was a major general and a division commander in the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II.

Biography

A native of Tochigi Prefecture, Nasu graduated from the 25th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1913 and from the 35th class of the Army Staff College in 1923. He served in various staff positions within the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff, and was assigned to the Taiwan Army of Japan in 1917. In 1935 he served on the staff of the Kwangtung Army and participated in Operation Chahar. Nasu was promoted to major general in 1940, and became commander of the IJA 3rd Infantry Brigade.

During the Guadalcanal campaign Nasu landed on Guadalcanal with the IJA 2nd Division during the first week of October 1942 in response to the Allied landings on the island. Nasu commanded one of the 2nd Division's large infantry groups, comprising infantry battalions from several regiments during the resulting October Matanikau action and Battle for Henderson Field. On October 25, 1942, while leading his troops against United States positions, Nasu was mortally wounded by rifle fire and died early the next morning.

He was posthumously promoted to lieutenant general.

References

• Griffith, Samuel B. (1963). The Battle for Guadalcanal. Champaign, Illinois, USA: University of Illinois Press.
• Fuller, Richard (1992). Shokan: Hirohito's Samurai. London: Arms and Armour Press.
• Rottman, Gordon L.; Dr. Duncan Anderson (consultant editor) (2005). Japanese Army in World War II: The South Pacific and New Guinea, 1942-43. Oxford and New York: Osprey.
• Hough, Frank O.; Ludwig, Verle E., and Shaw, Henry I., Jr. Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal. History of U.S. Marine Corps Operations in World War II. Retrieved on 2006-05-16..
• Miller, John Jr. Guadalcanal: The First Offensive. United States Army in World War II. (1949). Retrieved on 2006-07-04..
• Shaw, Henry I. First Offensive: The Marine Campaign For Guadalcanal. Marines in World War II Commemorative Series. (1992). Retrieved on 2006-07-25..
• Zimmerman, John L. The Guadalcanal Campaign. Marines in World War II Historical Monograph. (1949). Retrieved on 2006-07-04..