General Staff (Japan)
A general staff was created in the Japanese Empire during the Meiji period in both parts of the armed forces, the army and the navy . Both existed until the armed forces were disbanded after the defeat in the Pacific War in 1945. The two chiefs of the general staff usually also took part in the Gozen Kaigi , an extra-constitutional conference that discussed important political decisions such as declarations of war in the presence of the emperor.
Imperial Japanese Army
A general staff ( Japanese 参謀 本部 , sambō hombu , literally: "Stabshauptabteilung", English Imperial Japanese Army General Staff ) of the Imperial Japanese Army , the Army, was created in Japan in 1878 as part of the Meiji Restoration and the establishment of a modern army . The Prussian Army served as a model, which was also present through military advisors.
According to the Prussian model, the general staff was independent of the government and was directly subordinate to the Tennō . He was responsible for almost all military administrative tasks and for strategic planning. The Army Ministry under the Army Minister provided by the military had little influence. From the 1920s onwards, it served rather the other way round as the military's supervisory body in the government. The Army Minister was able to blackmail the government by threatening to resign, which would bring down the cabinet.
Due to the extensive independence, especially under the weak Taishō emperor, the army was able to implement the colonial efforts in Asia on its own .
The General Staff was disbanded after Japan's surrender in October 1945. The 1947 Constitution contains numerous clauses designed to prevent the military from regaining power in Japan .
The current equivalent of the ground self-defense forces is the Army Staff Department ( 陸上 幕僚 監 部 , Rikujō Bakuryō Kambu ) in the Ministry of Defense .
Imperial Japanese Navy
The General Staff ( 軍令 部 , gunreibu , literally: "Military Command Department ", English Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff ) of the Imperial Japanese Navy was established in 1884 by the Ministry of Navy . It was disbanded in October 1945.
The current equivalent in the marine self- defense forces is the naval staff department ( 海上 幕僚 監 部 , Kaijō Bakuryō Kambu ) in the Ministry of Defense.
High command in case of war
In the event of war, the joint military command of both branches of the armed forces took over the Daihon'ei , which essentially consisted of the commanding members of both general staffs.
