Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

was an admiral in the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. His brother, Katō Yasuhisa, was a general in the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

, and his adoptive son was the biological son of Admiral Dewa Shigetō.

Biography

Katō was born in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, as the third son of Katō Yasukichi, a ''

hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the Shōgun, shogunates in History of Japan, Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred ...

'' retainer of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

. He attended the Numazu Military Academy, and in October 1883 graduated at the top of his class from the 10th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy. One of his classmates was Yamashita Gentarō. He served as a torpedo officer on the ''Jingei'', and . With the opening of the Sasebo Naval District, he was appointed secretary to Admiral Akamatsu Noriyoshi. From July 1891 to March 1893, Katō served as chief weapons officer on the cruiser . He was then sent to Germany as part of the entourage of Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu. He remained with the prince in Germany through the duration of the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 189417 April 1895), or the First China–Japan War, was a conflict between the Qing dynasty of China and the Empire of Japan primarily over influence in Joseon, Korea. In Chinese it is commonly known as th ...

. After his return to Japan, he served as weapons officer on the cruiser and on the staff of the Readiness Fleet. In August 1897, Katō was assigned as secretary to Navy Minister Saigō Tsugumichi, who was soon promoted to

fleet admiral An admiral of the fleet or shortened to fleet admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to field marshal and marshal of the air force. An admiral of the fleet is typically senior to an admiral. It is also a generic ter ...

. Katō was promoted to commander. Katō returned to sea duty from December 1898 to April 1901, serving as

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer ...

on the cruisers and . He then returned to Germany to oversee the completion of the cruiser , and was executive officer on her voyage to Japan. From April 1901, he served with the

Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff The 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 a ...

, where he enjoyed the confidence of Admiral Itō Sukeyuki. Katō met with business and political leaders, reviewed the designs of new warships, and was consulted on political developments and naval strategy. In October 1902, he was promoted to captain and returned to sea in April 1903 as captain of ''Akitsushima''. At the start of the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

, Katō was captain of the cruiser , an obsolete vessel not regarded as capable for front-line combat duties. However, in January 1905 he was transferred to command the cruiser and was thus able to participate in the crucial

Battle of Tsushima The Battle of Tsushima (, ''Tsusimskoye srazheniye''), also known in Japan as the , was the final naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 27–28 May 1905 in the Tsushima Strait. A devastating defeat for the Imperial Russian Navy, the ...

. After the end of the war, Katō served for ten months in the Naval Personnel Department before returning to sea to captain the cruiser , followed by the battleships and . In May 1908, he became chief-of-staff of the Maizuru Naval District. He was then promoted to rear admiral, and spent the next three years as commandant of the Maizuru Naval Arsenal . In May 1911, Katō became commander of the Training Fleet and in April 1912 became commander of the Sasebo Naval Arsenal, followed in December 1912 by promotion to vice admiral and the post of commander of the

Yokosuka Naval Arsenal was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama. History In 1866, the Tokugawa shogunate govern ...

. In December 1913, Katō returned to sea as commander-in-chief of the Second Fleet. With the start of

, the IJN 2nd Fleet was deployed to the Siege of Tsingtao. At Tsingtao, Katō commanded a fleet of four battleships, two cruisers, 15 destroyers along with submarines, torpedo boats and other auxiliary vessels.Tucker, The Great War 1914-1918, page 196 In July 1916, Katō was elevated to the ''

kazoku The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan, which existed between 1869 and 1947. It was formed by merging the feudal lords (''Daimyo, daimyō'') and court nobles (''kuge'') into one system modelled after the British peerage. Distin ...

'' peerage with the title of baron (''danshaku''). He was also awarded the Order of the Golden Kite, 2nd class and the Order of the Rising Sun. That December, he was appointed commander of the Kure Naval District and in July 1918 was promoted to full admiral. In December 1919, he was appointed a naval councilor and entered the reserves from January 1923. As a naval councilor, Katō spoke out frequently in politics, and was a strong advocate of the “big guns and big battleships” clique within the Navy. Despite his experiences at Tsingtao, he derided the development of

naval aviation Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of Military aviation, military air power by Navy, navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves ''navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seab ...

as of only minor importance. Katō was especially vehement in his opposition to the

Washington Naval Treaty The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was signed during 1922 among the major Allies of World War I, Allies of World War I, which agreed to prevent an arms race by limiting Navy, naval construction. It was negotiated at ...

and was thus a prominent member of the Fleet Faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy. Katō collapsed while in a meeting with Prince Fushimi in September 1927 and died shortly afterwards.

References

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kato, Sadakichi 1861 births 1927 deaths Military personnel from Tokyo Kazoku Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Japanese military personnel of World War I Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Japanese military personnel of the Boxer Rebellion