| One of the main Japanese war criminals, admiral (). Date of Birth: Country: Japan |
Osami Nagano (, Kochi - ) was a Japanese naval officer and one of the key military criminals in Japan. He was born into a samurai family and received his education at the Naval Academy (), Harvard University (USA, ), and the Naval Academy ().
Nagano began his service on December 13, , on the destroyer "Hasidate". From to , he commanded the artillery on the cruiser "Itsukushima". From to , he served as the head of the Naval Academy. In , he became the commander of the battleship "Hirato" and later commanded the cruiser "Hirado". From December 1, , to November 10, , he served as the naval attaché in Washington. From February 5, , he was the head of the Naval General Staff, and from December 1, , he commanded the 3rd cruiser squadron. From April 20, , to August 20, , he was the commander of the 1st Expeditionary Fleet, and from February 1, , to January 15, , he commanded the training fleet. On December 10, , he was appointed director of the Naval Academy. From October 6, , to October 10, , he served as the 1st deputy chief of the Naval General Staff, overseeing the work of the Instructional Department and participating in the Geneva conference in From November 15, , he was the commander of the naval base in Yokosuka. From November 15, , to February , he served as a naval advisor and belonged to the "moderate" faction of the fleet's leadership. In , he was the chief delegate at the London Naval Conference. From March 9, , to January 23, , he served as the Minister of the Navy in the cabinet of K. Hirota.
On February 2, , Nagano was appointed commander of the Combined Fleet (and concurrently the 1st Fleet), overseeing the fleet's preparation for war. On December 1, , he once again assumed the position of naval advisor and from September 14, , he was a member, and from February 13, , the chairman of the Supreme Technical Committee. On April 9, , he was appointed Chief of the Naval General Staff and led the development and implementation of the victorious first stage of the Japanese navy's campaign. On February 21, , he was replaced by Admiral S. Shimada.
After the end of the war in March , Nagano was arrested. As one of the leading military criminals, he was brought to trial at the Tokyo International Military Tribunal for the Far East. He died in custody (from atherosclerosis and tuberculosis) before the trial was completed.