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 . It was formed 16 January 1945 in

Mudanjiang Mudanjiang (; Manchu language, Manchu: ''Mudan bira''), postal romanization, alternately romanized as Mutankiang, is a prefecture-level city in the southeast part of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China. It was called ''Botankou'' un ...

as a

triangular division A triangular division is a designation given to the way military divisions are organized. In a triangular organization, the division's main body is composed of three regimental maneuver elements. These regiments may be controlled by a brigade hea ...

. It was a part of the 8 simultaneously created divisions batch comprising 121st, 122nd, 123rd, 124th, 125th, 126th, 127th and 128th divisions. The nucleus for the formation were the 1st, 2nd, and parts of 11th border guards group.

Action

Initially, the ''128th division'' was assigned to the 3rd army. The ''128th division'' headquarters were established in March 1945 at Luozigou (Lotzukou), replacing the 120th division transferred to the south of Korea. The division combat efficiency was estimated to be 20%. Immediately after the start of the

Soviet invasion of Manchuria The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation or simply the Manchurian Operation () and sometimes Operation August Storm, began on 9 August 1945 with the Soviet Union, Soviet invasion of the Emp ...

9 August 1945 the ''128th division'' was subordinated directly to 1st area army as planned. At the same time, 132nd Independent Mixed Brigade was attached to the division. Initial Soviet attack was parred by 132nd Independent Mixed Brigade at Dongning, Heilongjiang, but 11 August 1945 the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

column outflanked Dongning defenders from the south and penetrated deeply into Japanese-held territory. In the evening 12 August 1945, the ''128th division'' fell back to the second line of defenses around Huadian, Jilin where it stayed 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 ...

news reached units 16 August 1945. Although the estimated number of soldiers of ''128th division''

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

during the

was only 1095 men, the ''128th division'' was severely disorganized, retaining only half of combat efficiency after the brief conflict. Majority of the troops of the division were taken prisoner by the

and were taken to Siberian

labour camp A labor camp (or labour camp, see British and American spelling differences, spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are unfree labour, forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have ...

s in September - October 1945.128th Division (Eibu)
/ref>

Notes and references

*This article incorporates material from Japanese Wikipedia page 第128師団 (日本軍), accessed 4 July 2016 * Madej, W. Victor, ''Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle'', 1937–1945 vols Allentown, PA: 1981. Japanese World War II divisions Infantry divisions of Japan Military units and formations established in 1945 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 1945 establishments in Japan 1945 disestablishments in Japan {{Japan-mil-unit-stub

Action

See also

Notes and references