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war invasion of taiwan 1874 shinpūren rebellion satsuma rebellion first sino japanese war boxer rebellion invasion of taiwan 1895 russo japanese war world war i russian civil war japanese invasion of manchuria second sino japanese war world war ii commanders emperor of japan meiji taishō shōwa minister of the army ōyama iwao first sadamu shimomura last chief of the general staff yamagata aritomo first yoshijirō umezu last insignia infantry regimental colour military unit the imperial japanese army ija a was the principal ground force of the empire of japan from 1871 to 1945 it played a central role in japan s rapid modernization during the meiji period it also fought in numerous conflicts including the first sino japanese war russo japanese war world war i second sino japanese war world war ii and became a dominant force in japanese politics initially formed from samurai domain armies that overthrew the tokugawa shogunate it evolved after the meiji restoration into a powerful modern military influenced by french and german models supported by its own air arm the imperial japanese army air service the ija was responsible for several successful overseas military campaigns that resulted in the imperialist expansion of the japanese empire including the first sino japanese war the invasion of taiwan the russo japanese war the seizure of german territories in asia in world war i and the invasion of manchuria by the 1930s the army and navy had largely subordinated the civilian government and controlled japan in the second sino japanese war the ija invaded and occupied the most populous parts of china proper but fought to a stalemate as its lines of communication stretched deep into the chinese interior in the pacific war it initially achieved great success capturing vast swathes of territory across the asia pacific before being pushed back by island hopping allied offensives that reached the frontiers of japan and enabled the large scale bombing and blockade of japan notorious for committing widespread war crimes including mass murder mass rape and forced labour the army was dissolved after japan s surrender in 1945 the japan ground self defense force succeeded it as japan s ground warfare service history edit origins 1868 1871 edit in the mid 19th century japan had no unified national army and the country was made up of feudal domains han with the tokugawa shogunate bakufu in overall control which had ruled japan since 1603 the bakufu army although a large force was only one among others and bakufu efforts to control the nation depended upon the cooperation of its vassals armies 1 the opening of the country after two centuries of seclusion subsequently led to the meiji restoration and the boshin war in 1868 the domains of satsuma and chōshū came to dominate the coalition against the shogunate boshin war edit main article boshin war ukiyo e depicting the retreat of shogunate forces in front of the imperial army kangun yodo castle is shown in the background on 27 january 1868 tensions between the shogunate and imperial sides came to a head when tokugawa yoshinobu marched on kyoto accompanied by a 15 000 strong force some of which had been trained by french military advisers they were opposed by 5 000 troops from the satsuma chōshū and tosa domains at the two road junctions of toba and fushimi just south of kyoto the two forces clashed on the second day an imperial banner was given to the defending troops and a member of the imperial family the prince ninnaji was named nominal commander in chief in effect making the pro imperial forces officially an imperial army b 2 the bakufu forces eventually retreated to osaka with the remaining forces ordered to retreat to edo yoshinobu and his closest advisors left for edo by ship 3 the encounter at toba fushimi between the imperial and shogunate forces marked the beginning of the conflict with the court in kyoto firmly behind the satsuma chōshū tosa coalition other domains that were sympathetic to the cause such as tottori inaba aki hiroshima and hizen saga emerged to take a more active role in military operations 4 western domains that had either supported the shogunate or remained neutral also quickly announced their support of the restoration movement 4 the nascent meiji state required a new military command for its operations against the shogunate in 1868 the imperial army being just a loose amalgam of domain armies the government created four military divisions the tōkaidō tōsandō san indō and hokurikudō each of which was named for a major highway 5 overseeing these four armies was a new high command the eastern expeditionary high command tōsei daisō tokufu whose nominal head was prince arisugawa no miya with two court nobles as senior staff officers 5 this connected the loose assembly of domain forces with the imperial court which was the only national institution in a still unformed nation state 5 the army continually emphasized its link with the imperial court firstly to legitimize its cause secondly to brand enemies of the imperial government as enemies of the court and traitors and lastly to gain popular support 6 to supply food weapons and other supplies for the campaign the imperial government established logistical relay stations along three major highways these small depots held stockpiled material supplied by local pro government domains or confiscated from the bakufu and others opposing the imperial government local villagers were routinely impressed as porters to move and deliver supplies between the depots and frontline units 6 struggles to form a centralized army edit initially the new army fought under makeshift arrangements with unclear channels of command and control and no reliable recruiting base 6 although fighting for the imperial cause many of the units were loyal to their domains rather than the imperial court in march 1869 the imperial government created various administrative offices including a military branch and in the following month organized an imperial bodyguard of 400 to 500 which consisted of satsuma and chōshū troops strengthened by veterans of the encounter at toba fushimi as well as yeoman and masterless samurai from various domains 6 the imperial court told the domains to restrict the size of their local armies and to contribute to funding a national officers training school in kyoto 6 however within a few months the government disbanded both the military branch and the imperial bodyguard the former was ineffective while the latter lacked modern weaponry and equipment to replace them two new organizations were created one was the military affairs directorate which was composed of two bureaus one for the army and one for the navy the directorate drafted an army from troop contributions from each domain proportional to each domain s annual rice production koku this conscript army chōheigun integrated samurai and commoners from various domains into its ranks 6 as the war continued the military affairs directorate expected to raise troops from the wealthier domains and in june the organization of the army was fixed where each domain was required to send ten men for each 10 000 koku of rice produced however this policy put the imperial government in direct competition with the domains for military recruitment which was not rectified until april 1868 when the government banned the domains from enlisting troops consequently the quota system never fully worked as intended and was abolished the following year 6 the imperial forces encountered numerous difficulties during the war especially during the campaign in eastern japan headquarters in faraway kyoto often proposed plans at odds with the local conditions which led to tensions with officers in the field who in many cases ignored centralized direction in favor of unilateral action 7 the army lacked a strong central staff that was capable of enforcing orders consequently military units were at the mercy of individual commanders leadership and direction this was not helped by the absence of a unified tactical doctrine which left units to fight according to the tactics favored by their respective commanders there was increased resentment by many lower ranked commanders as senior army positions were monopolized by the nobility together with samurai from chōshū and satsuma 7 the use of commoners within the new army created resentment among the samurai class although the nascent meiji government achieved military success the war left a residue of disgruntled warriors and marginalized commoners together with a torn social fabric 8 the koishikawa arsenal in tokyo inaugurated in 1871 soon after the meiji restoration foundation of a national army 1871 1873 edit prince aritomo yamagata a field marshal in the imperial japanese army and twice prime minister of japan he was one of the main architects of the military foundations of early modern japan yamagata aritomo can be seen as the father of japanese militarism after the defeat of the tokugawa shogunate and operations in northeastern honshu and hokkaido a true national army did not exist many in the restoration coalition had recognized the need for a strong centralized authority and although the imperial side was victorious the early meiji government was weak and the leaders had to maintain their standing with their domains whose military forces was essential for whatever the government needed to achieve 9 the leaders of the restoration were divided over the future organization of the army ōmura masujirō who had sought a strong central government at the expense of the domains advocated for the creation of a standing national army along european lines under the control of the government the introduction of conscription for commoners and the abolition of the samurai class 8 ōkubo toshimichi preferred a small volunteer force consisting of former samurai 8 10 ōmura s views for modernizing japan s military led to his assassination in 1869 and his ideas were largely implemented after his death by yamagata aritomo aritomo has been described as the father of the imperial japanese army 11 yamagata had commanded mixed commoner samurai chōshū units during the boshin war and was convinced of the merit of peasant soldiers 12 although he himself was part of the samurai class albeit of insignificant lower status yamagata distrusted the warrior class several members of whom he regarded as clear dangers to the meiji state 13 establishment of the imperial guard and institutional reforms edit barrack of the imperial guard circa 1940 in march 1871 the war ministry announced the creation of an imperial guard goshinpei of six thousand men 14 consisting of nine infantry battalions two artillery batteries and two cavalry squadrons 15 the emperor donated 100 000 ryō to underwrite the new unit which was subordinate to the court 16 it was composed of members of the satsuma chōshū and tosa domains who had led the restoration satsuma provided four battalions of infantry and four artillery batteries chōshū provided three battalions of infantry tosa two battalions of infantry two squadrons of cavalry and two artillery batteries 14 for the first time the meiji government was able to organize a large body of soldiers under a consistent rank and pay scheme with uniforms which were loyal to the government rather than the domains 14 the imperial guard s principal mission was to protect the throne by suppressing domestic samurai revolts peasant uprisings and anti government demonstrations 17 the possession of this military force was a factor in the government s abolition of the han system the military ministry hyōbushō was reorganized in july 1871 on august 29 simultaneously with the decree abolishing the domains the dajōkan ordered local daimyos to disband their private armies and turn their weapons over to the government 17 although the government played on the foreign threat especially russia s southward expansion to justify a national army the immediately perceived danger was domestic insurrection 17 consequently on august 31 the country was divided into four military districts each with its own chindai garrison to deal with peasant uprisings or samurai insurrections the imperial guard formed the tokyo garrison whereas troops from the former domains filled the ranks of the osaka kumamoto and sendai garrisons the four garrisons had a total of about 8 000 troops mostly infantry but also a few hundred artillerymen and engineers 17 smaller detachments of troops also guarded outposts at kagoshima fushimi nagoya hiroshima and elsewhere by late december 1871 the army set modernization and coastal defense as priorities long term plans were devised for an armed force to maintain internal security defend strategic coastal areas train and educate military and naval officers and build arsenals and supply depots 17 despite previous rhetoric about the foreign menace little substantive planning was directed against russia in february 1872 the military ministry was abolished and separate army and navy ministries were established 17 conscription edit marquis nozu michitsura a field marshal in the early imperial japanese army he was appointed as chief of staff of the imperial guard japan in 1874 the conscription ordinance enacted on january 10 1873 made universal military service compulsory for all male subjects in the country the law called for a total of seven years of military service three years in the regular army jōbigun two years in the reserve dai ichi kōbigun and an additional two years in the second reserve daini kōbigun 18 all able bodied males between the ages of 17 and 40 were considered members of the national guard kokumingun which would only see service in a severe national crisis such as an attack or invasion of japan the conscription examination decided which group of recruits would enter the army those who failed the exam were excused from all examinations except for the national guard recruits who passed entered the draft lottery where some were selected for active duty a smaller group would be selected for replacement duty hojū eki should anything happen to any of the active duty soldiers the rest were dismissed 18 one of the primary differences between the samurai and the peasant class was the right to bear arms this ancient privilege was suddenly extended to every male in the nation 19 there were several exemptions including criminals those who could show hardship the physically unfit heads of households or heirs students government bureaucrats and teachers 13 a conscript could also purchase an exemption for 270 which was an enormous sum for the time and which restricted this privilege to the wealthy 13 under the new 1873 ordinance the conscript army was composed mainly of second and third sons of impoverished farmers who manned the regional garrisons while former samurai controlled the imperial guard and the tokyo garrison 13 marquis jutoku saigo a general in the early imperial j...