Tameichi Hara
| Tameichi Hara | |
|---|---|
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| Born | October 16, 1900 Kagawa Prefecture, Japan |
| Died | October 10, 1980 (aged 79) |
| Allegiance | Empire of Japan |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Destroyer Amatsukaze 1st Destroyer Squadron Cruiser Yahagi |
| Commands held |  Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Battles/wars | World War II • Battle of the Java Sea • Battle of Midway • Battle of the Eastern Solomons • Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands • Naval Battle of Guadalcanal • Battle of Vella Gulf • Naval Battle of Vella Lavella • Battle off Horaniu • Battle of Empress Augusta Bay • Operation Ten-Go |
Tameichi Hara (原 為一 Hara Tameichi, October 16, 1900 – October 10, 1980) was an Imperial Japanese naval commander during the Pacific War and the author of the IJN manual on torpedo attack techniques, famous for his high skill (particularly in torpedo warfare and night fighting).
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[edit] Early life
A native of Kagawa Prefecture and of samurai descendant, Hara graduated from the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy at Etajima in 1921 (class number 49). In 1932 Hara was assigned as a surface warfare instructor and in the middle of the same year his naval doctrine was accepted. At the beginning of the war he was a captain of destroyer Amatsukaze, but for most of the war he was a destroyer squadron commander, aboard Shigure. Hara's conception was first used in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.
[edit] Military career
On 13 November 1942, Hara’s destroyer, Amatsukaze sank the USS Barton (DD-599) during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. Hara, as commander of the Amatsukaze, also participated in the Battle of the Java Sea, the sinking of the submarine USS Perch (SS-176) and the occupation of Christmas Island. While serving with the Shigure, Hara was involved in several of the naval engagements during the latter part of the Solomon Islands Campaign.
Hara's last sortie was as captain of the Yahagi, the light cruiser which accompanied Yamato's fateful last mission as part of Operation Ten-Go, which he survived. He ended the war at Kawatana training young men to attack invaders dressed as women and priests. He later commanded merchant ships which transported salt. His memoirs were later translated into English and became an important reference for the Japanese perspective for historians writing about the Pacific Campaign of World War II.
[edit] Memoirs
- Hara, Tameichi (1961). Japanese Destroyer Captain. New York & Toronto: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-27894-1.
