The was an
infantry division
A division is a large military unit or Formation (military), formation, usually consisting of between 6,000 and 25,000 soldiers.
In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades; in turn, several divisions typically mak ...
in 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 ...
. Its ''
tsūshōgō were unit code names used by the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II.
Each ''tsūshōgō'' consisted of a and a . Unit Character Codes typically consisted of one character, although some units established in the late stages of the ...
'' was .
History
The 2nd Division was formed in
Sendai, Miyagi
is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 designated cities. The city was founded in 1600 by the ''daimyō'' Date ...
, in January 1871 as the , one of six regional commands created in the fledgling Imperial Japanese Army. The Sendai Garrison had responsibility for northern
Honshū
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separa ...
(the
Tohoku region), ranging from
Fukushima Prefecture
Fukushima Prefecture (; ja, 福島県, Fukushima-ken, ) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,810,286 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miya ...
in the south to
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, ...
in the north. The six regional commands were transformed into divisions under the army reorganization of 14 May 1888.
The headquarters of the 2nd Division was located in the ''Ni-no-maru'' of
Sendai Castle
260px, Layout of Aoba Castle
is a Japanese castle located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Throughout the Edo period, Aoba Castle was home to the Date clan, ''daimyō'' of Sendai Domain. The castle was also known as or as . In 2003, the ca ...
, where the campus of
Tohoku University
, or is a Japanese national university located in Sendai, Miyagi in the Tōhoku Region, Japan. It is informally referred to as . Established in 1907, it was the third Imperial University in Japan and among the first three Designated National ...
is now located. Its original composition included the 4th Infantry Regiment (raised in
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, desig ...
), 5th Infantry Regiment (raised in
Aomori
is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...
), 16th Infantry Regiment (raised in
Shibata) and the 17th Infantry Regiment (raised in
Akita
is a Japanese name and may refer to:
Places
* 8182 Akita, a main-belt asteroid
* Akita Castle, a Nara period fortified settlement in Akita, Japan
* Akita Domain, also known as Kubota Domain, feudal domain in Edo period Japan
* Akita, Kumamoto ...
). In the reorganization prior to
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 opposin ...
, the 29th Infantry Regiment (raised in
Wakamatsu) was added.
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 po ...
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 2nd Division saw combat 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 po ...
at the
Battle of Weihaiwei
The Battle of Weihaiwei (Japanese: was a battle of the First Sino-Japanese War. It took place between 20 January and 12 February 1895, in Weihai, Shandong Province, China, between the forces of Japan and Qing China. In early January 1895, the ...
. Following the end of the First Sino-Japanese War, elements of the 2nd Division were used to form the core of the new
IJA 7th Division based in
Hokkaido
is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.
The la ...
and the
IJA 8th Division
The was an infantry division in the Imperial Japanese Army. It was formed 1 October 1898 in Hirosaki, Aomori, as one of the six new reserve divisions created after the First Sino-Japanese War and was annihilated in the Philippines during the P ...
based in
Hirosaki, Aomori
is a city located in western Aomori Prefecture, Japan. On 1 April 2020, the city had an estimated population of 168,739 in 71,716 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city is .
Hirosaki developed as a castle town for ...
. Likewise, the 2nd Division was active in most of the major battles of 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 ...
as part of General
Kuroki Tamemoto
Count was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army. He was the head of the Japanese First Army during the Russo-Japanese War; and his forces enjoyed a series of successes during the Manchurian fighting at the Battle of Yalu River, the B ...
's
First Army, including the
Battle of Liaoyang,
Battle of Shaho and
Battle of Mukden, and gained a reputation for excellence in night operations.
Some of its more noteworthy commanders included
Sakuma Samata
General Count was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and 5th Governor-General of Taiwan from 11 April 1906 to May 1915.
Biography
Sakuma was born in Abu District, Nagato Province (present day Hagi, Yamaguchi), as the younger son of O ...
,
Nogi Maresuke
Count , also known as Kiten, Count Nogi (December 25, 1849September 13, 1912), was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a governor-general of Taiwan. He was one of the commanders during the 1894 capture of Port Arthur from Chin ...
,
Nishi Kanjiro, HIH Prince
Higashikuni Naruhiko, and
Umezu Yoshijiro.
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
and
Soviet–Japanese border conflicts
The Soviet–Japanese border conflicts, also known as the Soviet-Japanese Border War or the First Soviet-Japanese War,was a series of minor and major conflicts fought between the Soviet Union (led by Joseph Stalin), Mongolia (led by Khorloog ...
From 1930 to 1933, the 2nd Division was under the command of Lieutenant-General
Jiro Tamon. In 1931, it was transferred to the
Kwantung Army
''Kantō-gun''
, image = Kwantung Army Headquarters.JPG
, image_size = 300px
, caption = Kwantung Army headquarters in Hsinking, Manchukuo
, dates = April ...
in
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
, it took the lead in the initial operations of the
invasion of Manchuria, then in the
Jiangqiao Campaign,
Chinchow Operation
The Jinzhou Operation or Chinchow Operation was an operation in 1931 during the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, which was a preliminary, contributing factor to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937.
Background
In late November 193 ...
, and in overcoming the
defense of Harbin, following the
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, or Manchurian Incident, known in Chinese as the 9.18 Incident (九・一八), was a false flag event staged by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
On September 18, 1931, L ...
.
After the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
started in July 1937, 15th Mixed Brigade from the 2nd Division saw combat in the
invasion
An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...
of
Chahar, in August 1937, and in the
Battle of Xuzhou
The Battle of Xuzhou was a military conflict between the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China forces in May 1938 during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
History
In 1937 the North China Area Army had chased Song ...
(March 1938) where 3rd Infantry Brigade was temporarily assigned to the
North China Area Army
The was an area army of the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
History
The Japanese North China Area Army was formed on August 21, 1937 under the control of the Imperial General Headquarters. It was transferred to th ...
.
Later in 1939, the 2nd Division was under
3rd Army which was facing the southern half of the border of the
Maritime province of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
from
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
northward. The
Katayama Detachment from 2nd Division, (consisting of the 15th Infantry Brigade, with 16th and 30th Infantry Regiments, and a field artillery battalion) fought small actions near Akiyama heights, or Heights 997 on 6–10 September 1939, in the closing stages of the
Battle of Khalkhin Gol
The Battles of Khalkhin Gol (russian: Бои на Халхин-Голе; mn, Халхын голын байлдаан) were the decisive engagements of the undeclared Soviet–Japanese border conflicts involving the Soviet Union, Mongolia, Ja ...
2nd Division (and the 4th Division) as part of the
Japanese Sixth Army
Japanese armies, 06
Military units and formations established in 1939
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 ...
. Because the projected counterattack that was canceled when a ceasefire was signed 16 September 1939, the fighting ceased.
Pacific War
The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
The 2nd Division, led by
Masao Maruyama,
[Rottman, p. 10] was reassigned to the southern front under Field Marshal
Terauchi Hisaichi
Count was a '' Gensui'' (or field marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army, commander of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group during World War II.
Biography Early military career
Terauchi was born in Tokyo Prefecture, and was the eldest son of ...
's
Southern Area Army
The was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. It was responsible for all military operations in South-East Asian theatre of World War II, South East Asian and South West Pacific A ...
, and was one of the divisions which occupied the
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
. In particular, it landed in
Port of Merak
Port of Merak is a seaport located in the Pulo Merak District of the city of Cilegon, Banten, on the northwestern tip of Java, Indonesia. The port and district are named after the green peafowl, which once lived in the region, but now only lives ...
on western
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
1 March 1942, proceeding to
Bandung
Bandung ( su, ᮘᮔ᮪ᮓᮥᮀ, Bandung, ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of West Java. It has a population of 2,452,943 within its city limits according to the official estimates as at mid 2021, making it the fourth most ...
9 March 1942. After surrender of Dutch forces, the ''2nd Division'' was transferred to
Rabaul
Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...
13 September 1942. The
Aoba Detachment split from division and was briefly considered for deployment during the
New Guinea Campaign
The New Guinea campaign of the Pacific War lasted from January 1942 until the end of the war in August 1945. During the initial phase in early 1942, the Empire of Japan invaded the Australian-administered Mandated Territory of New Guinea (23 Jan ...
in late August 1942, but it soon rejoined the division as the situation at
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
deteriorated. On 1–5 October 1942, the division landed on the west coast of
Matanikau River
The Matanikau River of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, is located in the northwest part of the island. During the World War II Guadalcanal campaign, several significant engagements occurred between United States and Japanese forces near the rive ...
on Guadalcanal, resulting in the
Actions along the Matanikau. The ''2nd Division'' lost at least 700 troops that time. The
Battle for Henderson Field
The Battle for Henderson Field, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal or Battle of Lunga Point by the Japanese, took place from 23 to 26 October 1942 on and around Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. The battle was a land, sea, and air battle ...
which started 24 October 1942, resulted in crippling losses for the division as all Japanese attacks were repulsed. The division total loss of the disastrous
Battle of Guadalcanal
The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the ...
in the
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
was over 7,000 men. Afterwards, the ''2nd Division'' was assigned to garrison duties in occupied
Malaya and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
.
In 1944, it was ordered to
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
to resist the British reoccupation. After performing coastal duties in
Arakan
Arakan ( or ) is a historic coastal region in Southeast Asia. Its borders faced the Bay of Bengal to its west, the Indian subcontinent to its north and Burma proper to its east. The Arakan Mountains isolated the region and made it accessi ...
the division was reassigned directly to
Burma Area Army
The was a field army of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.
History
The Japanese Burma Area Army was formed on 27 March 1943, under the control of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group as a garrison force to defend the nominally-in ...
in May. Used as a strategic reserve it was largely annihilated in the subsequent conflict. Its remnants were assigned to the
Japanese 38th Army in
French Indochina
French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...
, and disbanded at the end of
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 opposin ...
in
Saigon
, population_density_km2 = 4,292
, population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2
, population_demonym = Saigonese
, blank_name = GRP (Nominal)
, blank_info = 2019
, blank1_name = – Total
, blank1_ ...
.
Assignments
*April 1931:
Kwantung Army
''Kantō-gun''
, image = Kwantung Army Headquarters.JPG
, image_size = 300px
, caption = Kwantung Army headquarters in Hsinking, Manchukuo
, dates = April ...
,
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
.
Operated in the
Invasion of Manchuria and later 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 Communis ...
.
*10 February 1937: Kwantung Army,
Manchukuo
Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China, Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 afte ...
.
Detached 15th Mixed Brigade served in
Operation Chahar
Operation Chahar ( ja, チャハル作戦, Chaharu Sakusen), known in Chinese as the Nankou Campaign (), occurred in August 1937, following the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin at the beginning of Second Sino-Japanese War.
This was the second attack b ...
.
*21 July 1938:
3rd Army, Kwantung Army, Manchukuo.
Detached 15th Mixed Brigade served in
Nomonhan/Khalkhin Gol Campaign.
*27 September 1940:
Eastern Army, Japan.
*6 November 1941:
16th Army, Japan.
For the
operation against Java.
*August 1942:
17th Army, Solomon Islands.
Guadalcanal campaign
The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in th ...
*January 1944:
18th Army, South Burma.
*February 1945:
38th Army, Indochina.
See also
*
List of Japanese Infantry Divisions
References
Sources
* Madej, W. Victor, ''Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945
vols', Allentown, PA: 1981.
*
Coox, Alvin D., ''Nomonhan, Japan Against Russia, 1939''. Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA: 1985.
*
External links
The much travelled Japanese 2nd(Sendai) Division*
ttp://www.ija2ndsendai.kk5.org/ The 2nd Division, Sendai Reenacted
{{DEFAULTSORT:02nd Division (Imperial Japanese Army)
Japanese World War II divisions
Infantry divisions of Japan
Military units and formations established in 1871
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945
1871 establishments in Japan
1945 disestablishments in Japan
J