Tomitarō Horii

Infobox Military Person
name= Tomitarō Horii
lived= 7 November 1890 – 23 November 1942
placeofbirth=Hyōgo prefecture, Japan
placeofdeath=


caption=General Tomitarō Horii
nickname=
allegiance=Empire of Japan
branch=
serviceyears=1911 -1943
rank=Major General
commands=IJA 55th Division
unit=
battles= Second Sino-Japanese War
World War II
awards=
family=
laterwork=nihongo|Tomitarō Horii|堀井富太郎|Horii Tomitarō|extra= 7 November 1890 – 23 November 1942 was a major general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.

Biography

Born in Hyōgo Prefecture, Horii became an infantry officer following his graduation from the 23rd class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1911. [Dupuy, Encyclopedia of Military Biography]

He was later assigned to the headquarters of the Shanghai Expeditionary Army during the Battle of Shanghai from January 28-March 4 1932. [Ammenthorp, The Generals of World War II]

From 1935-1937, he was attached to the IJA 12th Infantry Regiment, and became commander of the IJA 78th Infantry Regiment in 1938, after his promotion to colonel the previous year. Horii was appointed commander of the IJA 55th Division (part of the South Seas Force) in 1941.

In order to avoid a repeat of the atrocities he witnessed being committed by Japanese troops in China, he issued a "Guide to Soldiers in the South Seas" in late 1941 on his own authority with the following five statements [Chen, WW2DB.com] :

* Do not needlessly kill or injure the local inhabitants.

* Behavior such as looting and violating women is strictly forbidden.

* Buildings and property in enemy territory must not be burned without permission.

* Scrupulously keep secrets and main security.
* Treat ammunition carefully, and reduce waste to a minimum.

During the New Guinea campaign, after landing in the Buna-Garara area in July 1942, Horii led a column of 8,500 men of the IJA 144th Regiment overland on the Kokoda Trail over the treacherous Owen Stanley mountain range in an attempt to capture Port Moresby. [Gamble, Darkest Hour] However, after heavy fighting against defending Australian forces, the Japanese logistics broke down, and Horii was forced to withdraw with his surviving soldiers in the Kokoda Track campaign from September 1942. During the campaign, Horii drowned while crossing the Kumusi River in November 1942. [Hayashi, Kogun Hirohiro's Samurai]

References

Books

*cite book
last = Dupuy
first = Trevor N.
year = 1992
title = Encyclopedia of Military Biography
publisher = I B Tauris & Co Ltd
location =
id = ISBN 1-85043-569-3
*cite book
last = Hayashi
first = Saburo
authorlink =
coauthors =
year = 1959
chapter =
title = Kogun: The Japanese Army in the Pacific War
publisher = Marine Corps. Association
location =
id = ASIN B000ID3YRK
*cite book
last = Gamble
first = Bruce
authorlink =
coauthors =
year = 2001
chapter =
title = Darkest Hour: The True Story of Lark Force at Rabaul - Australia's Worst Military Disaster of World War II
publisher = Zenith Press
location =
id = ISBN 0760323496

External links

*cite web
last = Ammenthorp
first = Steen
url = http://www.generals.dk/general/Horii/Tomitaro/Japan.html
title = Horii, Tomitaro
work = The Generals of World War II
*cite web
last = Chen
first = Peter
url = http://ww2db.com/person_bio.php?person_id=339&list=Ground
title = Horii, Tomitaro
work = WW2 Database

Notes