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history.gr.jp
Oka Takasumi (Oka Takazumi) graduated from the
Naval
Academy in 1911 and
the Naval Staff College in 1923. He was a submariner but
held numerous staff
assignments between the wars. He was a vice admiral and
political and
military specialist in the Navy
Ministry and directed the Bureau of Naval Affairs in the period just
before the Pacific war broke out. This was a powerful position, since
any government agency dealing with the Navy had to go through the
Bureau of Naval Affairs, making Oka one of the three most influential staff officers (bakuryu) in Japan.
Oka was opposed to the Tripartite Pact and supported a Japanese withdrawal from China to placate the Americans, and opposed an immediate decision to go to war in August 1941; but he apparently also told the Army General Staff that the Navy preferred an attack on the Netherlands East Indies to an attack on Russia. He joined Nagano and Shimada in insisting that diplomacy be sacrificed in order to win the impending war.
After Japan was brought to ruin, Oka was sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes against the peace.
Oka was unmarried, pro-German, and generally a supporter of Army policies. He was unsuccessful in gaining Army support for attacks on the key Allied bases in Hawaii and Australia, but did negotiate Army support for the Port Moresby operation that led to the Battle of the Coral Sea.
| 1890-2-11 | born | |
| 1911-7-18 | Midshipman | Graduates from Naval Academy, standing 52nd in a clas of 148. Assigned to CL Soya |
| 1912-3-29 | BB Katori |
|
| 1912-12-1 | Ensign | |
| 1914-1-15 | BB Hiei |
|
| 1914-12-1 | Lieutenant junior grade |
Torpedo School Basic Course |
| 1915-5-26 | Gunnery School Basic Course | |
| 1915-12-13 |
DD Uranami |
|
| 1916-4-1 | Submarine Division 1 |
|
| 1916-12-1 | Submarine Division 2 |
|
| 1917-6-9 | Staff, 2 Special Task Fleet | |
| 1917-9-5 | Yokosuka
Sailor Corps |
|
| 1917-12-1 | Lieutenant | Naval College B-Course |
| 1918-4-15 | Torpedo School Advanced Course | |
| 1918-12-1 | Commander, Submarine Division 1 |
|
| 1919-11-1 | Commander, Submarine Division 13 |
|
| 1919-11-20 | Commander, Submarine Division 1 |
|
| 1920-5-29 | Submarine Division 14 |
|
| 1920-12-1 | Commander, SS-12 |
|
| 1921-6-1 | Commander, SS-29 | |
| 1921-12-1 | Naval College A-Course | |
| 1923-10-15 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1923-12-1 | Lieutenant
commander |
Instructor, Submarine School |
| 1924-5-20 | Resident Officer, France |
|
| 1925-7-13 | Superintendant, Versailles Treaty | |
| 1926-5-31 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1926-9-1 | Staff, Submarine Squadron 1 |
|
| 1926-12-1 | Commander, Ro-61 |
|
| 1927-5-20 | 1 Naval District |
|
| 1927-11-15 | Instructor, Naval College |
|
| 1928-12-10 | Commander | |
| 1931-10-10 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1932-10-25 | Attendant to Plenipotentiary, Geneva Conference | |
| 1933-11-15 |
Captain |
|
| 1934-4-26 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1934-11-15 | Chief, Temporary Construction Bureau,
Navy Ministry |
|
| 1936-12-1 | Commander, AS Jingei |
|
| 1937-12-1 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1938-1-15 | Chief, S1, Bureau of Naval Affairs,
Navy Ministry |
|
| 1939-10-10 | Chief, N3, Navy General Staff |
|
| 1939-11-15 | Rear admiral |
|
| 1940-10-15 | Director, Bureau of Naval Affairs, Navy
Ministry |
|
| 1942-11-1 | Vice admiral |
|
| 1944-7-18 | Navy Vice-Minister |
|
| 1944-9-9 | Commander, Chinkai Guard
District |
|
| 1945-4-20 | Navy General Staff |
|
| 1945-6-20 | Retires |
|
| 1973-12-4 | Dies |
References
Materials of IJN (accessed 2008-6-18)
The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia © 2007-2009, 2014 by Kent G. Budge. Index
