Shigeru Fukudome
Shigeru Fukudome | |
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Vice Admiral | |
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Shigeru Fukudome (福留 繁, Fukudome Shigeru, 1 February 1891 – 6 February 1971) was an admiral and Chief of Staff of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.[2]
Biography
Early life and career
Born in
After attending torpedo school and naval artillery school, he served on the patrol boat Manshu, followed by the cruiser Chitose and was promoted to lieutenant in 1918. After attending navigational training, he was assigned as chief navigator to the destroyer Sakura, and cruiser Niitaka. He was then appointed executive officer on the oiler Kamoi, on its voyage to the United States from 1921–1922. After his return to Japan, he was assigned a number of staff positions. He then graduated from the Naval War College with honors in 1924, and was promoted to lieutenant commander. After a tour as chief navigator on the cruiser Iwate, he joined the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff and was promoted to commander in 1929. He continued to hold a number of staff positions through the 1930s. He was promoted to captain in 1933, and was captain of the battleship Nagato from 1938–1939. He was promoted to rear admiral on 15 November 1939.
Pacific War
Fukudome was first assigned to the Combined Fleet in 1940 to April 1941 (where he conducted aerial torpedo exercises with Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in early 1940 in contemplation of the proposed attack on Pearl Harbor), which was then under discussion. After his promotion to vice admiral in 1942, he again served as Chief of Staff under Admiral Yamamoto's successor Admiral Mineichi Koga from May 1943 to March 1944,
On 31 March 1944, while traveling by air from
After Koga's death in March 1944, Fukudome became commander-in-chief of the 1st Combined Base Air Force and 2nd Air Fleet, based in the Kyūshū-Okinawa-Formosa district. He later noted that this appointment was out of convenience, arguing that since he had no experience with naval aviation, his assignment to a newly formed air unit must be because of the immediate need for an officer of flag rank. On 10 October 1944, the headquarters of the 2nd Air Fleet moved from Katori in Chiba Prefecture to Taiwan; at the same time as the headquarters move, the 200 Imperial Japanese Army aircraft present in Taiwan were assigned to him to bolster his 100-aircraft fleet, with additional reinforcements coming in later in smaller quantities over time.
In late October 1944, because of the heavy losses of Japanese air units in the
In January 1945, the 2nd Air Fleet was dissolved and merged with the 1st Air Fleet. With the merger of the two air fleets in the Philippines, Fukudome was transferred to Singapore to command the IJN 10th Area Fleet, which at the time consisted mainly of the 13th Air Fleet with 450 aircraft (mostly trainers) and the IJN 1st Southern Expeditionary Fleet (2 operational cruisers and other smaller ships). He arrived in Singapore and took over command on 16 January 1945, and remained in this role until the end of the war. Because of the American control of air and sea after the Philippines campaign, he was effectively stranded in Singapore without the ability to affect the outcome of the war in a significant way.[4]
After the war, Fukudome was interrogated in
Following his release in 1950, Fukudome became a member of a 12-man commission to advise the Japanese government on the organization of the
Notable positions held
- Equipping Officer, CVS Kamoi – 1 December 1921 – 12 September 1922
- Chief Navigator, CVS Kamoi – 12 September 1922 – 10 December 1922
- Staff Officer, 1st Fleet – 8 January 1924 – 15 October 1924
- Staff Officer, Combined Fleet – 8 January 1924 – 15 October 1924
- Staff Officer, Combined Fleet – 16 November 1933 – 15 November 1934
- Staff Officer, 1st Fleet – 16 November 1933 – 15 November 1934
- Vice-Chief-of-Staff, China Area Fleet – 25 April 1938 – 15 December 1938
- Staff Officer, 3rd Fleet – 25 April 1938 – 15 December 1938
- Commanding Officer, Nagato – 15 December 1938 – 5 November 1939
- Chief-of-Staff, 1st Fleet – 15 November 1939 – 10 April 1941
- Chief-of-Staff, Combined Fleet – 1942 – 31 March 1944
- Commander-in-Chief, 2nd Air Fleet – 15 June 1944 – 8 January 1945
- Commander-in-Chief, 13th Air Fleet – 13 January 1945 – 15 August 1945
Dates of Promotions
- Midshipman – 17 July 1912
- Ensign – 1 December 1913
- Sublieutenant – 13 December 1915
- Lieutenant – 1 December 1918
- Lieutenant Commander – 1 December 1924
- Commander – 30 November 1929
- Captain – 15 November 1933
- Rear Admiral – 15 November 1939
- Vice Admiral – 1 November 1942
Portrayal in films
Fukudome was one of the characters that appeared in the 1970 American/Japanese war film Tora! Tora! Tora!, where he was portrayed by the Japanese actor Koji Kawamura.
References
Notes
Books
- Barreveld, Dirk Jan (2015). Cushing's Coup, Casemate Publ.
- Dupuy, Trevor N. (1992). Encyclopedia of Military Biography. I B Tauris & Co Ltd. ISBN 1-85043-569-3.
- Parrish, Thomas (1978). The Simon and Schuster Encyclopedia of World War II. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-671-24277-6.
- Van Der Vat, Dan (1978). Pacific Campaign: The U.S.-Japanese Naval War 1941-1945. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-671-79217-2.
External links
- Nishida, Hiroshi. "Materials of IJN: Fukudome, Shigeru". Imperial Japanese Nav. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
- Bradsher, Greg. "Account of Fukudome's capture". The Z-Plan Story. Retrieved 23 August 2007.
- United States Strategic Bombing Survey. "USSBS: Interrogations of Japanese Officials - VAdm. Fukudome, Shigeru, IJ". Retrieved 23 August 2007.
- Chen, Peter. "Shigeru Fukudome". www.ww2db.com. World War II Database. Retrieved 23 August 2007.
- The Go For Broke Educational Foundation. "Translation of The "Z" Plan". Archived from the original on 14 August 2007. Retrieved 23 August 2007.
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