36th Army (Japanese Empire)

36th Army
active	July 21, 1944 to September 1945
Country	Japanese Empire
Armed forces	Japanese armed forces
Armed forces	Japanese army
Branch of service	infantry
Type	corps
Strength	approx. 100,000
Insinuation	12th Regional Army
Location	Tokyo
Nickname	Fuji ( 富士 , "rich warrior")
Butcher	Pacific War Operation Downfall
Supreme command
list of	Commander in chief

The 36th Army ( Japanese 第 36 軍 , Dai-sanjūroku-gun ) was from 1944 to 1945 a large unit of the Imperial Japanese Army , which was intended for the defense of Tokyo as part of Operation Shō-gō . The Tsūshōgō code (military code name) of the 36th Army was Rich Warrior ( 富士 , Fuji ).

history

In 1944, the Japanese Empire was on the defensive on almost all war fronts during the Pacific War . With the fall of Saipan , the Daihon'ei ( Imperial Headquarters of the Army and Navy ) came to the conclusion that the defense of the Japanese motherland had to be prepared. On July 21, 1944, Operation Shō-gō (Eng. "Operation Victory") was proclaimed. This includes the creation of new units such as B. the 36th Army, which was also formed on July 21st. Its commander was Lieutenant General Uemura Toshimichi . He oversaw the first and fourth armored division and six infantry - divisions and other smaller units, which brought its total strength to about 100,000 men. The army was subordinate to the 12th Regional Army and was used for the defense of Tokyo. Since the Allies did not land as expected ( Operation Downfall ), the 36th Army was not involved in any combat operations. It was dissolved in September 1945.

Commander in chief

Commanders

	Surname	From	To
1.	Lieutenant General Uemura Toshimichi	July 18, 1944	September 1945

Chiefs of Staff

	Surname	From	To
1.	Major General Ishii Masami	July 18, 1944	February 1, 1945
2.	Major General Tokunaga Shikanosuke	February 1, 1945	September 1945

Subordinate units

• 36th Army Staff
  • 81st Infantry Division
  • 93rd Infantry Division
  • 201st Coast Division
  • 202nd Coastal Division
  • 209th Coast Division
  • 214th Coast Division
  • 1st Panzer Division
  • 4th Panzer Division
  • 4th Amphibious Brigade
• other smaller units

literature

• Victor Madej: Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945. Game Publishing, 1981, OCLC 833591372 , OCLC 833591376 .
• Philip Jowett: The Japanese Army 1931-45 (1). Osprey Publishing, 2002, ISBN 978-1-8417-6353-8 .
• Gordon Rottman: Japanese Army in World War II (The South Pacific and New Guinea, 1942–43). Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-1-8417-6870-0 .
• Leland Ness: Rikugun: Guide to Japanese Ground Forces 1937-1945. Helion & Company, 2014, ISBN 978-1-909982-00-0 .
• Steven Zaloga: Defense of Japan 1945 (Fortress). Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-1-8460-3687-3 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Madej, p. 5
2. ↑ ^{a b} Ness, p. 44
3. ↑ Zaloga, p. 33

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Maeda is the family name, Toshinari the first name.