Goro Takeda (竹田 五郎) (24 October 1921 – 12 February 2020) was a Japanese military officer and military commentator who…
Goro Takeda (竹田 五郎) (24 October 1921 – 12 February 2020) was a Japanese military officer and military commentator who served in the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service during the Second World War reaching the rank of captain. In 1951 Takeda joined the newly formed National Police Reserve staying on when it was reorganized into the paramilitary National Safety Force in 1952 and again in 1954 when the NSF was absorbed into the new Japan Self-Defense Force, with Takeda joining the Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). Over the course of his career in the JASDF Takeda held various command and staff positions including Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman of the Joint Staff Council of the Japan Self-Defense Force until his retirement in 1981.
Famous People from Fukuoka Prefecture
Fukuoka Prefecture: 13 people
Kenji Okabe (岡部 健二, Okabe Kenji; 1915–September 1943) was an ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN)…
Kenji Okabe (岡部 健二, Okabe Kenji; 1915–September 1943) was an ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during World War II. Participating in many of the Pacific War battles and campaigns as a member of several units, Okabe was officially credited with destroying 15 enemy aircraft. Okabe was credited with shooting down eight enemy aircraft on 8 May 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea, the IJN's official record for the number of aircraft destroyed in a single encounter. He is famous for his strong opposition to the kamikaze attacks, rare in IJN at the time. Okabe was killed in action in September 1943 over Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.
Watari Handa (半田 亘理, Handa Watari; 22 August 1911 – 1948) was an officer and ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese…
Watari Handa (半田 亘理, Handa Watari; 22 August 1911 – 1948) was an officer and ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific theater of World War II. In aerial combat over China and the Pacific, he was officially credited with having destroyed 13 enemy aircraft. On 13 May 1942, as a member of the Tainan Air Group based at Lae, New Guinea, Handa asked fellow Tainan ace Saburō Sakai to lend him his wingman, Toshiaki Honda, for a reconnaissance mission over Port Moresby. During the mission, the Japanese pilots were ambushed by enemy P-39 fighters and Honda was shot down and killed. Broken in spirit by Honda's death, Handa soon developed tuberculosis and was evacuated to Japan. After fighting the disease for six years, Handa died in 1948, telling his wife on his deathbed, "I have fought bravely all my life, but I could never forgive myself for having lost Sakai's wingman at Lae."
Isamu Chō (長 勇, Chō Isamu; 19 January 1895 – 22 June 1945) was a Japanese officer in the Imperial Japanese Army known…
Isamu Chō (長 勇, Chō Isamu; 19 January 1895 – 22 June 1945) was a Japanese officer in the Imperial Japanese Army known for his support of ultranationalist politics and involvement in a number of attempted coup d'états in pre-World War II Japan.
Sadayoshi Yamada (山田 定義, Yamada Sadayoshi; 26 November 1892 – 16 November 1971) was a vice admiral in the Imperial…
Sadayoshi Yamada (山田 定義, Yamada Sadayoshi; 26 November 1892 – 16 November 1971) was a vice admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.
Shizuo Yokoyama (横山 静雄, Yokoyama Shizuo; 1 December 1890 – 6 January 1961) was a lieutenant general in the Imperial…
Shizuo Yokoyama (横山 静雄, Yokoyama Shizuo; 1 December 1890 – 6 January 1961) was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II, who is noted for his role in the Battle of Manila, the single largest urban battle ever fought by American forces, during the final days of World War II.
Seiichi Itō (伊藤 整一, Itō Seiichi; July 26, 1890 – April 7, 1945) was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and the…
Seiichi Itō (伊藤 整一, Itō Seiichi; July 26, 1890 – April 7, 1945) was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and the flag officer of the task force centered around the battleship Yamato on his final mission towards the end of World War II.
Takurō Matsui (松井 太久郎; December 3, 1887 – June 10, 1969) was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army during…
Takurō Matsui (松井 太久郎; December 3, 1887 – June 10, 1969) was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. Matsui commanded the Western District Army between July 15, 1938, and March 9, 1940. He received command of the 5th Japanese Division on October 15, 1940, which fought at that time in China in the Second Sino-Japanese War. On December 8, 1941, his division landed on the beaches of Southern Thailand and fought with success in the Malayan campaign and the following Battle of Singapore. On May 11, 1942, he was replaced at the head of the division by Lieutenant General Yamamoto Tsutomi. On March 18, 1943, he became Chief of Staff of the China Expeditionary Army, a post he would hold until February 1, 1945, when he became commander of the Thirteenth Army, posted in the lower Yangtze River, until the end of the war.
Shigenori Kuroda (黒田 重徳, Kuroda Shigenori; October 25, 1887 – April 30, 1952) was a Japanese lieutenant general of the…
Shigenori Kuroda (黒田 重徳, Kuroda Shigenori; October 25, 1887 – April 30, 1952) was a Japanese lieutenant general of the Imperial Japanese Army and the Japanese Governor-General of the Philippines during World War II.
Hajime Matsushita (松下 元, Matsushita Hajime; August 10, 1884 – December 1, 1953) was a Japanese naval officer and…
Hajime Matsushita (松下 元, Matsushita Hajime; August 10, 1884 – December 1, 1953) was a Japanese naval officer and educator.
Kōhei Kashii (香椎 浩平, Kashii Kōhei; January 25, 1881 – December 3, 1954) was a lieutenant-general in the Imperial…
Kōhei Kashii (香椎 浩平, Kashii Kōhei; January 25, 1881 – December 3, 1954) was a lieutenant-general in the Imperial Japanese Army. Kashii was born in Fukuoka Prefecture, graduated from the Imperial Japanese Army Academy, and became a lieutenant-general in 1931. He was the commander of the Japanese China Garrison Army from 22 December 1930 to 29 February 1932. In November 1931, Kashii imposed martial law over the Japanese-ruled area of the Chinese city of Tianjin. During the February 1936 coup attempt, Kashii was a leader of government forces that suppressed the revolt. Since he was sympathetic to the Imperial Way Faction, which included some of the officers who started the coup, he initially resisted military action against the revolt. He was later relieved of his duties, and then transferred to the reserves.
Hajime Sugiyama (杉山 元, Sugiyama Hajime / Sugiyama Gen; 1 January 1880 – 12 September 1945) was a Japanese field marshal…
Hajime Sugiyama (杉山 元, Sugiyama Hajime / Sugiyama Gen; 1 January 1880 – 12 September 1945) was a Japanese field marshal and one of Japan's military leaders for most of the Second World War. As Army Minister, Sugiyama was a driving force behind Japan's 1937 invasion of China in retaliation for the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. After being named the Japanese Army's Chief of Staff in 1940, he became a leading advocate for expansion into Southeast Asia and preventive war against the United States. Upon the outbreak of hostilities in the Asia-Pacific theater of World War II, Sugiyama served as the army's commander-in-chief until his removal by Prime Minister Hideki Tojo in February 1944. Following Tojo's ouster in July 1944, he once again held the post of Army Minister in Kuniaki Koiso's cabinet until its dissolution in April 1945. Ten days after Japan's surrender on 2 September 1945, he committed suicide.
Baron Akashi Motojiro (明石 元二郎; 1 September 1864 – 26 October 1919) was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and the…
Baron Akashi Motojiro (明石 元二郎; 1 September 1864 – 26 October 1919) was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and the 7th Governor-General of Taiwan from 6 June 1918 to 26 October 1919.