1st Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy)

IJN fleet (1903–1944) 1st Air Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy) 1st Mobile Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy) October 2021 1st Fleet 28 December 1903 – 25 February 1944 Empire of Japan Empire of Japan Heihachiro TogoKōichi FujiiOsami NaganoIsoroku YamamotoChuichi Nagumo The 1st Fleet 第一艦隊 Dai-ichi Kantai was the main battleship fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy. History First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 1st Fleet was created during the Russo-Japanese War when the Imperial General Headquarters divided the Readiness Fleet into a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to pursue the Imperial Russian Navy's Vladivostok-based cruiser squadron (the Imperial Japanese Navys 2nd Fleet), while the remaining bulk of the Japanese fleet (the IJN 1st Fleet) continued to blockade Port Arthur in hopes of luring the battleships of the Russian Pacific Fleet out into a classic line-of-battle confrontation. The two fleets were combined into the Combined Fleet for the final Battle of Tsushima. The decisive victory of the Japanese fleet over the Imperial Russian Navy at the Battle of Tsushima validated the doctrine of the "decisive victory", or kantai kessen as stipulated by naval theorists such as Alfred Thayer Mahan and Satō Tetsutarō in the eyes of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, and future naval procurement and deployment was centered on refinements of this doctrine.Peattie & Evans, KaigunDecember 2019 The Mahanian objective was to build a fleet in being, a naval force kept deliberately in strategic reserve, as secondary forces based on cruisers and destroyers waged a campaign of attrition against an approaching enemy, who would then be destroyed in a climactic final battle similar to the Battle of Tsushima.Willmont, After Midway: Japanese Naval Strategy 1942–45, pp. 177–199Evans, KaigunDecember 2019 As a result of this doctrine, although individual ships and task forces were dispatched on occasion for specific combat operations, the main force in the Imperial Japanese Navy was mostly held in reserve from the time of its inception until near the end of World War II. Commanders of the IJN 1st Fleet Wendel, Axis History Database Commander-in-ChiefDatesPrevious PostNext PostNotes175pxVice-AdmiralTōgō Heihachirō東郷平八郎28 December190320 December1905Commander-in-chiefStanding FleetChairmanNavy General StaffPromoted to Admiral 6 June 1904Also Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleetfor entire tenure.275pxVice-AdmiralKataoka Shichirō片岡七郎20 December190522 November1906Commander-in-chief3rd FleetDirectorNaval Shipping Bureau375pxVice-AdmiralArima Shinichi ja 有馬新一有馬新一22 November190626 May1908 475pxVice-AdmiralIjūin Gorō伊集院五郎26 May19081 December1909Commander-in-chief2nd FleetChairmanNavy General StaffAlso Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleetfrom 8 October to 20 November 1908575pxVice-AdmiralKamimura Hikonojō上村彦之丞1 December19091 December1911Commander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral675pxVice-AdmiralDewa Shigetō出羽重遠1 December19111 December1913Commander-in-chiefSasebo Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral775pxVice-AdmiralKatō Tomosaburō加藤友三郎1 December191310 August1915Commander-in-chiefSasebo Naval DistrictMinister of the Navy875pxVice-AdmiralKōichi Fujii藤井較一10 August191523 September1915Commander-in-chiefSasebo Naval DistrictCommander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval District975pxVice-AdmiralYoshimatsu Shigetarō ja 吉松茂太郎吉松茂太郎23 September19151 December1917Commander-in-chiefKure Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral Also Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet8 October to 20 November 1915, 1 September to 14 October 1916,1 to 22 October 19171075pxVice-AdmiralYamashita Gentarō山下源太郎1 December19171 December1919Commander-in-chiefSasebo Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral Also Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet1 September to 15 October 1918, 1 June to 28 October 19191175pxAdmiralYamaya Tanin山屋他人1 December191924 August1920Commander-in-chief2nd FleetCommander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictAlso Commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleetfrom 1 May 19201275pxAdmiralTochinai Sojirō ja 栃内曽次郎栃内曽次郎24 August192027 July1922Vice-Minister of the NavyCommander-in-chiefSasebo Naval DistrictAlso Commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleetuntil 31 October 1920 and from 1 May to 31 October 19211375pxVice-AdmiralTakeshita Isamu竹下勇27 July192227 January1924 Commander-in-chiefKure Naval DistrictPromoted to Admiral 3 August 1923Also Commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleetfrom 1 December 1922Command of Combined Fleet and 1st Fleetwould be unified for the next 20 years.1475pxAdmiralSuzuki Kantarō鈴木貫太郎27 January19241 December1924Commander-in-chiefKure Naval DistrictNaval Councilor1575pxAdmiralOkada Keisuke岡田啓介1 December192410 December1926Naval CouncilorCommander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval District1675pxVice-AdmiralKatō Hiroharu加藤寛治10 December192610 December1928Commander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral 1 April 19271775pxAdmiralTaniguchi Naomi ja 谷口尚真谷口尚真10 December192811 November1929Commander-in-chiefKure Naval DistrictCommander-in-chiefKure Naval District1875pxVice-AdmiralYamamoto Eisuke ja 山本英輔山本英輔11 November19291 December1931Commander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral 1 March 19311975pxVice-AdmiralKobayashi Seizō小林躋造1 December193115 November1933Vice-Minister of the NavyNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral 1 April 19332075pxVice-AdmiralSuetsugu Nobumasa末次信正15 November193315 November 1934Commander-in-chief2nd FleetCommander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictPromoted to Admiral 30 March 19342175pxVice-AdmiralTakahashi Sankichi高橋三吉15 November19341 December1936Commander-in-chief2nd FleetNaval CouncilorPromoted to Admiral 1 April 19362275pxVice-AdmiralMitsumasa Yonai米内光政1 December19362 February1937Commander-in-chiefYokosuka Naval DistrictMinister of the Navy2375pxAdmiralNagano Osami永野修身2 February19371 December1937Minister of the NavyNaval Councilor2475pxVice-AdmiralYoshida Zengo吉田善吾1 December193730 August1939Commander-in-chief2nd FleetMinister of the Navy2575pxVice-AdmiralYamamoto Isoroku山本五十六30 August193911 August1941Vice-Minister of the NavyCommander-in-chiefCombined FleetPromoted to Admiral 15 November 1940Command of Combined Fleet and 1st Fleet separated.2675pxVice AdmiralTakasu Shirō高須四郎11 August1941 14 July 1942Commander-in-chief4th FleetAttendantNavy General Staff2775pxVice-AdmiralShimizu Mitsumi清水光美14 July1942 20 October1943 2875pxVice-AdmiralNagumo Chūichi南雲忠一20 October1943 25 February1944 Commander-in-chiefKure Naval District Chief of Staff Rank Name Date1 Fleet Admiral Baron Hayao Shimamura 28 December 1903 – 12 January 19052 Fleet Admiral Viscount Tomosaburō Katō 12 January 1905 – 20 December 19053 Admiral Kōichi Fujii 20 December 1905 – 22 November 19064 Fleet Admiral Baron Yamashita Gentarō 22 November 1906 – 10 December 19085 Admiral Takarabe Takeshi 10 December 1908 – 1 December 19096 Admiral Kaneo Nomaguchi 1 December 1909 – 11 March 19117 Vice Admiral Saneyuki Akiyama 11 March 1911 – 1 December 19128 Admiral Isamu Takeshita 1 December 1912 – 24 May 1913x position vacant 24 May 1913 – 1 December 19139 Vice Admiral Tetsutaro Sato 1 December 1913 – 17 April 191410 Vice Admiral Kazuyoshi Yamaji 17 April 1914 – 1 December 191411 Vice Admiral Shibakichi Yamanaka 1 December 1914 – 13 December 191512 Vice Admiral Saburo Horiuchi 13 December 1915 – 1 December 191713 Vice Admiral Hanroku Saito 1 December 1917 – 1 December 191814 Vice Admiral Kajishiro Funakoshi 1 December 1918 – 1 December 191915 Vice Admiral Hansaku Yoshioka 1 December 1919 – 1 December 192116 Vice Admiral Kumazo Shirane 1 December 1921 – 1 December 192317 Rear Admiral Bekinari Kabayama 1 December 1923 – 10 November 192418 Vice Admiral Kanjiro Hara 10 November 1924 – 1 December 192519 Vice Admiral Naotaro Ominato 1 December 1925 – 1 November 192620 Admiral Sankichi Takahashi 1 November 1926 – 1 December 192721 Vice Admiral Eijiro Hamano 1 December 1927 – 10 December 192822 Vice Admiral Ken Terajima 10 December 1928 – 30 October 192923 Admiral Koichi Shiozawa 30 October 1929 – 1 December 193024 Admiral Shigetarō Shimada 1 December 1930 – 1 December 193125 Admiral Zengo Yoshida 1 December 1931 – 15 September 193326 Admiral Soemu Toyoda 15 September 1933 – 15 March 193527 Admiral Nobutake Kondō 15 March 1935 – 15 November 193528 Admiral Naokuni Nomura 15 November 1935 – 16 November 193629 Rear Admiral Yasutaro Iwashita 16 November 1936 – 18 February 193730 Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa 18 February 1937 – 15 November 193731 Vice Admiral Ibo Takahashi 15 November 1937 – 5 November 193932 Vice Admiral Shigeru Fukudome 5 November 1939 – 10 April 194133 Admiral Seiichi Ito 10 April 1941 – 11 August 194134 Vice Admiral Kengo Kobayashi 11 August 1941 – 6 January 194335 Vice Admiral Gihachi Takayanagi 6 January 1943 – 25 February 1944 References Books D'Albas Andrieu 1965 Death of a Navy: Japanese Naval Action in World War II Devin-Adair Pub 0-8159-5302-X Dull Paul S. 1978 A Battle History of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1941–1945 Naval Institute Press 0-87021-097-1 registration https://archive.org/details/battlehistoryofi0000dull Evans David 1979 Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics, and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1887–1941 US Naval Institute Press 0-87021-192-7 1 Category:Military units and formations established in 1903 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1944