Kwantung Army. 70 years of surrender
During the Second World War, the Kwantung Army was the most numerous and powerful military grouping of the Japanese imperial army. This army unit was concentrated in China. It was assumed that in the event of the start of hostilities with the Soviet Union, it was the Kwantung Army that would play the main role in opposing the Soviet forces. It also provided for the use of the troops of Manzhou-go and Mengjiang, the satellite countries of Japan, as auxiliary units under the Kwantung Army. For a long time, it was the Kwantung Army that remained the most efficient unit of the Japanese armed forces and was used not only as a territorial grouping of troops, but also as a training base, where they trained and “run-in” the rank and file, noncommissioned officers and officers of the imperial army. Japanese officers viewed service in the Kwantung Army as prestigious, promising a good salary and the possibility of rapid promotion.
Before turning to the story about the Kwantung Army itself, it is necessary to briefly describe what the imperial armed forces of Japan themselves were in the first half of the twentieth century. First, it should be noted that story in its modern form began after the Meiji Revolution, in the general context of the modernization of the economy, culture and defense of the country. In January 1873, samurai militias, traditional for old Japan, were disbanded and universal military service introduced. The governing bodies of the imperial army are: the Ministry of the Army, the General Staff and the Main Inspection for Combat Training. All of them were subordinate to the Japanese emperor and had the same status, but different duties. Thus, the Minister of the Army was responsible for administrative personnel issues of the ground forces. The chief of the General Staff carried out direct command of the army and was responsible for the development of military orders. Also under the authority of the General Staff of the army were issues of training staff officers. The initial importance of the General Staff of the army was very great, but after a separate General Staff was created fleet, its significance has decreased, but a new General Staff of the Armed Forces has been formed, it is also the Imperial Headquarters, which included the emperor, the Minister of the Army, the Minister of the Navy, the Chief of the General Staff of the Army, the head of the General Staff of the Fleet, the head of the Operational Division of the Army, the head of the Operations Department fleet and chief inspector of combat training. Finally, the chief inspector of combat training was responsible for the training of the personnel of the imperial army, both ordinary and officer, as well as transport support for the imperial army and its material and technical supplies. The chief inspector of combat training was in fact the third most important senior officer of the Japanese imperial army and was part of the Imperial Headquarters. Therefore, the position of chief inspector was considered very prestigious and significant, as evidenced by the appointment of promising and honored generals. As we will see below, the former commanders of the Kwantung Army became the main inspectors of combat training, but there were also examples of reverse official transfers. The main unit of the imperial army was a division, which in the event of the outbreak of war was transformed into an army. However, the imperial army had two exceptional formations - the Korean and Kwantung armies, which had a very large strength even by the standards of the army and were armed forces stationed in Korea and Manchuria and intended to protect Japanese interests and maintain Japanese power in Korea and the pro-Japanese the puppet government of Manzhou-go in Manchuria. The following ranks were introduced in the imperial army of Japan: generalissimo (emperor), general, lieutenant general, major general, colonel, lieutenant colonel, major, captain, lieutenant, junior lieutenant, ensign, senior sergeant, sergeant, corporal, foreman, private senior class, private 1 class, private 2 classes. Naturally, the officers in the imperial army were equipped, first of all, with representatives of the aristocratic class. The rank and file was staffed by draft. In addition, it should be noted that in the operational subordination of the Japanese military command during the Second World War there were numerous paramilitary groups recruited in the countries of East, Southeast and Central Asia occupied by the Japanese. Among the Japanese-controlled armed groups, it is worth noting, first of all, the Manzhou Guo Army and the Menjiang National Army, as well as armed groups in Burma, Indonesia, Vietnam, Japanese-controlled Indian units formed in Singapore, etc. In Korea, the military appeal of the Koreans has been in force since 1942, when Japan's position on the fronts began to seriously deteriorate, in addition to everything, the threat of a Soviet military invasion of Manchuria and Korea increased.
The largest Japanese compound in Manchuria
The history of the Kwantung Army began in 1931, when the formation of a large military unit based on the army garrison, deployed from the beginning of the 1905th century, began. in the Kwantung region - the southwestern part of the Liaodong Peninsula. In 18, following the results of the Russo-Japanese War, Japan, as a “bonus," according to the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, received the right to use the Liaodong Peninsula for military purposes. In fact, the formation formed on the Liaodong Peninsula has become the basis for preparing an armed attack on the main opponents of Japan in the region - China, the Soviet Union and the Mongolian People's Republic. The Kwantung Army began to directly participate in the hostilities against China on September 1931, 1876. At that time, the army was commanded by Lieutenant General Shigeru Honjo (1945-10), one of the prominent Japanese military leaders, a participant in the Russo-Japanese war and intervention in Russia during the Civil War war. Shigeru Honjo, a professional soldier, commanded the 19th Infantry Division before being appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. After the diversion on the railway, Japanese troops invaded the territory of Manchuria and already occupied Mukden on September 22. Jirin was occupied on September 18, and Qiqihar on November 50. The League of Nations tried in vain to prevent Japan from capturing a large part of Chinese territory, but could not do anything. The Japanese Empire increased the size of the Kwantung Army to 1931 thousand soldiers and officers in December 1932, and after a little more than two weeks - by January 260, the personnel of the Kwantung Army was increased to 000 troops. In service with the army during this period were 439 tanks, 1193 artillery pieces and 500 aircraft. Naturally, the Chinese troops were significantly inferior to the Kwantung Army both in armament and in the level of organization and training, although they were slightly superior in numbers. On March 1, 1932, as a result of the operation of the Kwantung Army, the creation of an independent state of Manzhou was proclaimed on the territory of Manchuria. Its ruler was proclaimed the last emperor of China, Pu Yi, a representative of the Manchu Qing dynasty. Thus, it was the Kwantung Army that ensured the creation of the state of Manzhou-go on the territory of Northwest China, which significantly changed the political map of East and Central Asia. After the brilliant Manchurian operation, Lieutenant General Shigeru Honjo became the national hero of Japan and went on promotion. On August 8, 1932, Shigeru Honjo was recalled to Japan. He was given the rank of general, the title of baron, and was appointed a member of the Supreme Military Council, and then - chief adjutant to the emperor of Japan. However, subsequently the fate of the Kwantung commander was tragic. From 1939 to 1945 he headed the Military Hospital Service, but then the general's military experience required the empire in a more significant quality and in May 1945, Honjo was appointed a member of the Privy Council. After the war, he was arrested by the US military, but managed to commit suicide.
Field-Marshal Muto Nobuyoshi (1868-1933) replaced the post of the Commander of the Kwantung Army, Lieutenant-General Shigeru Honjo. Interestingly, back in the early twentieth century. He was twice a military attache in the Russian Empire, and during the Civil War in Russia he led the Japanese military mission under Admiral Kolchak, later commanded the Japanese division during the intervention in the Far East. Before being appointed commander of the Kwantung Army, Muto Nobuyoshi served as chief inspector of the imperial army for combat training. By the way, the post of commander of the Kwantung Army, Mutu Nobuyoshi, combined with the posts of commander of the army of the state of Manchukuo and the Japanese ambassador to Manchukuuo. Thus, all the armed forces in Manchuria were under the command of a Japanese field marshal. It was the commander of the Kwantung Army who also carried out the actual leadership of the puppet government of Manchukuo, which could not afford to take a single step without the knowledge of the Japanese administration. Muto participated in the actual creation of the Manchu state. However, in the same 1933, he died of jaundice at a military hospital in Xinjing. The new commander of the Kwantung Army was General Hishikari Takashi, who before, at the beginning of 1931, already commanded the Kwantung Army. It was under Muto and Hishikari that the foundations of the Kwantung Army were laid in the form in which it met the beginning of the Second World War. In fact, these Japanese senior officers stood at the origins of Japanese military policy in Manchuria, forming the armed forces of Manchukuo. By 1938, the number of the Kwantung Army was brought to 200 by thousands of people (although during the capture of Manchuria, due to the attached connections, it was even more). Almost all the main senior officers of the Japanese Imperial Army passed through the Kwantung Army as a forge of cadres, since staying in Manchuria was considered an important step in the career of an officer in the Japanese armed forces. In 1936, General Ueda Kenkichi (1875-1962) was appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. The identity of this person also played a large role - not only in the history of the Kwantung Army as a military unit, but also in the history of Soviet-Japanese relations. The fact is that General Ueda saw the main opponent of the Japanese empire not the United States or Great Britain, or even China, but the Soviet Union. According to Ueda, the USSR was the main threat to Japanese interests in East and Central Asia. Therefore, as soon as Ueda, who previously held the post of commander of the Korean army, was assigned to the Kwantung Army, he immediately became puzzled by the question of “redirecting” the Kwantung Army towards the Soviet Union, including stimulating anti-Soviet provocations on the border with the USSR. It was General Ueda who commanded the Kwantung Army during armed incidents on Lake Hassan and on Khalkhin Gol.
Provocations at the border and conflict on Lake Hassan
However, less significant incidents occurred earlier - in 1936-1937. So, January 30 1936 With the help of two Manchurian companies, under the command of Japanese officers from the Kwantung Army, a breakthrough 1,5 km deep into the territory of the Soviet Union was undertaken. During a clash with Soviet border guards, 31 was killed by a Japanese and Manchurian serviceman, while only 4 people were killed from the Soviet side. November 24 1936 city a mixed 60 detachment of Japanese cavalry and infantrymen invaded Soviet territory, but the Soviet troops managed to repel the attack, destroying enemy soldiers from 18 machine guns. Two days later, on November 26, the Japanese tried again to penetrate Soviet territory, during a shootout three Soviet border guards were killed. 5th of June 1937 The Japanese detachment invaded Soviet territory and occupied the hill at Lake Khanka, but the attack was repulsed by the Soviet 63 rifle regiment. 30th of June 1937 Japanese troops sank the Soviet armored boat of the frontier troops, resulting in the death of 7 soldiers. The Japanese also fired on an armored battleship and a gunboat on the Soviet Amur military flotilla. After that, the commander of the Soviet troops, V. Blücher, sent to the border a group of reconnaissance and six rifle battalions, a demining battalion, three artillery battalions and an aviation detachment. The Japanese preferred to retreat beyond the border line. Only for the period from 1936 to 1938. Japanese forces committed 231 violation of the state border of the Soviet Union, in 35 cases of violation resulted in military clashes. In March, the 1938 at the headquarters of the Kwantung Army, a plan was developed for the “Policy of Defense of the State” directed against the USSR and providing for the use of Japanese forces against the Soviet Union in the amount of at least 18 divisions. By the beginning of July 1938 The situation on the Soviet-Manchurian border has worsened to the limit, moreover, the Japanese command put forward territorial claims to the USSR. In connection with the exacerbation of the situation at the border, the Far Eastern Front of the Red Army was formed. July 9 1938 city began the movement of Soviet troops to the state border - in order to promptly repel a possible attack by the Kwantung Army. 12 July Soviet border guards occupied the Zaozernaya hill, which was claimed by Manchukuo. In response to the actions of the Soviet troops, on July 14, a note of protest from the USSR was sent by the Manchukuo government, and on July 15, the Japanese ambassador to the USSR, Mamoru Shigemitsu, demanded the immediate withdrawal of Soviet troops from the disputed territory. On July 21, the military leadership of Japan asked the Japanese emperor for permission to use military force against Soviet troops in the area of Lake Hassan. In response to the actions of Japan, the Soviet leadership 22 July 1938. rejected Tokyo's demands for the withdrawal of Soviet troops. 23 July, the Japanese command began preparations for an armed invasion, clearing the border villages from local residents. Artillery units of the Kwantung Army were advanced to the border, positions for the Japanese artillery at the Pogomolnoy height and islands on the Tumen-Ula river were equipped. In total, at least 20 thousand were prepared for participation in hostilities. soldiers of the Kwantung Army. On the border were concentrated 15, I, 19-I and 20-I infantry divisions, 1 cavalry regiment, 3 machine-gun battalion, armored units, anti-aircraft batteries, three armored trains and 70 aircraft. On the Tumen-Ula River were 1 cruiser and 14 destroyers, 15 boats.
24 July 1938. The Military Council of the Far Eastern Front of the Red Army brought several army units on high alert, including the 118 and 119 rifle and 121 cavalry regiments of the 40 rifle division. On July 29, a Japanese company of border gendarmerie, armed with 4 machineguns and numbering 150 soldiers and officers, attacked the Soviet positions. Having occupied the height of the Nameless, the Japanese lost 40 people, but were soon knocked out by suitable Soviet reinforcements. July 30 Japanese army artillery began to work on Soviet positions, after which the infantry units of the Japanese army launched an attack on the Soviet positions - but again to no avail. On July 31, the Pacific Fleet of the USSR and the Maritime Army were brought to combat readiness. On the same day, a new attack by the Japanese army ended with the capture of the hills and the installation of 40 Japanese machine guns on them. The counterattack of the Soviet two battalions ended in failure, after which Deputy Commissar of Defense of the USSR Army Commissar L.Z. arrived at the scene of the hostilities. Mehlis and the chief of staff of the front G.M. Stern. On August 1, the front commander, V. Blucher, arrived there, who was severely criticized by telephone I.V. Stalin for unsatisfactory leadership of the operation. 3 August Stalin removed Blucher from command of the operation and appointed Stern in his place. 4 August Stern ordered the Japanese troops to attack in the area between Lake Hassan and Zaozernaya Hill. 6 August 216 Soviet aircraft bombarded the Japanese positions, after which the 32-Infantry Division, the tank battalion of the 2-th mechanized brigade launched an attack on the Nameless Hill, and the 40-Rifle Division - on the Zaozernaya Hill. 8 August Zaozernaya hill was captured by Soviet troops. On August 9, the forces of the Red Army 32 Rifle Division captured the height of the Nameless. 10 August, the Japanese ambassador addressed the USSR People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs MM Litvinov with the proposal to start peace talks. 11 AUGUST 1938. Fighting stopped. Thus, the first serious armed conflict between the USSR and Japan, in which the Kwantung Army took part, was completed.
Defeat of the Qantuan on Khalkhin Gol
However, the victory of the Soviet troops in the conflict at Lake Hassan did not mean that the Japanese command refused the aggressive actions - this time on the Manchurian-Mongolian border. Japan did not hide its plans for "Outer Mongolia", as in the Chinese and Manchurian tradition was called the territory of the MPR. Formally, Mongolia was considered part of the Chinese empire, the heir of which the ruler of Manchuku Pu I. saw himself. The reason for the conflict between Manchuku and Mongolia was the demand to recognize the Khalkhin Gol river as a border of two states. The fact is that the Japanese sought to ensure the safety of the construction of the railway, which stretched to the border of the Soviet Union. The first clashes on the Manchu-Mongol border began as early as 1935. In 1936, the USSR and the MNR signed the “Protocol of Mutual Assistance”, according to which parts of the 1937 Special Corps of the Red Army with a total number of 57 troops, including the 5544 commander, were deployed in the MNR. After the conflict on Lake Hassan, Japan shifted its attention to the Khalkhin Gol River. Expansionist sentiments grew among the Japanese senior officers, including the idea of expanding the territory of the Japanese Empire to Lake Baikal. 523-16 January 17 was on the border with the MPR, there were two provocations organized by Japanese troops. 1939 January 17 Japanese soldiers attacked three Mongolian border guards. The 13 and 29 of January, the Japanese soldiers and the Bargut horsemen on their side (the Barguts are one of the Mongol tribes) attacked the guard patrols of the Mongolian border guard. The attacks were repeated in February and March 30, with the Japanese command still actively involved in the attacks of the Barguts.
On the night of May 8, 1939, a Japanese platoon with a machine gun tried to capture the island on Khalkhin Gol, but ran into resistance from the Mongolian border guards and was forced to retreat. On May 11, Japanese cavalry of about two squadrons invaded the MPR and attacked the Mongolian border outpost Nomon-Khan-Burd-Obo. Then, however, the Japanese managed to push the approaching Mongolian reinforcements. May 14th units of the 23rd Japanese Infantry Division, supported by aviation attacked the border post of Mongolia. On May 17, the command of the 57th special corps of the Red Army sent three motorized rifle companies, a sapper company, and an artillery battery to Khalkhin Gol. On May 22, Soviet troops drove back Japanese units from Khalkhin Gol. Between May 22 and 28, 668 Soviet and Mongol infantry, 260 cavalry, 39 armored vehicles and 58 machine guns concentrated in the Khalkhin-Gol area. Japan put forward more impressive forces to Khalkhin Gol of 1680 infantrymen and 900 horsemen, 75 machine guns, 18 artillery pieces, 1 tank and 8 armored vehicles under the command of Colonel Yamagata. In the clash, Japanese forces succeeded in again pushing the Soviet-Mongol units to the west coast of Khalkhin Gol. However, the very next day, May 29, the Soviet-Mongolian troops were able to carry out a successful counterattack and push the Japanese back to their previous positions. In June, hostilities between the USSR and Japan continued in the air, and Soviet pilots managed to inflict serious damage on Japanese aircraft. In July 1939, the command of the Kwantung Army decided to move on to a new phase of hostilities. To do this, the army headquarters developed a plan for the "Second Period of the Nomonkhan incident." The Kwantung Army was tasked with breaking through the line of Soviet defense and forcing the Khalkhin-Gol River. The Japanese group was led by Major General Kobayashi, under whose leadership the offensive began on July 2. The Kwantung army advanced with the forces of two infantry and two tank regiments against two Mongol cavalry divisions and units of the Red Army with a total number of about 5 thousand people.
However, the command of the Soviet troops threw into battle 11's tank brigade of the brigade MP M. Yakovlev and the Mongolian armored division. Later the 7-I motobronevy brigade also came to the rescue. By the night of July 3, as a result of fierce fighting, the Soviet troops retreated to the Khalkhin Gol River, but the Japanese troops failed to complete the planned offensive. On Bayan-Tsagan mountain, the Japanese troops were surrounded and by the morning of July 5 began a mass retreat. On the slopes of the mountains, a significant number of Japanese soldiers died, and the estimated number of dead reaches 10 thousand people. The Japanese lost almost all the tanks and artillery guns. After that, the Japanese troops abandoned attempts to force Khalkhin Gol. However, on July 8, the Kwantung Army resumed hostilities and concentrated large forces on the east bank of Khalkhin-Gol, but the Japanese offensive once again failed. As a result of a counterattack of the Soviet troops under the command of the commander of the 11-th tank brigade of the brigade M.P. Yakovlev, the Japanese troops were thrown back to their original positions. Only 23 July, the Japanese troops resumed the attack on the position of the Soviet-Mongolian troops, but it again ended in failure for the Kwantung Army. It is necessary to briefly touch on the relationship of forces. The Soviet 1 Army Group under the command of Commander George Zhukov numbered 57 thousands of troops and was armed with 542 artillery guns and mortars, 498 tanks, 385 armored vehicles and 515 airplanes. Japanese troops in General Ryuhei Ogis's 6 separate army included two infantry divisions, an infantry brigade, seven artillery regiments, two tank regiments, three bargut cavalry regiments, two engineering regiments, together more than 75 thousands of soldiers and officers, X, NXX, thousands of officers, X, NX, X and N, X, N, X, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, Y, X, N, N, X, Y. artillery weapons, 500 tank, 182 aircraft. However, the Soviet troops eventually managed to achieve a significant superiority in tanks - almost three times. 700 August 20. Soviet troops unexpectedly launched a massive offensive. Japanese troops only 1939 and 21 August were able to begin defensive battles. However, by August 22, Soviet-Mongolian troops completely surrounded the 26-th separate Japanese army. The 6 units of the Kwantung Army Infantry Brigade could not break through the Mongolian border and were forced to withdraw to the territory of Manchuku, after which the command of the Kwantung Army was forced to abandon the idea of liberating the Japanese army units and formations. The clashes continued until 14 and 29 in August, and by the morning of August 30 the territory of Mongolia was completely liberated from the Japanese troops. Several Japanese attacks in early September also ended with the defeat of the Japanese and pushing them to their original positions. Only air battles continued. On September 31, a truce was signed, and on September 15, the fighting on the border ended.
Between Khalkhin Gol and capitulation
It was thanks to the victory in the hostilities in Khalkhin Gol that the Japanese Empire abandoned plans to attack the Soviet Union and retained this position even after the start of the Great Patriotic War. Even after Germany and its European allies went to war with the USSR, Japan chose to abstain, assessing the negative experience of Khalkhin Gol.
Indeed, the losses of the Japanese troops in the battles at Khalkhin Gol were impressive - according to official 17 data, thousands of people were killed, according to Soviet - at least 60 thousand people were killed, according to independent sources - about 45 thousand people were killed. As for the Soviet and Mongolian casualties, there were no more than 10 thousand people killed, dead and missing. In addition, the Japanese army suffered serious damage in weapons and equipment. In fact, the Soviet-Mongolian troops utterly routed the entire Japanese military group abandoned by Khalkhin Gol. General Ueda, who commanded the Kwantung Army, after being defeated at Khalkhin Gol, was recalled to Japan at the end of 1939 and dismissed from his post. The new commander of the Kwantung Army was General Umedzu Yesidziro, who previously commanded the Japanese army 1-th in China. Umezu Yesidziro (1882-1949) was an experienced Japanese general who received military education not only in Japan, but also in Germany and Denmark, and then passed from an infantry officer officer of the Japanese imperial army to the deputy minister of the army and commander-in-chief of 1 army in China . Appointed 1939 in September as commander of the Kwantung Army, he retained this post for almost five years - until July 1944. Virtually all the time the Soviet Union fought against Germany, and Japan fought bloody battles in Southeast Asia and Oceania, the general remained as commander of the Kwantung Army. During this time, the Kwantung Army was strengthened, however, from time to time the most combat-ready units of the formation were sent to the active front - to fight the Anglo-American forces in the Asia-Pacific region. Number of Kwantung Army in 1941-1943 there were at least 700 thousands of people consolidated into 15-16 divisions stationed in Korea and Manchuria.
It was because of the threat of the Kwantung Army attacking the Soviet Union and Mongolia that Stalin was forced to hold colossal troops in the Far East. So, in 1941-1943. the number of Soviet troops concentrated for the possible repulse of the Kwantung Army’s strike was at least 703 thousand troops, and at some time reached 1 446 012 people and included from 32 to 49 divisions. The Soviet command was afraid to weaken its military presence in the Far East because of the threat of a Japanese invasion at any moment. However, in 1944, when the turnaround in the war with Germany became apparent, not so much the USSR was afraid of invading a weakened war with the US and allies of Japan, as Japan saw the evidence of an attack from the Soviet Union in the foreseeable future. Therefore, the Japanese command also could not weaken the strength of the Kwantung Army, directing its fresh units to help the belligerent units in Southeast Asia and Oceania. As a result, by 9 August 1945, when the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, the Kwantung Army numbered 1 million 320 thousands of soldiers, officers and generals. The Kwantung Army included the 1 Front - 3 and 5 Armies, the 3 Front - 30 and 44 Armies, the 17 Front - 34 and 59 Armies, a separate 4- I am an army, 2-I and 5-I air armies, Sungari military flotilla. These units, in turn, included 37 infantry and 7 cavalry divisions, 22 infantry, 2 tank and 2 cavalry brigades. The Kwantung Army had 1155 tanks, 6260 artillery weapons, 1900 aircraft and 25 warships. In addition, units of the Suyyuan army group, the National Army of Mengjiang under the command of Prince De Wang and the army of Manzhou-go were under the operational control of the command of the Kwantung Army.
The war ended in defeat
18 July 1944, General Otozo Yamada was appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. At the time of the appointment, Yamada was already an elderly 63-year-old man. He was born in 1881, and in November, 1902 began his service in the imperial army, receiving the rank of junior lieutenant after graduating from the military academy. In 1925, he was promoted to the rank of colonel and received under his command a cavalry regiment of the imperial army.
In August, 1930, having received the shoulder straps of Major General, Yamada headed the cavalry school, and in 1937, already a lieutenant-general, he received the command of the 12 division, located in Manchuria. Thus, even before being appointed to the Kwantung Army as commander, Yamada had experience in military service on the territory of Manchuria. He then headed the Central Expeditionary Army in China, and in 1940-1944, in the rank of army general, was in the position of chief inspector of combat training of the imperial army and a member of the Supreme Military Council of the Japanese Empire. When the emperor appointed General Yamada as commander of the Kwantung Army, he was guided precisely by considerations that the general had extensive military experience and the ability to establish the defenses of Manchuria and Korea. Indeed, Yamada began to strengthen the Kwantung Army, managing to recruit 8 infantry divisions and 7 infantry brigades. However, the training of recruits was extremely weak, due to their lack of experience in military service. In addition, the Kwantung Army formations concentrated on Manchuria were for the most part outdated weapons. In particular, there were no rocket artillery, anti-tank guns and automatic weapons in the Kwantung Army. Tanks and artillery guns were much inferior to the Soviet, as well as aircraft. On top of that, right before the beginning of the war with the Soviet Union, the strength of the Kwantung Army was reduced to 700 thousands of servicemen - army units were redirected to defend the Japanese islands proper.
On the morning of August 9 1945, the Soviet troops launched an offensive and invaded Manchuria. From the sea, the operation was carried out by the Pacific Fleet, from the air by aircraft that attacked the positions of the Japanese troops in Xinjing, Tsitsikare and other cities of Manchuria. Troops of the Trans-Baikal Front invaded Manchuria from Mongolia and Dauria, cutting off the Kwantung Army from the Japanese troops in northern China and occupying Xinjing. The 1 units of the Far Eastern Front managed to break through the defense line of the Kwantung Army and occupied Jilin and Harbin. The 2 th Far Eastern Front, with the support of the Amur Military Flotilla, forced the Amur and Ussuri, after which it broke into Manchuria and occupied Harbin. 14 August launched an offensive in the Mudanjiang area. 16 August Mudanjiang was taken. 19 August began the widespread surrender of Japanese soldiers and officers captured. In Mukden, the emperor of Manchzhou Pu Pu 20 was captured by Soviet servicemen on August. Soviet troops reached the Manchurian Plain, on the same day the Kwantung Army received an order from the higher command of surrender. However, since the communication in the army was already broken, far from all units of the Kwantung Army received an order of surrender - many did not suspect him and continued to resist the Soviet troops until September 10. The total losses of the Kwantung Army in battles with the Soviet-Mongolian troops amounted to at least 84 thousand people. Over 600 thousands of Japanese soldiers were captured. Among the prisoners was the last Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army, General Yamada. He was taken to Khabarovsk and 30 on December 1945 by the Military Tribunal of the Primorsky Military District found guilty of preparing a bacteriological war and sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment in a labor camp. In July, the 1950 of Yamada was issued to China at the request of the law enforcement agencies of the People's Republic of China on the involvement of General Yamada and a number of other senior military personnel of the Kwantung Army in the case of war crimes committed in China. In China, Yamada was placed in a camp in the city of Fushun, and only in 1956, the 75-year-old former general of the imperial army was released early. He returned to Japan and died in 1965 at the age of 83.
Yamada’s predecessor as commander of the Kwantung Army, General Umezu Yoshidziro, was arrested by US forces and convicted by the International Tribunal for the Far East. In 1949, a life-sentenced prisoner Umezzu Yoshijiro died in prison of cancer. General Ueda Kankiti, who resigned after the defeat of the Kwantung Army in Khalkhin-Gol, did not touch the criminal prosecution after Japan’s surrender and he safely lived to 1962, dying at the age of 87. General Minami Jiro, who commanded the Kwantung Army in 1934-1936, and became the Governor-General of Korea in 1936, was also sentenced to life imprisonment for initiating an aggressive war against China and remained in prison until 1954, when he was released health and died a year later. General Shigeru Honjo was arrested by the Americans, but he committed suicide. Thus, practically all the commanders of the Kwantung Army, who managed to live up to the day of the surrender of Japan, were arrested and convicted by either the Soviet or American occupation authorities. A similar fate awaited the less senior officers of the Kwantung Army, who fell into the hands of the enemy. All of them passed through the prisoner of war camps, a significant part never returned to Japan. Perhaps the best fate was in the hands of Emperor Manzhou-yu Pu Yi and Prince Mengjiang De Wang. Both of them served their sentences in China, and then were provided with work and successfully lived out their lives in the PRC, not engaging in more political activities.
Before turning to the story about the Kwantung Army itself, it is necessary to briefly describe what the imperial armed forces of Japan themselves were in the first half of the twentieth century. First, it should be noted that story in its modern form began after the Meiji Revolution, in the general context of the modernization of the economy, culture and defense of the country. In January 1873, samurai militias, traditional for old Japan, were disbanded and universal military service introduced. The governing bodies of the imperial army are: the Ministry of the Army, the General Staff and the Main Inspection for Combat Training. All of them were subordinate to the Japanese emperor and had the same status, but different duties. Thus, the Minister of the Army was responsible for administrative personnel issues of the ground forces. The chief of the General Staff carried out direct command of the army and was responsible for the development of military orders. Also under the authority of the General Staff of the army were issues of training staff officers. The initial importance of the General Staff of the army was very great, but after a separate General Staff was created fleet, its significance has decreased, but a new General Staff of the Armed Forces has been formed, it is also the Imperial Headquarters, which included the emperor, the Minister of the Army, the Minister of the Navy, the Chief of the General Staff of the Army, the head of the General Staff of the Fleet, the head of the Operational Division of the Army, the head of the Operations Department fleet and chief inspector of combat training. Finally, the chief inspector of combat training was responsible for the training of the personnel of the imperial army, both ordinary and officer, as well as transport support for the imperial army and its material and technical supplies. The chief inspector of combat training was in fact the third most important senior officer of the Japanese imperial army and was part of the Imperial Headquarters. Therefore, the position of chief inspector was considered very prestigious and significant, as evidenced by the appointment of promising and honored generals. As we will see below, the former commanders of the Kwantung Army became the main inspectors of combat training, but there were also examples of reverse official transfers. The main unit of the imperial army was a division, which in the event of the outbreak of war was transformed into an army. However, the imperial army had two exceptional formations - the Korean and Kwantung armies, which had a very large strength even by the standards of the army and were armed forces stationed in Korea and Manchuria and intended to protect Japanese interests and maintain Japanese power in Korea and the pro-Japanese the puppet government of Manzhou-go in Manchuria. The following ranks were introduced in the imperial army of Japan: generalissimo (emperor), general, lieutenant general, major general, colonel, lieutenant colonel, major, captain, lieutenant, junior lieutenant, ensign, senior sergeant, sergeant, corporal, foreman, private senior class, private 1 class, private 2 classes. Naturally, the officers in the imperial army were equipped, first of all, with representatives of the aristocratic class. The rank and file was staffed by draft. In addition, it should be noted that in the operational subordination of the Japanese military command during the Second World War there were numerous paramilitary groups recruited in the countries of East, Southeast and Central Asia occupied by the Japanese. Among the Japanese-controlled armed groups, it is worth noting, first of all, the Manzhou Guo Army and the Menjiang National Army, as well as armed groups in Burma, Indonesia, Vietnam, Japanese-controlled Indian units formed in Singapore, etc. In Korea, the military appeal of the Koreans has been in force since 1942, when Japan's position on the fronts began to seriously deteriorate, in addition to everything, the threat of a Soviet military invasion of Manchuria and Korea increased.
The largest Japanese compound in Manchuria
The history of the Kwantung Army began in 1931, when the formation of a large military unit based on the army garrison, deployed from the beginning of the 1905th century, began. in the Kwantung region - the southwestern part of the Liaodong Peninsula. In 18, following the results of the Russo-Japanese War, Japan, as a “bonus," according to the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, received the right to use the Liaodong Peninsula for military purposes. In fact, the formation formed on the Liaodong Peninsula has become the basis for preparing an armed attack on the main opponents of Japan in the region - China, the Soviet Union and the Mongolian People's Republic. The Kwantung Army began to directly participate in the hostilities against China on September 1931, 1876. At that time, the army was commanded by Lieutenant General Shigeru Honjo (1945-10), one of the prominent Japanese military leaders, a participant in the Russo-Japanese war and intervention in Russia during the Civil War war. Shigeru Honjo, a professional soldier, commanded the 19th Infantry Division before being appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. After the diversion on the railway, Japanese troops invaded the territory of Manchuria and already occupied Mukden on September 22. Jirin was occupied on September 18, and Qiqihar on November 50. The League of Nations tried in vain to prevent Japan from capturing a large part of Chinese territory, but could not do anything. The Japanese Empire increased the size of the Kwantung Army to 1931 thousand soldiers and officers in December 1932, and after a little more than two weeks - by January 260, the personnel of the Kwantung Army was increased to 000 troops. In service with the army during this period were 439 tanks, 1193 artillery pieces and 500 aircraft. Naturally, the Chinese troops were significantly inferior to the Kwantung Army both in armament and in the level of organization and training, although they were slightly superior in numbers. On March 1, 1932, as a result of the operation of the Kwantung Army, the creation of an independent state of Manzhou was proclaimed on the territory of Manchuria. Its ruler was proclaimed the last emperor of China, Pu Yi, a representative of the Manchu Qing dynasty. Thus, it was the Kwantung Army that ensured the creation of the state of Manzhou-go on the territory of Northwest China, which significantly changed the political map of East and Central Asia. After the brilliant Manchurian operation, Lieutenant General Shigeru Honjo became the national hero of Japan and went on promotion. On August 8, 1932, Shigeru Honjo was recalled to Japan. He was given the rank of general, the title of baron, and was appointed a member of the Supreme Military Council, and then - chief adjutant to the emperor of Japan. However, subsequently the fate of the Kwantung commander was tragic. From 1939 to 1945 he headed the Military Hospital Service, but then the general's military experience required the empire in a more significant quality and in May 1945, Honjo was appointed a member of the Privy Council. After the war, he was arrested by the US military, but managed to commit suicide.
Field-Marshal Muto Nobuyoshi (1868-1933) replaced the post of the Commander of the Kwantung Army, Lieutenant-General Shigeru Honjo. Interestingly, back in the early twentieth century. He was twice a military attache in the Russian Empire, and during the Civil War in Russia he led the Japanese military mission under Admiral Kolchak, later commanded the Japanese division during the intervention in the Far East. Before being appointed commander of the Kwantung Army, Muto Nobuyoshi served as chief inspector of the imperial army for combat training. By the way, the post of commander of the Kwantung Army, Mutu Nobuyoshi, combined with the posts of commander of the army of the state of Manchukuo and the Japanese ambassador to Manchukuuo. Thus, all the armed forces in Manchuria were under the command of a Japanese field marshal. It was the commander of the Kwantung Army who also carried out the actual leadership of the puppet government of Manchukuo, which could not afford to take a single step without the knowledge of the Japanese administration. Muto participated in the actual creation of the Manchu state. However, in the same 1933, he died of jaundice at a military hospital in Xinjing. The new commander of the Kwantung Army was General Hishikari Takashi, who before, at the beginning of 1931, already commanded the Kwantung Army. It was under Muto and Hishikari that the foundations of the Kwantung Army were laid in the form in which it met the beginning of the Second World War. In fact, these Japanese senior officers stood at the origins of Japanese military policy in Manchuria, forming the armed forces of Manchukuo. By 1938, the number of the Kwantung Army was brought to 200 by thousands of people (although during the capture of Manchuria, due to the attached connections, it was even more). Almost all the main senior officers of the Japanese Imperial Army passed through the Kwantung Army as a forge of cadres, since staying in Manchuria was considered an important step in the career of an officer in the Japanese armed forces. In 1936, General Ueda Kenkichi (1875-1962) was appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. The identity of this person also played a large role - not only in the history of the Kwantung Army as a military unit, but also in the history of Soviet-Japanese relations. The fact is that General Ueda saw the main opponent of the Japanese empire not the United States or Great Britain, or even China, but the Soviet Union. According to Ueda, the USSR was the main threat to Japanese interests in East and Central Asia. Therefore, as soon as Ueda, who previously held the post of commander of the Korean army, was assigned to the Kwantung Army, he immediately became puzzled by the question of “redirecting” the Kwantung Army towards the Soviet Union, including stimulating anti-Soviet provocations on the border with the USSR. It was General Ueda who commanded the Kwantung Army during armed incidents on Lake Hassan and on Khalkhin Gol. Provocations at the border and conflict on Lake Hassan
However, less significant incidents occurred earlier - in 1936-1937. So, January 30 1936 With the help of two Manchurian companies, under the command of Japanese officers from the Kwantung Army, a breakthrough 1,5 km deep into the territory of the Soviet Union was undertaken. During a clash with Soviet border guards, 31 was killed by a Japanese and Manchurian serviceman, while only 4 people were killed from the Soviet side. November 24 1936 city a mixed 60 detachment of Japanese cavalry and infantrymen invaded Soviet territory, but the Soviet troops managed to repel the attack, destroying enemy soldiers from 18 machine guns. Two days later, on November 26, the Japanese tried again to penetrate Soviet territory, during a shootout three Soviet border guards were killed. 5th of June 1937 The Japanese detachment invaded Soviet territory and occupied the hill at Lake Khanka, but the attack was repulsed by the Soviet 63 rifle regiment. 30th of June 1937 Japanese troops sank the Soviet armored boat of the frontier troops, resulting in the death of 7 soldiers. The Japanese also fired on an armored battleship and a gunboat on the Soviet Amur military flotilla. After that, the commander of the Soviet troops, V. Blücher, sent to the border a group of reconnaissance and six rifle battalions, a demining battalion, three artillery battalions and an aviation detachment. The Japanese preferred to retreat beyond the border line. Only for the period from 1936 to 1938. Japanese forces committed 231 violation of the state border of the Soviet Union, in 35 cases of violation resulted in military clashes. In March, the 1938 at the headquarters of the Kwantung Army, a plan was developed for the “Policy of Defense of the State” directed against the USSR and providing for the use of Japanese forces against the Soviet Union in the amount of at least 18 divisions. By the beginning of July 1938 The situation on the Soviet-Manchurian border has worsened to the limit, moreover, the Japanese command put forward territorial claims to the USSR. In connection with the exacerbation of the situation at the border, the Far Eastern Front of the Red Army was formed. July 9 1938 city began the movement of Soviet troops to the state border - in order to promptly repel a possible attack by the Kwantung Army. 12 July Soviet border guards occupied the Zaozernaya hill, which was claimed by Manchukuo. In response to the actions of the Soviet troops, on July 14, a note of protest from the USSR was sent by the Manchukuo government, and on July 15, the Japanese ambassador to the USSR, Mamoru Shigemitsu, demanded the immediate withdrawal of Soviet troops from the disputed territory. On July 21, the military leadership of Japan asked the Japanese emperor for permission to use military force against Soviet troops in the area of Lake Hassan. In response to the actions of Japan, the Soviet leadership 22 July 1938. rejected Tokyo's demands for the withdrawal of Soviet troops. 23 July, the Japanese command began preparations for an armed invasion, clearing the border villages from local residents. Artillery units of the Kwantung Army were advanced to the border, positions for the Japanese artillery at the Pogomolnoy height and islands on the Tumen-Ula river were equipped. In total, at least 20 thousand were prepared for participation in hostilities. soldiers of the Kwantung Army. On the border were concentrated 15, I, 19-I and 20-I infantry divisions, 1 cavalry regiment, 3 machine-gun battalion, armored units, anti-aircraft batteries, three armored trains and 70 aircraft. On the Tumen-Ula River were 1 cruiser and 14 destroyers, 15 boats.
24 July 1938. The Military Council of the Far Eastern Front of the Red Army brought several army units on high alert, including the 118 and 119 rifle and 121 cavalry regiments of the 40 rifle division. On July 29, a Japanese company of border gendarmerie, armed with 4 machineguns and numbering 150 soldiers and officers, attacked the Soviet positions. Having occupied the height of the Nameless, the Japanese lost 40 people, but were soon knocked out by suitable Soviet reinforcements. July 30 Japanese army artillery began to work on Soviet positions, after which the infantry units of the Japanese army launched an attack on the Soviet positions - but again to no avail. On July 31, the Pacific Fleet of the USSR and the Maritime Army were brought to combat readiness. On the same day, a new attack by the Japanese army ended with the capture of the hills and the installation of 40 Japanese machine guns on them. The counterattack of the Soviet two battalions ended in failure, after which Deputy Commissar of Defense of the USSR Army Commissar L.Z. arrived at the scene of the hostilities. Mehlis and the chief of staff of the front G.M. Stern. On August 1, the front commander, V. Blucher, arrived there, who was severely criticized by telephone I.V. Stalin for unsatisfactory leadership of the operation. 3 August Stalin removed Blucher from command of the operation and appointed Stern in his place. 4 August Stern ordered the Japanese troops to attack in the area between Lake Hassan and Zaozernaya Hill. 6 August 216 Soviet aircraft bombarded the Japanese positions, after which the 32-Infantry Division, the tank battalion of the 2-th mechanized brigade launched an attack on the Nameless Hill, and the 40-Rifle Division - on the Zaozernaya Hill. 8 August Zaozernaya hill was captured by Soviet troops. On August 9, the forces of the Red Army 32 Rifle Division captured the height of the Nameless. 10 August, the Japanese ambassador addressed the USSR People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs MM Litvinov with the proposal to start peace talks. 11 AUGUST 1938. Fighting stopped. Thus, the first serious armed conflict between the USSR and Japan, in which the Kwantung Army took part, was completed.
Defeat of the Qantuan on Khalkhin Gol
However, the victory of the Soviet troops in the conflict at Lake Hassan did not mean that the Japanese command refused the aggressive actions - this time on the Manchurian-Mongolian border. Japan did not hide its plans for "Outer Mongolia", as in the Chinese and Manchurian tradition was called the territory of the MPR. Formally, Mongolia was considered part of the Chinese empire, the heir of which the ruler of Manchuku Pu I. saw himself. The reason for the conflict between Manchuku and Mongolia was the demand to recognize the Khalkhin Gol river as a border of two states. The fact is that the Japanese sought to ensure the safety of the construction of the railway, which stretched to the border of the Soviet Union. The first clashes on the Manchu-Mongol border began as early as 1935. In 1936, the USSR and the MNR signed the “Protocol of Mutual Assistance”, according to which parts of the 1937 Special Corps of the Red Army with a total number of 57 troops, including the 5544 commander, were deployed in the MNR. After the conflict on Lake Hassan, Japan shifted its attention to the Khalkhin Gol River. Expansionist sentiments grew among the Japanese senior officers, including the idea of expanding the territory of the Japanese Empire to Lake Baikal. 523-16 January 17 was on the border with the MPR, there were two provocations organized by Japanese troops. 1939 January 17 Japanese soldiers attacked three Mongolian border guards. The 13 and 29 of January, the Japanese soldiers and the Bargut horsemen on their side (the Barguts are one of the Mongol tribes) attacked the guard patrols of the Mongolian border guard. The attacks were repeated in February and March 30, with the Japanese command still actively involved in the attacks of the Barguts.
On the night of May 8, 1939, a Japanese platoon with a machine gun tried to capture the island on Khalkhin Gol, but ran into resistance from the Mongolian border guards and was forced to retreat. On May 11, Japanese cavalry of about two squadrons invaded the MPR and attacked the Mongolian border outpost Nomon-Khan-Burd-Obo. Then, however, the Japanese managed to push the approaching Mongolian reinforcements. May 14th units of the 23rd Japanese Infantry Division, supported by aviation attacked the border post of Mongolia. On May 17, the command of the 57th special corps of the Red Army sent three motorized rifle companies, a sapper company, and an artillery battery to Khalkhin Gol. On May 22, Soviet troops drove back Japanese units from Khalkhin Gol. Between May 22 and 28, 668 Soviet and Mongol infantry, 260 cavalry, 39 armored vehicles and 58 machine guns concentrated in the Khalkhin-Gol area. Japan put forward more impressive forces to Khalkhin Gol of 1680 infantrymen and 900 horsemen, 75 machine guns, 18 artillery pieces, 1 tank and 8 armored vehicles under the command of Colonel Yamagata. In the clash, Japanese forces succeeded in again pushing the Soviet-Mongol units to the west coast of Khalkhin Gol. However, the very next day, May 29, the Soviet-Mongolian troops were able to carry out a successful counterattack and push the Japanese back to their previous positions. In June, hostilities between the USSR and Japan continued in the air, and Soviet pilots managed to inflict serious damage on Japanese aircraft. In July 1939, the command of the Kwantung Army decided to move on to a new phase of hostilities. To do this, the army headquarters developed a plan for the "Second Period of the Nomonkhan incident." The Kwantung Army was tasked with breaking through the line of Soviet defense and forcing the Khalkhin-Gol River. The Japanese group was led by Major General Kobayashi, under whose leadership the offensive began on July 2. The Kwantung army advanced with the forces of two infantry and two tank regiments against two Mongol cavalry divisions and units of the Red Army with a total number of about 5 thousand people.
However, the command of the Soviet troops threw into battle 11's tank brigade of the brigade MP M. Yakovlev and the Mongolian armored division. Later the 7-I motobronevy brigade also came to the rescue. By the night of July 3, as a result of fierce fighting, the Soviet troops retreated to the Khalkhin Gol River, but the Japanese troops failed to complete the planned offensive. On Bayan-Tsagan mountain, the Japanese troops were surrounded and by the morning of July 5 began a mass retreat. On the slopes of the mountains, a significant number of Japanese soldiers died, and the estimated number of dead reaches 10 thousand people. The Japanese lost almost all the tanks and artillery guns. After that, the Japanese troops abandoned attempts to force Khalkhin Gol. However, on July 8, the Kwantung Army resumed hostilities and concentrated large forces on the east bank of Khalkhin-Gol, but the Japanese offensive once again failed. As a result of a counterattack of the Soviet troops under the command of the commander of the 11-th tank brigade of the brigade M.P. Yakovlev, the Japanese troops were thrown back to their original positions. Only 23 July, the Japanese troops resumed the attack on the position of the Soviet-Mongolian troops, but it again ended in failure for the Kwantung Army. It is necessary to briefly touch on the relationship of forces. The Soviet 1 Army Group under the command of Commander George Zhukov numbered 57 thousands of troops and was armed with 542 artillery guns and mortars, 498 tanks, 385 armored vehicles and 515 airplanes. Japanese troops in General Ryuhei Ogis's 6 separate army included two infantry divisions, an infantry brigade, seven artillery regiments, two tank regiments, three bargut cavalry regiments, two engineering regiments, together more than 75 thousands of soldiers and officers, X, NXX, thousands of officers, X, NX, X and N, X, N, X, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, N, X, N, Y, X, N, N, X, Y. artillery weapons, 500 tank, 182 aircraft. However, the Soviet troops eventually managed to achieve a significant superiority in tanks - almost three times. 700 August 20. Soviet troops unexpectedly launched a massive offensive. Japanese troops only 1939 and 21 August were able to begin defensive battles. However, by August 22, Soviet-Mongolian troops completely surrounded the 26-th separate Japanese army. The 6 units of the Kwantung Army Infantry Brigade could not break through the Mongolian border and were forced to withdraw to the territory of Manchuku, after which the command of the Kwantung Army was forced to abandon the idea of liberating the Japanese army units and formations. The clashes continued until 14 and 29 in August, and by the morning of August 30 the territory of Mongolia was completely liberated from the Japanese troops. Several Japanese attacks in early September also ended with the defeat of the Japanese and pushing them to their original positions. Only air battles continued. On September 31, a truce was signed, and on September 15, the fighting on the border ended.
Between Khalkhin Gol and capitulation
It was thanks to the victory in the hostilities in Khalkhin Gol that the Japanese Empire abandoned plans to attack the Soviet Union and retained this position even after the start of the Great Patriotic War. Even after Germany and its European allies went to war with the USSR, Japan chose to abstain, assessing the negative experience of Khalkhin Gol.
Indeed, the losses of the Japanese troops in the battles at Khalkhin Gol were impressive - according to official 17 data, thousands of people were killed, according to Soviet - at least 60 thousand people were killed, according to independent sources - about 45 thousand people were killed. As for the Soviet and Mongolian casualties, there were no more than 10 thousand people killed, dead and missing. In addition, the Japanese army suffered serious damage in weapons and equipment. In fact, the Soviet-Mongolian troops utterly routed the entire Japanese military group abandoned by Khalkhin Gol. General Ueda, who commanded the Kwantung Army, after being defeated at Khalkhin Gol, was recalled to Japan at the end of 1939 and dismissed from his post. The new commander of the Kwantung Army was General Umedzu Yesidziro, who previously commanded the Japanese army 1-th in China. Umezu Yesidziro (1882-1949) was an experienced Japanese general who received military education not only in Japan, but also in Germany and Denmark, and then passed from an infantry officer officer of the Japanese imperial army to the deputy minister of the army and commander-in-chief of 1 army in China . Appointed 1939 in September as commander of the Kwantung Army, he retained this post for almost five years - until July 1944. Virtually all the time the Soviet Union fought against Germany, and Japan fought bloody battles in Southeast Asia and Oceania, the general remained as commander of the Kwantung Army. During this time, the Kwantung Army was strengthened, however, from time to time the most combat-ready units of the formation were sent to the active front - to fight the Anglo-American forces in the Asia-Pacific region. Number of Kwantung Army in 1941-1943 there were at least 700 thousands of people consolidated into 15-16 divisions stationed in Korea and Manchuria. It was because of the threat of the Kwantung Army attacking the Soviet Union and Mongolia that Stalin was forced to hold colossal troops in the Far East. So, in 1941-1943. the number of Soviet troops concentrated for the possible repulse of the Kwantung Army’s strike was at least 703 thousand troops, and at some time reached 1 446 012 people and included from 32 to 49 divisions. The Soviet command was afraid to weaken its military presence in the Far East because of the threat of a Japanese invasion at any moment. However, in 1944, when the turnaround in the war with Germany became apparent, not so much the USSR was afraid of invading a weakened war with the US and allies of Japan, as Japan saw the evidence of an attack from the Soviet Union in the foreseeable future. Therefore, the Japanese command also could not weaken the strength of the Kwantung Army, directing its fresh units to help the belligerent units in Southeast Asia and Oceania. As a result, by 9 August 1945, when the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, the Kwantung Army numbered 1 million 320 thousands of soldiers, officers and generals. The Kwantung Army included the 1 Front - 3 and 5 Armies, the 3 Front - 30 and 44 Armies, the 17 Front - 34 and 59 Armies, a separate 4- I am an army, 2-I and 5-I air armies, Sungari military flotilla. These units, in turn, included 37 infantry and 7 cavalry divisions, 22 infantry, 2 tank and 2 cavalry brigades. The Kwantung Army had 1155 tanks, 6260 artillery weapons, 1900 aircraft and 25 warships. In addition, units of the Suyyuan army group, the National Army of Mengjiang under the command of Prince De Wang and the army of Manzhou-go were under the operational control of the command of the Kwantung Army.
The war ended in defeat
18 July 1944, General Otozo Yamada was appointed commander of the Kwantung Army. At the time of the appointment, Yamada was already an elderly 63-year-old man. He was born in 1881, and in November, 1902 began his service in the imperial army, receiving the rank of junior lieutenant after graduating from the military academy. In 1925, he was promoted to the rank of colonel and received under his command a cavalry regiment of the imperial army.
In August, 1930, having received the shoulder straps of Major General, Yamada headed the cavalry school, and in 1937, already a lieutenant-general, he received the command of the 12 division, located in Manchuria. Thus, even before being appointed to the Kwantung Army as commander, Yamada had experience in military service on the territory of Manchuria. He then headed the Central Expeditionary Army in China, and in 1940-1944, in the rank of army general, was in the position of chief inspector of combat training of the imperial army and a member of the Supreme Military Council of the Japanese Empire. When the emperor appointed General Yamada as commander of the Kwantung Army, he was guided precisely by considerations that the general had extensive military experience and the ability to establish the defenses of Manchuria and Korea. Indeed, Yamada began to strengthen the Kwantung Army, managing to recruit 8 infantry divisions and 7 infantry brigades. However, the training of recruits was extremely weak, due to their lack of experience in military service. In addition, the Kwantung Army formations concentrated on Manchuria were for the most part outdated weapons. In particular, there were no rocket artillery, anti-tank guns and automatic weapons in the Kwantung Army. Tanks and artillery guns were much inferior to the Soviet, as well as aircraft. On top of that, right before the beginning of the war with the Soviet Union, the strength of the Kwantung Army was reduced to 700 thousands of servicemen - army units were redirected to defend the Japanese islands proper. On the morning of August 9 1945, the Soviet troops launched an offensive and invaded Manchuria. From the sea, the operation was carried out by the Pacific Fleet, from the air by aircraft that attacked the positions of the Japanese troops in Xinjing, Tsitsikare and other cities of Manchuria. Troops of the Trans-Baikal Front invaded Manchuria from Mongolia and Dauria, cutting off the Kwantung Army from the Japanese troops in northern China and occupying Xinjing. The 1 units of the Far Eastern Front managed to break through the defense line of the Kwantung Army and occupied Jilin and Harbin. The 2 th Far Eastern Front, with the support of the Amur Military Flotilla, forced the Amur and Ussuri, after which it broke into Manchuria and occupied Harbin. 14 August launched an offensive in the Mudanjiang area. 16 August Mudanjiang was taken. 19 August began the widespread surrender of Japanese soldiers and officers captured. In Mukden, the emperor of Manchzhou Pu Pu 20 was captured by Soviet servicemen on August. Soviet troops reached the Manchurian Plain, on the same day the Kwantung Army received an order from the higher command of surrender. However, since the communication in the army was already broken, far from all units of the Kwantung Army received an order of surrender - many did not suspect him and continued to resist the Soviet troops until September 10. The total losses of the Kwantung Army in battles with the Soviet-Mongolian troops amounted to at least 84 thousand people. Over 600 thousands of Japanese soldiers were captured. Among the prisoners was the last Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army, General Yamada. He was taken to Khabarovsk and 30 on December 1945 by the Military Tribunal of the Primorsky Military District found guilty of preparing a bacteriological war and sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment in a labor camp. In July, the 1950 of Yamada was issued to China at the request of the law enforcement agencies of the People's Republic of China on the involvement of General Yamada and a number of other senior military personnel of the Kwantung Army in the case of war crimes committed in China. In China, Yamada was placed in a camp in the city of Fushun, and only in 1956, the 75-year-old former general of the imperial army was released early. He returned to Japan and died in 1965 at the age of 83.
Yamada’s predecessor as commander of the Kwantung Army, General Umezu Yoshidziro, was arrested by US forces and convicted by the International Tribunal for the Far East. In 1949, a life-sentenced prisoner Umezzu Yoshijiro died in prison of cancer. General Ueda Kankiti, who resigned after the defeat of the Kwantung Army in Khalkhin-Gol, did not touch the criminal prosecution after Japan’s surrender and he safely lived to 1962, dying at the age of 87. General Minami Jiro, who commanded the Kwantung Army in 1934-1936, and became the Governor-General of Korea in 1936, was also sentenced to life imprisonment for initiating an aggressive war against China and remained in prison until 1954, when he was released health and died a year later. General Shigeru Honjo was arrested by the Americans, but he committed suicide. Thus, practically all the commanders of the Kwantung Army, who managed to live up to the day of the surrender of Japan, were arrested and convicted by either the Soviet or American occupation authorities. A similar fate awaited the less senior officers of the Kwantung Army, who fell into the hands of the enemy. All of them passed through the prisoner of war camps, a significant part never returned to Japan. Perhaps the best fate was in the hands of Emperor Manzhou-yu Pu Yi and Prince Mengjiang De Wang. Both of them served their sentences in China, and then were provided with work and successfully lived out their lives in the PRC, not engaging in more political activities.
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