Merriam Press Naval History 2 (NH2)

First Edition 2014. The interior pages of this edition are in full color; a paperback edition with the interior pages in B&W is also available (ISBN 9781576383711).

This is a biography of Japanese Navy Admiral Osami Nagano, who ordered the attack on the American fleet at Pearl Harbor. This work covers his entire career, diplomatic, political and military, concentrating on the years leading up to the war between Japan and the United States.

Nagano was born in 1880, a time and place of great transformation in Japan. The Shogun era was giving way to the Meiji Empire and political power was centralized in the new capital of Edo (now Tokyo). The samurai system of warlord rule was ending and Japan was forced to look beyond her borders to shape her future. Nagano, with a strict but loving father and persevering mother, started out with a solid background. He attained great achievements in his military and political careers, but his involvement in Japan's entrance into World War II on 8 December 1941 led to his ultimate downfall. He died in 1947, in Sugamo Prison in Tokyo during the International Military Tribunal for the Far East under U.S. occupation, following Japan's defeat.

Contents

Early Years of Osami Nagano, 1880 - 1900

Chapter 2: Early Career and Marriages, 1900 - 1920

Chapter 3: Diplomat and Traveler, 1920 - 1930

Chapter 4: Diplomat, Sailor and Politician, 1930 - 1941

Part 1: Diplomat: Geneva Disarmament Conference 1932-1933

Part 2: Sailor: Commandant, Yokosuka Naval Base

Part 3: Diplomat: Second London Naval Conference 1935-1936

Part 4: Politician: Naval Minister

Part 5: Sailor: Commander in Chief of the Combined Fleet

Part 6: Retiree and Celebrity

Part 7: Concerned Warrior, 9 April to 8 December 1941

Chapter 5: Post Script

Glossary

Significant Individuals

Appendix A1-A8: Postcards

Appendix B: Nagano Family Tree and Osami Nagano's Wives and Children

Appendix C1-C4: Naval Treaties and Naval Ship Estimates 1941

Appendix D: Meiji Constitution

Appendix E: Nagano Medals, Orders, Decorations

Appendix F: Soviet Japan Neutrality Treaty, April 13, 1941

Appendix G: Summary of IMTFE Trial Results

Index

84 B&W photos

121 color photos

7 maps

7 tables

2 charts