The was an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

division of the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") 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 th ...

. Its

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...

was the . The division was formed 15 June 1944 in

Luzon Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...

. The nucleus of the formation was the 32nd Independent Mixed Brigade. The ''103rd division'' was a Type C (hei) security division therefore the division backbone has comprised independent infantry battalions instead of infantry regiments.

Action

Initially ''103rd division'' was tasked with the garrisoning of north

, with 79th infantry brigade covering north-west and 80th infantry brigade covering north-east quarter of the

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

. During the

Battle of Luzon The Battle of Luzon (; ; ) was a land battle of the Pacific Theater of Operations of World War II by the Allied forces of the U.S., its colony the Philippines, Mexico, and allies against forces of the Empire of Japan. The battle resulted in a U ...

since 9 January 1945, the ''103rd division'' zone of responsibility was from

Aparri Aparri (ibanag language, Ibanag: ''Ili nat Aparri''; ; ), officially the Municipality of Aparri, is a municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of , Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a ...

to west. Soon the ''103rd division'' has retreated to the mountains inland and largely survived around

Magat River The Magat River is a river in the Philippine island of Luzon with a total length of . It originates in the Nueva Vizcaya municipality of Aritao, where the Santa Fe River joins the Marang. It is the largest tributary of the Cagayan River by ...

until

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was Hirohito surrender broadcast, announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally Japanese Instrument of Surrender, signed on 2 September 1945, End of World War II in Asia, ending ...

15 August 1945.

Notes and references

*This article incorporates material from Japanese Wikipedia page 第103師団 (日本軍), accessed 26 June 2016 * Madej, W. Victor. ''Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937–1945'' volsAllentown, PA: 1981 Japanese World War II divisions Infantry divisions of Japan Military units and formations established in 1944 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 1944 establishments in Japan 1945 disestablishments in Japan {{Japan-mil-unit-stub

Action

See also

Notes and references