The was an
army of the
Imperial Japanese Army during the final days of
World War II.
History
The Japanese 53rd Army was formed on April 8, 1945, under the
Japanese 12th Area Army, as part of the last desperate defense effort by the
Empire of Japan to deter possible landings of
Allied forces in central
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 ...
during
Operation Downfall
Operation Downfall was the proposed Allied plan for the invasion of the Japanese home islands near the end of World War II. The planned operation was canceled when Japan surrendered following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, th ...
.
The Japanese 53rd Army was based in
Isehara
260px, Isehara Shibuta River
260px, Mount Oyama Afuri Jinja
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 101,670 and a population density of 1800 persons per km². The total area of the city is .
Ge ...
,
Kanagawa Prefecture and was thus intended to guard the western approaches and beachheads to
Tokyo along
Sagami Bay.
It consisted mostly of poorly trained
reservists,
conscripted students and
Volunteer Fighting Corps home guard militia. It was
demobilized at 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 ...
on August 15, 1945, without having seen combat.
List of Commanders
References
Bibliography
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External links
*{{cite web
, last = Wendel
, first = Marcus
, url = http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=7698
, title = Axis History Factbook
, work = Japanese Fifty-Third Army
53
Military units and formations established in 1945
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945