Main army
A main army ( Japanese 総 軍 , sōgun ) was in the organizational structure of the Imperial Japanese Army, the largest unit responsible for a particular theater of war. It was made up of several regional armies , armies and divisions . At the beginning of the Pacific War there was one main army, at the end of the war there were six. Main armies corresponded to an army group or the allied army group .
The main armies were subordinate to the General Staff .
A main army was commanded by a field marshal ( gensui ) or general ( taishō ). The commanders of the main armies were appointed main army commanders in a separate ceremony at the imperial court in the presence of the Tennō , the Japanese emperor .
structure
Main armies during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific War (as of 1945)
| Surname | Yep designation | active | headquarters | Operation area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kwantung Army | Japanese 関東軍 Kantō-gun | 1906-1945 | Xinjing | Manchuria and Korea |
| China Expeditionary Army | jap. 支那 派遣 軍 , Shina hakengun | 1939-1945 | Nanjing | China |
| South army | Japanese 南方 軍 , Nampō-gun | 1941-1945 | Saigon | Southeast Asia , Southwest Pacific |
| Central Defense Command | Japanese 防衛 総 司令部 , Bōei Sōshireibu | 1941-1945 | Tokyo | Japanese Empire |
| In April 1945 the Central Defense Command was divided into three main armies: | ||||
| 1st main army | Japanese 第 1 総 軍 , dai-ichi sōgun | 1945 | Tokyo | Eastern Japan |
| 2nd main army | Japanese 第 2 総 軍 , dai-ni sōgun | 1945 | Hiroshima | Western japan |
| Air Main Army | Japanese 航空 総 軍 , kōkū sōgun | 1945 | Tokyo | Japanese Empire |
literature
- 豊 田健 志 (Ed.): ５０ 年 目 の 「日本 陸軍」 入門. Bungei Shunjū, Tokyo 1991, ISBN 4-16-721728-7 , pp. 120-121.
- Author unknown: 陸海軍 部隊 最終 配置 図. In: 菅 英 志 (Ed.) ：「日本 帝国 最 期 の 日」. Shin-Jinbutsuoraisha Co., Tokyo 1991, Jpn. Magazine code 69644-49, pp. 218-234 ( 歴 史 読 本. , Special issue 49).
- Philip Jowett, "The Japanese Army 1931-45 (1)" Osprey Publishing, 2002, ISBN 978-1-8417-6353-8