The was an unofficial and informal political faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

 in the 1920s-1930s of officers opposed to the conditions imposed by the Washington Naval Treaty

Washington Naval Treaty

The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...

.

Background

The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, limited the naval armaments of its five signatories: the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

, the Empire of Japan

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

, France

French Third Republic

The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...

, and Italy

History of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars

This articles covers the history of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars.-Italian unification :Modern Italy became a nation-state during the Risorgimento on March 17, 1861 when most of the states of the Italian Peninsula and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies were united under king Victor...

. The treaty was agreed at the Washington Naval Conference

Washington Naval Conference

The Washington Naval Conference also called the Washington Arms Conference, was a military conference called by President Warren G. Harding and held in Washington from 12 November 1921 to 6 February 1922. Conducted outside the auspices of the League of Nations, it was attended by nine nations...

, which was held in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 from November 1921 to February 1922.

The treaty limited the total capital ship

Capital ship

The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they generally possess the heaviest firepower and armor and are traditionally much larger than other naval vessels...

 tonnage

Tonnage

Tonnage is a measure of the size or cargo carrying capacity of a ship. The term derives from the taxation paid on tuns or casks of wine, and was later used in reference to the weight of a ship's cargo; however, in modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically refers to a calculation of the volume...

 of each of the signatories; no single ship could exceed 35,000 tons, and no ship could carry a gun in excess of 16 inches. Only two large aircraft carriers were permitted per nation. No new fortifications or naval bases could be established, and existing bases and defenses could not be improved in external territories and possessions specified in the treaty. The tonnage allotment to Japan was based on a 5:5:3 ratio compared with the United States and United Kingdom, with the justification being that the latter countries needed to maintain fleets on more than one ocean, whereas Japan had only the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

.

Development

The terms of the treaty were extremely unpopular with Japanese public, many of whom saw the 5:5:3 ratio as another way of being regarded as an inferior race by the West.

The Imperial Japanese Navy was split into two opposing factions, Treaty Faction

Treaty Faction

The was an unofficial and informal political faction within the Imperial Japanese Navy in the 1920s-1930s of officers supporting the Washington Naval Treaty.-Background:...

 and Fleet Faction. The Treaty Faction wanted to stay within the limitations of the Washington Naval Treaty, arguing that Japan could not afford an arms race

Arms race

The term arms race, in its original usage, describes a competition between two or more parties for the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology in a technological escalation...

 with the western powers, and hoping through diplomacy to restore the Anglo-Japanese Alliance

Anglo-Japanese Alliance

The first was signed in London at what is now the Lansdowne Club, on January 30, 1902, by Lord Lansdowne and Hayashi Tadasu . A diplomatic milestone for its ending of Britain's splendid isolation, the alliance was renewed and extended in scope twice, in 1905 and 1911, before its demise in 1921...

.

The Fleet Faction was composed of the political right-wing within the Navy, including many influential admirals in the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff

Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff

The was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy. In charge of planning and operations, it was headed by an Admiral headquartered in Tokyo.-History:...

 such as Yamamoto Eisuke, Katõ Hiroharu, Suetsugu Nobumasa, Takahashi Sankichi and Nagumo Chuichi

Chuichi Nagumo

was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II and one time commander of the Kido Butai . He committed suicide during the Battle of Saipan.-Early life:...

, and was headed by Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu

Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu

was a scion of the Japanese imperial family and was a career naval officer who served as chief of staff of the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1932 to 1941.-Early life:...

. The Fleet Faction wanted nullification of the Washington Naval Treaty, and unlimited naval growth to build the most powerful navy possible, thus challenging the naval supremacy of the United States and British Empire.

In the 1920s, the Treaty Faction, which was supported by the Navy Ministry and the civilian government was predominant. However, with increasing Japanese militarism

Japanese militarism

refers to the ideology in the Empire of Japan that militarism should dominate the political and social life of the nation, and that the strength of the military is equal to the strength of a nation.-Rise of militarism :...

 in the 1930s, the growing conflict with the United States over China

Open Door Policy

The Open Door Policy is a concept in foreign affairs, which usually refers to the policy in 1899 allowing multiple Imperial powers access to China, with none of them in control of that country. As a theory, the Open Door Policy originates with British commercial practice, as was reflected in...

, and the blatant disregard for the terms of the Treaty by all major powers, the Fleet Faction gradually gained the upper hand. On 29 December 1934, the Japanese government gave formal notice that it intended to terminate the treaty. Its provisions remained in force until the end of 1936, and it was not renewed.