The was an

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

of 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 ...

during

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 ...

History

The army was formed on May 18, 1942 under 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 ...

of the

Southern Expeditionary Army Group ''Nanpō gun'' , image = 1938 terauchi hisaichi.jpg , image_size = 200px , caption = Japanese General Count Terauchi Hisaichi, right, commanding officer of the Southern Expedition ...

for the specific task of opposing landings by Allied forces in Japanese-occupied

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 ...

. It was initially headquartered on Rabaul and participated in the Guadalcanal and

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 ...

s of the

South West Pacific theatre of World War II The South West Pacific theatre, during World War II, was a major theatre of the war between the Allies and the Axis. It included the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (except for Sumatra), Borneo, Australia and its mandate Territory of ...

. After

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 command of the

the 17th Army was responsible primarily for the defense of Bougainville. It was trapped and cut off from reinforcements and re-supply during the

Bougainville campaign (1943–45) The Bougainville campaign was a series of land and naval battles of the Pacific campaign of World War II between Allied forces and the Empire of Japan, named after the island of Bougainville. It was part of Operation Cartwheel, the Allied ...

, and was forced to live off the land, hiding in jungle caves for most of the rest of the war.Gailey, ''Bougainville''.

List of commanders

Commanding officer

Chief of Staff

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

*{{cite web , last = Wendel , first = Marcus , url = http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=6928 , title = Axis History Factbook , work = Japanese Seventeenth Army 17 Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945