Yutaka Ito

Japanese: 伊東祐亨 - いとう・ゆうこう

Year of death: January 16, 1914
Year of birth: Tempo 14.5.12 (1843.6.9)
A naval leader during the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars. The fourth son of Satsuma (Kagoshima) samurai Ito Suenori, his elder brother Suemaro became a vice admiral. He studied English at the Kaiseisho school in his domain, navigation at Katsu Kaishu's naval academy in Kobe, and gunnery at Egawa Tarozaemon's academy in Edo. In January 1868 (Keio 4), he was at the Satsuma domain residence in Shiba-Mita (Minato Ward, Tokyo) when soldiers of the former shogunate burned it down, and he and his colleagues escaped to the Satsuma ship Kochomaru, where he engaged in combat with the pursuing shogunate ships Kaiten and Banryu, serving as a gunner, and the Kochomaru safely escaped to Kobe. He joined the navy after the Meiji Restoration, and served as executive officer of the Inuyuki in 1869, captain of the First Chou in 1871, captain of the Kasuga and Higashi in 1872, captain of the Nisshin in 1873, captain of the Takao Maru in 1874, captain of the Nisshin in 1875, captain of the Fuso in 1876, captain of the Hiei in 1877, captain of the Tsukuba and Hiei in 1879, captain of the Ryujo in 1880, captain of the Hiei in 1881, and captain of the Fuso in 1882. He was treated as a warrior skilled in actual combat, rather than a military politician or strategist. In 1883, he was appointed director of the Yokosuka Shipyard, his first land-based posting, and in 1884, he became commander of the standing fleet, and in 1889, director of the First Bureau of the Navy Ministry and president of the Naval War College, before finally reaching a central posting. However, in 1891, he served at sea again as commander-in-chief of the Standing Fleet, and during the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) he achieved great feats in the Battle of Pungdo, the Battle of the Yellow Sea, and the Attack on Weihaiwei. In 1893, he became Chief of the Naval Staff, and again contributed to victory by leading the overall operations during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05). After the war, he was appointed to the Marshal's Office, but he was a rugged, single-minded soldier who never got involved in politics. <References> Ogasawara Nagao, Marshal Ito Sukeyuki,

(Tanaka Hiromi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：大正3.1.16(1914)
生年：天保14.5.12(1843.6.9)
日清・日露両戦争期の海軍首脳。薩摩(鹿児島)藩士伊東祐典の4男,兄祐麿は海軍中将。藩の開成所で英学,神戸にあった勝海舟の海軍塾で航海術,江戸の江川太郎左衛門の塾で砲術を学ぶ。慶応4(1868)年1月旧幕府兵による芝三田(東京都港区)の薩摩藩邸焼き打ちの際邸におり,同僚と薩摩艦「胡蝶丸」に逃れ,追跡する幕府艦「回天」「蟠竜」と交戦し砲手を務めて活躍,「胡蝶丸」は無事に神戸に逃れる。明治維新後に海軍に入り,明治2(1869)年「乾行」副長,4年「第1丁卯」艦長,5年「春日」「東」艦長,8年「日進」艦長,9年「高雄丸」船長,10年「日進」艦長,11年「扶桑」艦長,12年「比叡」,14年「筑波」「比叡」の艦長,15年「竜驤」艦長,16年「比叡」艦長,17年「扶桑」艦長と,中央勤務なしにすべての主力艦艦長を務めた経歴も珍しい。軍政家でも軍略家でもなく,実戦にたけた武人として遇されたことが明らかである。18年初めての地上勤務である横須賀造船所長となり,19年常備小艦隊司令官,22年海軍省第1局長兼海軍大学校校長となり,ようやく中央勤務にたどり着いた。しかし26年常備艦隊司令長官として再び海上勤務,日清戦争(1894～95)において豊島沖海戦,黄海海戦,威海衛攻撃に勝利する殊勲を立てた。28年軍令部長,日露戦争(1904～05)における作戦全般を指導して再び勝利に貢献。戦後元帥府に列せられたが,政治に全くかかわらなかった武骨一途の軍人であった。<参考文献>小笠原長生『元帥伊東祐亨』

(田中宏巳)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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