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The Imperial Japanese Armed Forces (IJAF) were the combined military forces of the Japanese Empire. Formed during the
Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
in 1868,"One can date the 'restoration' of imperial rule from the edict of 3 January 1868." p. 334. they were disbanded in 1947, shortly after Japan's defeat to the
Allies of World War II The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy ...
; the renewed
Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan ( Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitutio ...
, drafted during the
Allied occupation of Japan Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States w ...
, replaced the IJAF with the present-day Japan Self-Defense Forces. The
Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
and the
Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...
functioned as the IJAF's primary service branches, with the country's aerial power being split between the
Army Air Service The United States Army Air Service (USAAS)Craven and Cate Vol. 1, p. 9 (also known as the ''"Air Service"'', ''"U.S. Air Service"'' and before its legislative establishment in 1920, the ''"Air Service, United States Army"'') was the aerial warf ...
under the former and the Navy Air Service under the latter.


History

The IJAF was founded with an edict emanated on 3 January 1868, as part of the Japanese reorganization of the army and the application of innovations during the
Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
. The reorganization of the army and the navy during the Meiji period boosted Japanese military strength, allowing the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy to achieve major victories, such as during the
First Sino-Japanese war The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the ...
and the
Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
. The IJAF also served in
WW1 World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and WW2. It was operational until the Surrender of Japan after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
in 1947.


Organization

During the pre-war era the army and navy had separate school branches. Since the Meiji era, the Choshu Domain from
Yamaguchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Yamaguchi Prefecture has a population of 1,377,631 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 6,112 km2 (2,359 sq mi). Yamaguchi Prefecture borders Shimane Prefecture t ...
dominated the IJA. The IJN was dominated by the Satsuma Domain from Kagoshima Prefecture. This resulted in that they operated separately rather than a single umbrella strategy. During the Showa period, the IJA and IJN had different outlooks on allies and enemies. The IJA considered
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
as a natural partner and the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
as a threat, while the IJN stressed that collaboration with
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
would hurt relations with the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. Some equipment was also procured separately. For example the IJA secured its own ships and self-designed submarines in
World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. Former Prime Minister
Shigeru Yoshida (22 September 1878 – 20 October 1967) was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954. Yoshida was one of the longest-serving Japanese prime ministers, and is the third-long ...
criticized the sectionalism of the IJAF.


Interservice rivalry

The Imperial Army and Navy had a fierce interservice rivalry centering around how the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces ought to secure territories containing valuable natural resources not available at home to fuel and grow the Japanese economy. The Army mainly supported the
Hokushin-ron was a pre-World War II political doctrine of the Empire of Japan which stated that Manchuria and Siberia were Japan's sphere of interest and that the potential value to Japan for economic and territorial expansion in those areas was greater tha ...
doctrine, which called for expansion into Manchuria and Siberia and would have the army take on a prime role, while the Navy supported the
Nanshin-ron was a political doctrine in the Empire of Japan that stated that Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands were Japan's sphere of interest and that their potential value to the Empire for economic and territorial expansion was greater than elsewh ...
doctrine, which stated that Japan ought to expand into
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
and the Pacific Islands and would be reliant on the navy to do so.


Main chronology


Under Emperor Meiji

*1870 (1870) Proclamation of unified military system (Army is French-style, Navy is British-style) *1871 (1871) Goshinpei are organized by donations from Satsuma, Choshu, and Tosa. *Proclamation of conscription order in 1873 *1874 Saga Rebellion, Taiwan troop dispatch *Ganghwa Island Incident in 1875 *1876 Kumamoto Shinfuren Rebellion, Akizuki Rebellion, Hagi Rebellion *Meiji 10 (1877) Satsuma Rebellion *1882 (1882) Promulgation of the Imperial Rescript to Soldiers *1888 (1888) Promulgation of the Army General Staff Ordinance, the Navy General Staff Ordinance, and the Division Headquarters Ordinance *1889 (Meiji 22) Promulgation of the Constitution of the Empire of Japan *1893 (Meiji 26) Promulgation of the Wartime Imperial Headquarters Ordinance *Meiji 27 (1894) Sino-Japanese War *The Sino-Japanese War ended in 1895. Japanese troops requisition Taiwan based on the Treaty of Shimonoseki *1899 (Meiji 32) Boxer Rebellion Incident *1900 (Meiji 33) Established an active military officer system of the military minister, Kitasei incident *Meiji 37 (1904) Russo-Japanese War *1905 (Meiji 38) Operation Sakhalin, the end of the Russo-Japanese War


Under Emperor Taishō

**In 1913, the military minister can be appointed as a reserve, back-up, or retired general. *1914 Siemens scandal, World War I (Battle of Qingdao) *1918 Siberian intervention, end of World War I *1919 (Taisho 8) Promulgation of the Kwantung Army Headquarters Ordinance *Nikolayevsk Incident in 1920 *1921 Washington Naval Treaty *The Amakasu Incident in 1923 *Siberian intervention ended in 1925, Ugaki military contraction


Under Emperor Hirohito

*Showa 2 (1927) **First Shandong troops **First Nanking Incident *Showa 3 (1928) **Second Shandong troops **Jinan Incident **Zhang Zuolin bombing case *Showa 5 (1930) **London Naval Treaty **Taiwan Musha Incident *Showa 6 (1931) **March Incident **Manchurian Incident **October incident *Showa 7 (1932) **May 15 Incident **Manchuria founded *Showa 9 (1934) **Washington Naval Treaty abolished *Showa 11 (1936) **February 26 Incident **Resurrection of the military minister's active military service system **Japan-Germany Anti-Comintern Pact *Showa 12 (1937) **China Incident (Sino-Japanese War) **Marco Polo Bridge Incident **Tongzhou case **Nanjing Massacre *Showa 13 (1938) **Battle of Lake Khasan **Promulgation of the National Mobilization Law *Showa 14 (1939) **The Battle of Khalkhin *Showa 15 (1940) **French Indochina *Showa 16 (1941) **Declaration of war against the United States and Britain, Greater East Asia War (Pacific War), Southern Operation (Malayan Campaign, Pearl Harbor attack, etc.) Showa 17 (1942) **Dutch East Indies Campaign **Battle of Midway Showa 18 (1943) **Battle of Guadalcanal Island **Navy Instep Incident **Battle of Attu Showa 19 (1944) **Navy B case **Operation Imphal **Operation Ichi-Go **Battle of Mariana and Palau Islands **Philippines Defense Battle **Creation of a special attack corps *1945 (Showa 20) **February Yalta Conference **March Battle of Iwo Jima **March Tokyo air raid **April Battle of Okinawa **August Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki **Participation in the Soviet Union against Japan (Battle of Sakhalin / Battle of Shumshu) **Accepting the Potsdam Declaration **Soviet troops occupy the South Karafuto and Kuril Islands **September 2-Japanese Instrument of Surrender Signing Ceremony on Battleship Missouri (Japanese Instrument of Surrender, All Armies Stopped Combat, Disarmament Order), Greater East Asia War (Pacific War) and End of World War II **Soviet Union occupies the Northern Territories **November The Ministry of the Army and the Ministry of the Navy are dismantled and become the 1st Ministry of Demobilization and the 2nd Ministry of Demobilization. *Showa 21 (1946) **May International Military Tribunal for the Far East opens **November 3-Promulgation of the Constitution of Japan *1947 (Showa 22) **May 3-Enforcement of the Constitution of Japan *Showa 25 (1950) **August 10-Establishment of National Police Reserve *1952 (Showa 27) **August 10-National Safety Forces reorganization *Showa 29 (1954) **July 1-Established "Self-Defense Forces (land, sea, aviation)" and established the Defense Agency (shifted to "Ministry of Defense" on January 9, 2007)


References

{{Empire of Japan Military of the Empire of Japan