle experience for the commanders and sailors of the US Navy.[3]
Spruance at Midway[edit]
Main article: Battle of Midway
During the third week of May 1942 US naval intelligence units confirmed that the Japanese would—by early June—invadeMidway Island. Capturing and occupying Midway was the brainchild-plan of Commander in Chief of the Combined FleetAdmiral Isoroku Yamamoto. With it he intended to significantly expand the IJN's outer defense perimeter across the central Pacific; and, he believed, this very powerful stroke against Midway would so severely threaten Hawaii and Pearl Harbor that the US government would be induced to sue for peace[6] (see Battle of Midway: Background). On the other hand, Commander in Chief of the US Pacific Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz knew he must intercept the Japanese invasion fleet, and that he must give battle to the enemy aircraft carriers before they could project their overwhelming power against the naval air station at Midway.
Less than two days before launch from Pearl Harbor, Nimitz's commander of the Fleet carrier force, Admiral Halsey, was hospitalized with severe shingles;[7] Halsey immediately recommended Admiral Spruance to Nimitz as his replacement. Although Spruance was proven as a cruiser division commander, he had no experience handling carrier-air combat; Halsey reassured Nimitz, and he told Spruance to rely on his newly inherited staff, particularly Captain Miles Browning, a battle-proven expert in carrier warfare.[8] Spruance assumed command of Task Force 16 with its two carriers USS Enterprise andUSS Hornet under battle command of Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher. Fletcher’s flagship USS Yorktown had been badly damaged at the Battle of the Coral Sea, but—at Nimitz's behest—it was patched-repaired in 'rush' time purposefully to join the Midway operation.
The US Navy intercept force centered on the three carriers Enterprise, Hornet, and Yorktown and their air-attack squadrons; it faced an IJN invasion fleet organized into two groups: the air-attack task force of four carriers with support ships under command of Admiral Nagumo; and the surface and occupation forces under Admiral Kondo and others. Admiral Yamamoto commanded the combined invasion fleet from aboard his flagship Yamato.
The battle commenced on the morning of June 4; the first several waves of US attack aircraft were badly beaten, both near Midway and at sea around the Japanese task force. Then US dive bombers from Spruance's Enterprise located Nagumo's fleet of four carriers—which, fatefully, were without air cover. Most of Nagumo's attack planes had just returned from the first strike on Midway and were immobilized on the carrier decks, while his CAP cover planes were engaged with battling torpedo bombers sent by Spruance from Hornet (see Battle of Midway: Spruance judged.. and he gambled..). The US dive bombers critically damaged three Japanese carriers including Nagumo's flagship Akagi; all three eventually sank. The surviving carrier, Hiryū, gave the Japanese some (brief) respite by sending strikes that crippled Yorktown. But several hours later—near the end of daylight hours—a US scout plane located Hiryū again. Spruance quickly ordered his dive bombers to strike, which fatally damaged the fourth Japanese carrier; it was scuttled the next day.
The US Navy counterforce sank all four Japanese carriers while losing one of its own, Yorktown. The devastating repulse of the IJN invasion fleet at Midway, largely directed by Spruance, essentially ended Japanese superiority in naval air-fleet power in the Pacific.
In 1949 naval historian Samuel E. Morison noted that Spruance was subjected to criticism for not pursuing the retreating Japanese and allowing the surface fleet to escape.[9] But in summing up Spruance's performance in the battle, Morison wrote: "Fletcher did well, but Spruance's performance was superb. Calm, collected, decisive, yet receptive to advice; keeping in his mind the picture of widely disparate forces, yet boldly seizing every opening. Raymond A. Spruance emerged from the battle one of the greatest admirals in American Naval history".[10][11]
For his actions at the battle of Midway Rear Admiral Spruance was awarded the Navy Distinguished Service Medal and cited as follows: “For exceptionally meritorious service… as Task Force Commander, United States Pacific Fleet. During the Midway engagement which resulted in the defeat of and heavy losses to the enemy fleet, his seamanship, endurance, and tenacity in handling his task force were of the highest quality.”[12] Both Fletcher and Nimitz recommended Spruance for the Distinguished Service Medal for his role in the battle.[13]
The Battle of Midway is generally considered to be the turning point of the war in the Pacific. Before Midway, a small and fractional US Navy faced an overwhelmingly larger and battle-hardened Japanese Combined Fleet. After Midway, although the Japanese still held a temporary advantage in vessels and planes, the US Navy and the nation gained confidence and, most critically, time. The setback in the IJN timetable to encircle the Pacific gave the US industrial machine time to crank-up war production, and ultimately, to turn the advantage on Japan in the production of ships, planes, guns, and all the other matériel of war. An epic battle of aircraft carriers and attack air squadrons, Midway infused the US Pacific Navy with confidence. And with this battle the American forces gained, and afterwards continued to gain, hard combat experience; so the Japanese lost that crucial advantage as well.
| Frank Jack Fletcher | |
|---|---|
 
Vice Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, USN Photographed aboard USS Saratoga (CV-3), September 17, 1942. Official U.S. Navy Photograph
| |
| Born | April 29, 1885 Marshalltown, Iowa |
| Died | April 25, 1973 (aged 87) Bethesda, Maryland |
| Place of burial | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch |  United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1906-1947 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Battles/wars | Mexican Revolution –Battle of Veracruz World War I –Battle of the Atlantic World War II –Battle of the Coral Sea –Battle of Midway –Guadalcanal campaign –Tulagi –Eastern Solomons |
| Awards | Medal of Honor Navy Cross Navy Distinguished Service Medal |
| Relations | Nephew of Frank Friday Fletcher |
Frank Jack Fletcher (April 29, 1885 – April 25, 1973) was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War II. Fletcher was the operational commander at the pivotal Battles of Coral Sea and ofMidway. As a lieutenant, Fletcher was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in battle at Veracruz. He was the nephew of Admiral Frank Friday Fletcher, another Medal of Honor recipient.
Midway — June 4–7, 1942[edit]
In June 1942, Fletcher was the Officer in Tactical Command at the Battle of Midway with two task forces, his usual TF 17 with quickly repaired Yorktown, plus TF 16 with USS Enterprise and USS Hornet. Vice Admiral William Halsey normally commanded this task force, but became ill and was replaced by Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance. When aircraft from four Japanese carriers attacked Midway Island, the three U.S. carriers, warned by broken Japanese codes and waiting in ambush, attacked and sank three enemy carriers – Akagi, Kaga, Soryu. Enterprise and Hornet lost seventy aircraft. Japanese attacks on June 4 severely damaged Yorktown; repairs returned her to the battle until she was hopelessly disabled by a new round of attacks two hours later. Fletcher's scouts found the fourth carrier and Enterprise with Yorktownplanes then sank Hiryu. At dusk, Fletcher released Spruance to continue fighting with TF 16 the next day. During the next two days, Spruance found two damaged cruisers and sank one. The enemy transport and battle fleets got away. A Japanese submarine, I-168, found crippled Yorktown under tow on June 5 and sank her, along with an adjacent destroyer,USS Hammann (DD-412). Japan had had seven large carriers (six at Pearl Harbor and one new construction) – four were sunk at Midway. This did not win the war, but evened the odds between Japanese and American fleet carriers. Following the battle Fletcher was promoted to Vice Admiral and continued to command a carrier group at sea after shifting his flag toUSS Saratoga.
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