was an admiral in the early

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 ...

.Kowner, '' Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War'', p. 370.

Biography

Taketomi was born to a

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

family of

Saga Domain was a Japanese domain of the Edo period Tokugawa Shogunate. It encompassed most of what are now Saga and Nagasaki Prefectures and was ruled from Saga Castle in what is now the urban center of the city of Saga. It was ruled through its histo ...

. He attended

naval artillery Naval artillery is artillery mounted on a warship, originally used only for naval warfare and then subsequently used for more specialized roles in surface warfare such as naval gunfire support (NGFS) and anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) engagements. ...

training in 1872 and served as a crewman on various vessels before he was commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy in February 1877 as a second lieutenant, but with the Naval Hydrographic Department.Nishida, '' People of the Imperial Japanese Navy'' In November 1879 he was promoted to lieutenant, serving initially in shore postings 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 ...

and the

Yokosuka Naval District was the first of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included Tokyo Bay and the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coasts of central and northern Honshū from the Kii Peninsula to Shimokita Peninsula. Its h ...

, followed by posting to the corvette and cruiser . He subsequently served as a naval attache to

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

and on the staff of the

Sasebo Naval District was the third of five main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the western and southern coastline of Kyūshū, the Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan and Korea, as well as patrols in the East China Sea and t ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant commander in December 1893. During 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 ...

, Taketomi served on the staff of Yokosuka Naval District. He was assigned to the

Governor-General of Taiwan The governor-general of Taiwan (, shinjitai: ) was the head of the Government-General of Taiwan in the Japanese era (including Formosa and the Pescadores) when they were part of the Empire of Japan, from 1895 to 1945. The Japanese governors- ...

after the end of the war, and served 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 was given his first command, the gunboat in 1897. He was promoted to commander shortly thereafter, and then served as aide-de-camp to the

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...

. He was promoted to captain in October 1898. From July 1901, Taketomi was captain of the cruiser , holding this position during the first half 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 ...

. In January 1905 he was promoted to rear admiral and was appointed commander of the 5th Division of the IJN 3rd Third Fleet, and was at the

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 ...

. From June 1905, he was commander of the Japanese Fourth Fleet. After the end of the war, he was made commander of the newly formed South China Fleet. He then served in staff positions within the

Ministry of the Navy of Japan The was a cabinet-level ministry in the Empire of Japan charged with the administrative affairs of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). It existed from 1872 to 1945. In the IJN and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), the ministries were in charge ...

and then commander of the

Ōminato Guard District The was the major navy base for the Imperial Japanese Navy in northern Honshu before and during World War II. Located in Mutsu Bay at the present-day city of Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, the Ōminato Guard District was responsible for control o ...

. In August 1909, he was promoted to vice admiral and entered the reserves the same day. He retired in March 1914.

References

;Footnotes ;Sources * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taketomi, Kunikane 1852 births 1931 deaths Military personnel from Saga Prefecture Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite