Strategic culture of the Imperial Japanese Navy

• Main Author: Chong, Byron Wenzhong
• Other Authors: Bernard Loo
• Format: Theses and Dissertations
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Political science
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/69803
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The final defeat of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War Two has been most often attributed to the huge material superiority of its enemies. A study of its strategic culture however, provides an alternative explanation. Many of its beliefs conceived before the war, led the Japanese navy to make disastrous strategic choices. Their emphasis on decisive battle led the Japanese to repeatedly throw its fleet against superior America forces. Their fixation on the battleship diverted attention and resources from shipping protection and commerce raiding. The rivalry with the army prevented the development of a coherent well-rounded strategy. Finally, the navy's belief that quality could trump quantity led to an unwarranted confidence that they could defeat much larger enemies in war.