Takayoshi Kato (Date unknown)

Takayoshi Kato Takayoshi Kato 1883-1955 Birthplace: Tokyo, Japan Navy Admiral, Viscount Foster son of Admiral Yuzaburo Kato, who organized the Washington Conference on Naval Disarmament. His father was Mamoru Funakoshi (1840-1931), who served as governor of Ishikawa and Miyazaki prefectures. He was stationed in France from May 1917 and served as a member of the Plenipotentiary Committee at the Paris Peace Conference (Treaty of Versailles). Afterwards, he served as a staff officer in the Military Command and as a military attaché to the Crown Prince and a military attaché to the Samurai, and in November 1929, he was appointed as the head of the 1st Group of the Military Command. He became known as a hardliner within the Fleet Faction during the conflict within the Navy over the London Disarmament Treaty, working with General Kanji Kato, Director of the Ordinance Department, and others to strongly oppose the Treaty. It was during Kato's tenure as Deputy Commander-in-Chief that the request to build the battleships Yamato and Musashi was issued. In later years, Kato became the liaison between the navy and the court group because of his experience as a military officer of the Crown Prince and because he had succeeded to Yuzaburo's title (viscount). (Photo by Kingendai PhotoLibrary/AFLO)