The was a field army 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 the closing stages of World War II.

History

The Japanese 15th Area Army was formed on February 1, 1945 under the

General Defense Command The was a headquarters organization and general army of the Imperial Japanese Army, established to control all land and air units stationed within Japan proper, Korea and Taiwan during World War II. History The General Defense Command was esta ...

as part of the last desperate defense effort by the

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...

to deter possible landings of Allied forces in central Honshū during Operation Downfall (or in Japanese terminology). It was transferred to the newly formed Japanese Second General Army on April 8, 1945. The Japanese 15th Area Army was responsible for the Kansai and Chugoku regions of Honshū and the island of

Shikoku is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...

. It was headquartered in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

. The 15th Area Army leadership also held equivalent posts in the

Central District Army The was a field army of the Imperial Japanese Army responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands during the Pacific War. It was one of the regional commands in the Japanese home islands reporting to the General Defense Command. Comman ...

, and had the honor of receiving their appointments personally from

Emperor Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

rather than the Imperial General Headquarters. The 15th Area Army consisted mostly of poorly trained

reservists A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is ...

conscripted Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day und ...

students and home guard militia. In addition, the Japanese had organized the Patriotic Citizens Fighting Corps — which included all healthy men aged 15–60 and women 17–40 — to perform combat support, and ultimately combat jobs. Weapons, training, and uniforms were generally lacking: some men were armed with nothing better than muzzle-loading muskets,

longbow A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross ...

s, or bamboo spears; nevertheless, they were expected to make do with what they had.Frank, ''Downfall'', p. 188–9. Bauer and Coox, ''OLYMPIC VS KETSU-GO''. The 15th Area Army was

demobilized Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and milita ...

at the surrender of Japan on August 15, 1945 without having seen combat.

List of Commanders

Commanding officer

Chief of Staff

References

Books

* * * * * *

External links

Notes

{{reflist 15 Military units and formations established in 1945 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945