# Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff

The Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff (軍令部, Gunreibu) was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). 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 administrative) authority over the Imperial Japanese Navy from the Navy Ministry. It was responsible for the planning and execution of national defense strategy. Through the Imperial General Headquarters it reported directly to the Emperor, not to the Prime Minister, National Diet or even the Navy Ministry. It was always headed by an admiral on active duty, and was based in Tokyo.
"The ministry was responsible for the naval budget, ship construction, weapons procurement, personnel, relations with the Diet and the cabinet and broad matters of naval policy. The General Staff directed the operations of the fleet and the preparation of war plans".
After the Washington Naval Conference of 1921–22, where Japan agreed to keep the size of its fleet smaller than that of the United Kingdom and the United States, the Imperial Japanese Navy became divided into the mutually hostile Fleet Faction and Treaty Faction political cliques. The Navy Ministry tended to be pro-Treaty Faction and was anxious to maintain the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. However the Navy General Staff came to be dominated by the Fleet faction, and gradually gained ascendancy in the 1930s with increasing Japanese militarism. The Navy General Staff pushed through the attack on Pearl Harbor against the wishes of the more diplomatic Navy Ministry.
After 1937, both the Navy Minister and the Chief of the Navy General Staff were members of the Imperial General Headquarters.
With the defeat of the Empire of Japan in World War II, the Navy General Staff was abolished together with the Imperial Japanese Navy by the American occupation authorities in November 1945 and was not revived by the post-war Constitution of Japan.

## Organization

The General Staff was organized as follows:
* 1st Department: Operations Bureau
** 1st Section: Operations
** 2nd Section: Training
* 2nd Department: Weapons and Mobilization Bureau
** 3rd Section: Weapons
** 4th Section: Mobilization
* 3rd Department: Intelligence Bureau
** 5th Section: Intelligence for America
** 6th Section: Intelligence for China
** 7th Section: Intelligence for Soviet Union
** 8th Section: Intelligence for UK and Europe
* 4th Department: Communications Bureau
** 9th Section: Communications
** 10th Section: Cryptography

## Chiefs of the General Staff

| No. | Chief of the General Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
| 1 | Toshiyoshi, ItōRear Admiral Itō Toshiyoshi 伊藤雋吉 (1840–1921) | 8 March 1889 | 17 May 1889 | 70 days |
| 2 | Shinanojō, ArichiRear Admiral Arichi Shinanojō 有地品之允 (1843–1919) | 17 May 1889 | 17 June 1891 | 2 years, 31 days |
| 3 | Yoshika, InoueRear Admiral Baron Inoue Yoshika 井上良馨 (1845–1929) | 17 June 1891 | 12 December 1892 | 1 year, 178 days |
| 4 | Kuranosuke, NakamutaVice Admiral Viscount Nakamuta Kuranosuke 中牟田倉之助 (1837–1916) | 12 December 1892 | 18 July 1894 | 1 year, 218 days |
| 5 | Sukenori, KabayamaVice Admiral Viscount Kabayama Sukenori 樺山資紀 (1837–1922) | 18 July 1894 | 11 May 1895 | 297 days |
| 6 | Sukeyuki, ItōVice Admiral Itō Sukeyuki 伊藤雋吉 (1843–1914) | 11 May 1895 | 20 December 1905 | 10 years, 223 days |
| 7 | Heihachirō, TōgōAdmiral Tōgō Heihachirō 東郷平八郎 (1848–1934) | 20 December 1905 | 1 December 1909 | 3 years, 346 days |
| 8 | Gorō, IjuinVice Admiral Baron Ijūin Gorō 伊集院五郎 (1848–1934) | 1 December 1909 | 22 April 1914 | 4 years, 142 days |
| 9 | Hayao, ShimamuraVice Admiral Shimamura Hayao 島村速雄 (1858–1923) | 22 April 1914 | 1 December 1920 | 6 years, 223 days |
| 10 | Gentarō, YamashitaAdmiral Yamashita Gentarō 山下源太郎 (1863–1931) | 1 December 1920 | 15 April 1925 | 4 years, 135 days |
| 11 | Suzuki, KantarōAdmiral Kantarō Suzuki 鈴木貫太郎 (1868–1948) | 15 April 1925 | 22 January 1929 | 3 years, 282 days |
| 12 | Kanji, KatōAdmiral Katō Hiroharu 加藤寛治 (1870–1939) | 22 January 1929 | 11 June 1930 | 1 year, 140 days |
| 13 | Naomi, TaniguchiVice Admiral Taniguchi Naomi [ja] 谷口尚真 (1870–1941) | 11 June 1930 | 2 February 1932 | 1 year, 236 days |
| 14 | Hiroyasu, FushimiAdmiral Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu 伏見宮博恭王 (1875–1946) | 2 February 1932 | 9 April 1941 | 9 years, 66 days |
| 15 | Nagano, OsamiAdmiral Osami Nagano 永野修身 (1880–1947) | 9 April 1941 | 21 February 1944 | 2 years, 318 days |
| 16 | Shimada, ShigetarōAdmiral Shigetarō Shimada 嶋田繁太郎 (1883–1976) | 21 February 1944 | 2 August 1944 | 163 days |
| 17 | Oikawa, KoshirōAdmiral Koshirō Oikawa 及川古志郎 (1883–1958) | 2 August 1944 | 29 May 1945 | 300 days |
| 18 | Toyoda, SoemuAdmiral Soemu Toyoda 豊田副武 (1885–1957) | 29 May 1945 | 15 October 1945 | 139 days |