64 Facts About Isoroku Yamamoto

Isoroku Yamamoto was a Marshal Admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II.

Isoroku Yamamoto commanded the fleet from 1939 until his death in 1943, overseeing the start of the Pacific War in 1941 and Japan's initial successes and defeats before his plane was shot down by US fighter aircraft over New Guinea.

Isoroku Yamamoto later studied at Harvard University in the United States and was appointed naval attache to the Japanese embassy in Washington.

Isoroku Yamamoto's experiences convinced him that naval power depended on access to oil and industrial capacity, and that Japan thus had little hope to defeat the US in a war.

Isoroku Yamamoto was one of the first naval leaders to conclude that naval aviation and aircraft carriers would play a decisive role in any future conflict.

In 1936, Isoroku Yamamoto was appointed navy vice minister, and opposed Japan's alliance with Germany and Italy in the Tripartite Pact of 1940.

In 1939, he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet, and was tasked with creating a strategy for war with the US; Isoroku Yamamoto favored a surprise attack, which he carried out at the start of the war with an attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.

Isoroku Yamamoto committed to the defense of the Solomon Islands in the Guadalcanal campaign, but was unable to prevent their capture.

In 1916, Isoroku was adopted into the Yamamoto family and took the Yamamoto name.

Isoroku Yamamoto married Reiko Mihashi in 1918; they had two sons and two daughters.

Isoroku Yamamoto graduated from the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1904, ranking 11th in his class.

Isoroku Yamamoto was wounded at the Battle of Tsushima, losing his index and middle fingers on his left hand, as the cruiser was hit repeatedly by the Russian battle line.

Isoroku Yamamoto returned to the Naval Staff College in 1914, emerging as a lieutenant commander in 1916.

Isoroku Yamamoto was part of the Japanese Navy establishment, who were rivals of the more aggressive Army establishment, especially the officers of the Kwantung Army.

Isoroku Yamamoto promoted a policy of a strong fleet to project force through gunboat diplomacy, rather than a fleet used primarily for the transport of invasion land forces, as some of his political opponents in the Army wanted.

Isoroku Yamamoto opposed war against the United States, partly because of his studies at Harvard University and his two postings as a naval attache in Washington, DC, where he learned to speak fluent English.

Isoroku Yamamoto traveled extensively in the United States during his tour of duty there, where he studied American customs and business practices.

On February 13,1924, Captain Isoroku Yamamoto was part of the Japanese delegation visiting the United States Naval War College.

Isoroku Yamamoto participated in the London Naval Conference 1930 as a rear admiral and the London Naval Conference 1935 as a vice admiral, as the growing military influence on the government at the time deemed that a career military specialist needed to accompany the diplomats to the arms limitations talks.

Isoroku Yamamoto was a strong proponent of naval aviation and served as head of the Aeronautics Department, before accepting a post as commander of the First Carrier Division.

Isoroku Yamamoto opposed the Japanese invasion of northeast China in 1931, the subsequent full-scale land war with China in 1937, and the Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy in 1940.

Isoroku Yamamoto received a steady stream of hate mail and death threats from Japanese nationalists.

Isoroku Yamamoto was later reassigned from the naval ministry to sea as the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet on August 30,1939.

Yonai was certain that if Isoroku Yamamoto remained ashore, he would be killed before the year [1939] ended.

However, after a brief stint in the post, a new Japanese cabinet was announced, and Isoroku Yamamoto found himself returned to his position of power despite his open conflict with Tojo and other members of the Army's oligarchy who favored war with the European powers and the United States.

Isoroku Yamamoto's daring plan for the Pearl Harbor attack had passed through the crucible of the Japanese naval establishment, and after many expressed misgivings, his fellow admirals had realized that Yamamoto spoke no more than the truth when he said that Japan's hope for victory in this [upcoming] war was limited by time and oil.

Nevertheless, Isoroku Yamamoto accepted the reality of impending war and planned for a quick victory by destroying the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor in a preventive strike, while simultaneously thrusting into the oil- and rubber-rich areas of Southeast Asia, especially the Dutch East Indies, Borneo, and Malaya.

In naval matters, Isoroku Yamamoto opposed the building of the battleships Yamato and Musashi as an unwise investment of resources.

Isoroku Yamamoto was responsible for a number of innovations in Japanese naval aviation.

In January 1941, Isoroku Yamamoto went even further and proposed a radical revision of Japanese naval strategy.

Correctly pointing out this plan had never worked even in Japanese war games, and painfully aware of American strategic advantages in military production capacity, Isoroku Yamamoto proposed instead to seek parity with the Americans by first reducing their forces with a preventive strike, then following up with a "decisive battle" fought offensively, rather than defensively.

Isoroku Yamamoto hoped, but probably did not believe, that if the Americans could be dealt terrific blows early in the war, they might be willing to negotiate an end to the conflict.

The Naval General Staff proved reluctant to go along, and Isoroku Yamamoto was eventually driven to capitalize on his popularity in the fleet by threatening to resign to get his way.

In January 1941 Isoroku Yamamoto began developing a plan to attack the American base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, which the Japanese continued to refine during the next months.

Isoroku Yamamoto later lamented Nagumo's failure to seize the initiative to seek out and destroy the American carriers or further bombard various strategically important facilities on Oahu, such as Pearl Harbor's oil tanks.

Isoroku Yamamoto was involved in this debate, supporting different plans at different times with varying degrees of enthusiasm and for varying purposes, including horse-trading for support of his own objectives.

Isoroku Yamamoto rushed planning for the Midway and Aleutians missions, while dispatching a force under Vice Admiral Takeo Takagi, including the Fifth Carrier Division, to support the effort to seize the islands of Tulagi and Guadalcanal for seaplane and airplane bases, and the town of Port Moresby on Papua New Guinea's south coast facing Australia.

Isoroku Yamamoto's plan for Midway Island was an extension of his efforts to knock the American Pacific Fleet out of action long enough for Japan to fortify its defensive perimeter in the Pacific island chains.

Isoroku Yamamoto felt it necessary to seek an early, decisive offensive battle.

On June 4,1942, days before Isoroku Yamamoto expected them to interfere in the Midway operation, American carrier-based aircraft destroyed the four carriers of the Kido Butai, catching the Japanese carriers at especially vulnerable times.

Isoroku Yamamoto was unable to do so because his initial dispositions had placed his surface combatants too far from Midway, and because Admiral Raymond Spruance prudently withdrew to the east to further defend Midway Island, believing the Japanese still intended to invade.

Isoroku Yamamoto remained as commander-in-chief, retained at least partly to avoid diminishing the morale of the Combined Fleet.

Isoroku Yamamoto committed Combined Fleet units to a series of small attrition actions across the south and central Pacific that stung the Americans, but in return suffered losses he could ill afford.

Isoroku Yamamoto fired on the aircraft until it began to spew smoke from its left engine.

Barber turned away to attack the other transport as Isoroku Yamamoto's aircraft crashed into the jungle.

Hamasuna said Isoroku Yamamoto was instantly recognizable, head dipped down as if deep in thought.

The more violent details of Isoroku Yamamoto's death were hidden from the Japanese public.

Isoroku Yamamoto's death was a major blow to Japanese military morale.

Isoroku Yamamoto's staff cremated his remains at Buin, Papua New Guinea, and his ashes were returned to Tokyo aboard the battleship Musashi, his last flagship.

Isoroku Yamamoto was given a full state funeral on June 5,1943, where he received, posthumously, the title of Marshal Admiral and was awarded the Order of the Chrysanthemum.

Isoroku Yamamoto was awarded Nazi Germany's Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

Isoroku Yamamoto was succeeded as commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet by Admiral Mineichi Koga.

Isoroku Yamamoto was an avid gambler, enjoying Go, shogi, billiards, bridge, mahjong, poker, and other games that tested his wits and sharpened his mind.

Isoroku Yamamoto frequently made jokes about moving to Monaco and starting his own casino.

Isoroku Yamamoto enjoyed the company of geisha, and his wife Reiko revealed to the Japanese public in 1954 that Yamamoto was closer to his favorite geisha Kawai Chiyoko than to her, which stirred some controversy.

Isoroku Yamamoto was close friends with Teikichi Hori, a Navy admiral and Isoroku Yamamoto's classmate from the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy who was purged from the Navy for supporting the Washington Naval Treaty.

The claim that Yamamoto was a Catholic is likely due to confusion with retired Admiral Shinjiro Stefano Yamamoto, who was a decade older than Isoroku, and died in 1942.

Isoroku Yamamoto was portrayed by Denjiro Okochi in Toho's 1953 film Eagle of the Pacific.

In 1960's Storm Over the Pacific from Toho Studios, Isoroku Yamamoto is portrayed by Susumu Fujita.

In Daiei Studios's 1969 film Aa, kaigun, Isoroku Yamamoto was portrayed by Shogo Shimada.

Isoroku Yamamoto convinces Japan to join forces with the United States and Britain to defeat Nazi Germany.

In Douglas Niles' 2007 book MacArthur's War: A Novel of the Invasion of Japan, which focuses on General Douglas MacArthur and an alternate history of the Pacific War, Isoroku Yamamoto is portrayed sympathetically, with much of the action in the Japanese government seen through his eyes, though he could not change the major decisions of Japan in World War II.

In Toei's 2011 war film Rengo Kantai Shirei Chokan: Yamamoto Isoroku, Yamamoto was portrayed by Koji Yakusho.

In Robert Conroy's 2011 book Rising Sun, Isoroku Yamamoto directs the IJN to launch a series of attacks on the American West Coast, in the hope the United States can be convinced to sue for peace and securing Japan's place as a world power; but cannot escape his lingering fear the war will ultimately doom Japan.