Zengo Yoshida

was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Military career Yoshida was born as the fourth son of an ex-samurai, Mine Kohachi, in Saga Prefecture in 1885, and was adopted into the family of a local rice merchant named Yoshida. The future Fleet Admiral Mineichi Koga was a friend from his childhood. Yoshida was graduate of the 32nd class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1904, ranking 12th out of 190 cadets. The Russo-Japanese War had just started, and he served as a midshipman on the submarine tender , and participated in the Battle of Tsushima aboard the cruiser .

He attended naval artillery and torpedo school in 1906–1907, and was then assigned to the destroyer followed by the cruiser . As a lieutenant from 1909, he specialized in torpedo warfare, and graduated from the Naval Staff College in 1913.

Yoshida was promoted to full admiral on 15 November 1940 and was made a member of the Supreme War Council. After the start of World War II, Yoshida was assigned a combat command, and took control of the China Area Fleet from November 1942. In December 1943 he became commandant of the Naval Staff College, and from May 1944 was commander of the Yokosuka Naval District. He entered the reserves in June 1945. and his grave is at the Tama Cemetery in Fuchū, Tokyo.

Decorations

In popular culture In the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora!, Yoshida was portrayed by Japanese actor .