The Manchukuo Imperial Guards (, ) were an elite unit (special operations capable) of the

Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially known as the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of Great Manchuria thereafter, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. It was ostens ...

armed forces created in 1933. It was charged with the protection of the Kangde Emperor, the imperial household, and senior members of the Manchukuo civil government. Their garrison and headquarters were situated in the capital of Xinjing, adjacent to the Imperial Palace.

History

The Manchukuo Imperial Guards were inspired by the Imperial Guards of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

and patterned after the

Imperial Guard of Japan The Imperial Guard of Japan has been two separate organizations dedicated to the protection of the Emperor of Japan and the Imperial Family, palaces and other imperial properties. The first was the , a quasi-independent elite branch of the Imperial ...

. Its 200 members were selected from candidates of ethnic Manchu backgrounds, and were trained independently of the

Manchukuo Imperial Army The Manchukuo Imperial Army ( zh, s=滿洲國軍, p=Mǎnzhōuguó jūn) was the army of Manchukuo, a puppet state established by the Empire of Japan in Manchuria. Established in 1932, it was primarily involved in counterinsurgency operations agai ...

or the Japanese

Kwantung Army The Kwantung Army (Japanese language, Japanese: 関東軍, ''Kantō-gun'') was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1919 to 1945. The Kwantung Army was formed in 1906 as a security force for th ...

. Although largely a ceremonial force, the

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

received the latest firearms and also carried Japanese-style swords () as dress weaponry. Their uniforms were grey or black with silver or gold insignia, with a five-color, five pointed star on their helmets and

kepi The kepi ( ) is a cap with a flat circular top and a peak, or visor. In English, the term is a loanword from , itself a re-spelled version of the , a diminutive form of , meaning . In Europe, the kepi is most commonly associated with French ...

s. An independent brigade called the Jing'an Guerilla Unit () was formed for use in clandestine operation, commando style raids, covert operation, intelligence gathering, special operations, special reconnaissance, and tracking targets during the

Pacification of Manchukuo The Pacification of Manchukuo was a Japanese counterinsurgency campaign to suppress any armed resistance to the newly established puppet state of Manchukuo from various anti-Japanese volunteer armies in occupied Manchuria and later the Co ...

. It was effective in combat, having participated in the Ki Feng-lung District Subjugation in November 1932 and anti-bandit

Honghuzi Honghuzi () were armed Chinese robbers and bandits who operated in the areas of the eastern Russia-China borderland during the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Their activities extended over southeastern ...

operations. The ceremonial unit was part of the corps. The Manchukuo Imperial Guards fought their last battles during 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 ...

and ceased to exist at the conclusion of the

Soviet–Japanese War The Soviet–Japanese War)Known in Mongolia as the Liberation War of 1945 () was a campaign of the Second World War that began with the Soviet invasion of Manchuria following the Soviet declaration of war against Japan on 8 August 1945. The ...

References

* {{cite book , last = Jowett , first = Philip , year = 2005 , title = Rays of the Rising Sun, Volume 1: Japan's Asian Allies 1931-45, China and Manchukuo , publisher = Helion and Company Ltd. , location = , isbn = 1-874622-21-3 Protective security units Former guards regiments Guards Royal guards Military units and formations established in 1933 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945

History

See also

References