Nozu Michitsura

Field Marshal Marquess Nozu Michitsura (野津 道貫; 17 December 1840 – 18 October 1908) was a Japanese field marshal and leading figure in the early Imperial Japanese Army.

Biography

Nozu was born in Kagoshima as the second son of a low-ranking samurai of the Satsuma Domain. He studied Japanese swordsmanship under Yakumaru Kaneyoshi, a noted instructor within Satsuma Domain, and was appointed a company commander during the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration. Nozu was at every major battle in the war, from the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, to the Battle of Aizu and the Battle of Hakodate.

After the war, Nozu went to Tokyo, and in March 1871, was appointed as a major in the 2nd Brigade of the fledgling Imperial Japanese Army. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in August 1872, and colonel in January 1874 upon his appointment as chief of staff of the Imperial Guards Brigade. From July to October 1876, Nozu traveled to the United States, where he attended the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. Soon after his return to Japan, he had the unpleasant task of fighting against his former Satsuma clansmen in the Satsuma Rebellion. In February 1877, Nozu was appointed chief of staff of the 2nd Brigade, and was stationed in Bungo Province, in Kyushu – the heartland of the rebellion, from May to August 1877.