Tameichi Hara descended from Japan’s samurai class. He graduated from the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1921 and began a career at sea. When war started with the United States in 1941, Hara was serving as the captain of the destroyer Amatsukaze. He went on to command a destroyer division and participated in major engagements throughout the war. His last assignment at sea was captain of the light cruiser Yahagi tasked with a suicide mission to attack Allied forces during the Battle of Okinawa. The Yahagi was sunk but somehow Hara survived. He was the only Japanese destroyer captain at the start of the war to survive. This book, Japanese Destroyer Captain, are his memoirs.
