Japanese Eleventh Area Army

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= Japanese Eleventh Area Army


caption=
dates= 1945-02-06 - 1945-08-15
country= Empire of Japan
allegiance=
branch= Imperial Japanese Army
type= Infantry
role= Field Army
garrison=Sendai, Miyagi
nickname= 進 ("Shin" = “advancing”)
battles=command structure
name= Japanese Eleventh Area Army
date=1945
parent=Japanese First General Army
subordinate=

* Japanese 50th Army (Aomori)
* 72nd Infantry Division (Fukushima)
* 142nd Infantry Division (Sendai)
* 222nd Infantry Division (Mizusawa)
* 322nd Infantry Division (Sendai)
* IJA 113rd Independent Mixed Brigade (Iwaki)The nihongo| Japanese Eleventh Area Army|第11方面軍|Dai jyūichi hōmen gun was a field army of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. [Madej, Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945 ]

The Japanese 11th Area Army was formed on 1945-02-06 under the Imperial General Headquarters and transferred to the control of the Japanese First General Army on 1945-04-08. It was part of the last desperate defense effort by the Empire of Japan to deter possible landings of Allied forces in central Honshū during Operation Downfall (or nihongo|Operation Ketsugō|決号作戦|Ketsugō sakusen in Japanese terminology). The Japanese 11th Area Army was responsible for the Tōhoku region of Japan and was headquartered in Sendai, Miyagi.

It consisted mostly of poorly-trained reservists, conscripted 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, longbows, 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 11th Area Army was demobilized at the surrender of Japan on 15 August 1945 without having seen combat.

List of Commanders

Commanding officer

=Chief of Staff=

References

Books

*cite book
last = Drea
first = Edward J.
authorlink =
coauthors =
year = 1998
chapter = Japanese Preparations for the Defense of the Homeland & Intelligence Forecasting for the Invasion of Japan
title = In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army
publisher = University of Nebraska Press
location =
id = ISBN 0-8032-1708-0
*cite book
last = Frank
first = Richard B
coauthors =
year = 1999
title = Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire
publisher = Random House
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-679-41424-X
*cite book
last = Jowett
first = Bernard
coauthors =
year = 1999
title = The Japanese Army 1931-45 (Volume 2, 1942-45)
publisher = Osprey Publishing
location =
id = ISBN 1841763543
*cite book
last = Madej
first = Victor
coauthors =
year = 1981
title = Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945
publisher = Game Publishing Company
location =
id = ASIN: B000L4CYWW
*cite book
last = Marston
first = Daniel
coauthors =
year = 2005
title = The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima
publisher = Osprey Publishing
location =
id = ISBN 1841768820
*cite book
last = Skates
first = John Ray
coauthors =
year = 1994
title = The Invasion of Japan: Alternative to the Bomb Downfall
publisher = University of South Carolina Press
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-87249-972-3

External links

*cite web
last = Wendel
first = Marcus
url = http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=6745
title = Axis History Factbook
work = Japanese Eleventh Area Army

Notes