was a general in the

Japanese Imperial 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 ...

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 ...

. He is sometimes referred to as Haruyoshi Hyakutake or Seikichi Hyakutake. His elder brothers

Saburō Hyakutake Saburō Hyakutake ( ja, 百武三郎) (June 3, 1872 – October 30, 1963) was an Imperial Japanese Navy admiral. Biography Hyakutake was born in Saga Prefecture. His younger brothers Gengo Hyakutake, Gengo and Harukichi Hyakutake, Harukichi also ...

and

Gengo Hyakutake was a career officer and admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Biography Born to a low-ranking samurai of Saga Domain, Hyakutake's elder brother Saburō Hyakutake was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and his younger brother Haruki ...

were admirals in the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

Biography

Early career

Born in

Saga prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasak ...

, Hyakutake graduated as an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

officer from the 21st class of the

Imperial Japanese Army Academy The was the principal officer's training school for the Imperial Japanese Army. The programme consisted of a junior course for graduates of local army cadet schools and for those who had completed four years of middle school, and a senior course f ...

in 1909. Noted generals

Kanji Ishiwara was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. He and Itagaki Seishirō were the men primarily responsible for the Mukden Incident that took place in Manchuria in 1931. Early life Ishiwara was born in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Pref ...

and

Jo Iimura was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army in the Pacific War. Biography A native of Ibaraki prefecture, Iimura graduated from the 21st class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1909, and was assigned to the Imperial Guards 3rd Regiment. ...

were among his classmates, as was future Chinese leader

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

. He attended the 33rd class of the

Army Staff College Staff colleges (also command and staff colleges and War colleges) train military officers in the administrative, military staff and policy aspects of their profession. It is usual for such training to occur at several levels in a career. For exa ...

in 1921, where he studied cryptanalysis, and was assigned to the

Imperial Japanese Army General Staff The , also called the Army General Staff, was one of the two principal agencies charged with overseeing the Imperial Japanese Army. Role The was created in April 1872, along with the Navy Ministry, to replace the Ministry of Military Affairs ...

after graduation. From 1925 to 1927, as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, Hyakutake served as the Japanese Resident Officer in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. In 1928 he was assigned to the Headquarters of the

Kwantung Army ''Kantō-gun'' , image = Kwantung Army Headquarters.JPG , image_size = 300px , caption = Kwantung Army headquarters in Hsinking, Manchukuo , dates = April ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. As a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

he worked at the Army's signal school in 1932 then as a section chief in the General Staff until 1935. After commanding the IJA 78th Infantry Regiment for one year, he took over as Superintendent of the Hiroshima Military Preparatory School in April 1936 and was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in March 1937. In August, 1937 Hyakutake became Superintendent of the Signal School. In March, 1939 he took command of the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade and was promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

in August of the same year.Hayashi, ''Kogun'', pp. 224–225. From February 1940 until April 1941 he was commander of the

IJA 18th Division The was an infantry division of the Imperial Japanese Army. Its tsūshōgō code name was the . The 18th Division was one of two infantry divisions newly raised by the Imperial Japanese Army immediately after the Russo-Japanese War (1904– ...

World War II

In May 1942 Hyakutake was assigned command of the IJA 17th Army, headquartered at

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 ...

in the

Southwest Pacific The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

. His command was subsequently involved in the

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

, Guadalcanal, and

Solomon Islands campaign The Solomon Islands campaign was a major campaign of the Pacific War of World War II. The campaign began with Japanese landings and occupation of several areas in the British Solomon Islands and Bougainville, in the Territory of New Guinea, ...

s. After the

Japanese Eighth Area Army The was a field army of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. History The Japanese 8th Area Army was formed on November 16, 1942 under the Southern Expeditionary Army Group for the specific task of opposing landings by Allied forces i ...

under

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Hitoshi Imamura was a Japanese general who served in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, and was subsequently convicted of war crimes. Early career A native of Sendai city, Miyagi Prefecture, Imamura's father was a judge. Imamura graduated from t ...

took over operations in the theater, Hyakutake directed Japanese army units solely in the Solomons, primarily on Bougainville. He and his forces were trapped on Bougainville when the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

established a heavily fortified perimeter at Cape Torokina, and Hyakutake was cut off from reinforcements and re-supply. His attacks on the perimeter failed, and his army was forced to live off the land, hiding in jungle caves for most of the rest of the war. Hyakutake suffered a debilitating stroke and was relieved of his duties in February 1945 by General

Masatane Kanda , was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. Biography A native of Aichi Prefecture, Kanda graduated from the 23rd class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1911 and was assigned to the Kwantung Army and bas ...

. There was no way to evacuate him to Japan for medical treatment until February 1946, after the

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...

. He died on 10 March 1947.Smith, ''Bloody Ridge'', p. 230 and Hayashi, ''Kogun'', pp. 224–225.

References

Books

* * * * – neutral review of this book her

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Notes

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyakutake, Harukichi Japanese generals 1888 births 1947 deaths Imperial Japanese Army generals of World War II Japanese military personnel of World War II People from Saga Prefecture South Seas Mandate in World War II