Fifteenth Army (Japan)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= Japanese Fifteenth Army


caption= Japanese troops on border of Burma
dates= 1941-11-09 - 1945-08-15
country= Empire of Japan
allegiance=
branch= Imperial Japanese Army
type= Infantry
role= Corps
garrison=Rangoon
nickname=nihongo|Hayashi Shudan|林集団|Grove
battles=Burma CampaignThe nihongo|Japanese 15th Army|第15軍 |Dai-jyugo gun was a army of the Imperial Japanese Army during the World War II.

History

The Japanese 15th Army was formed on 9 November 1941 as the Burma Area Army of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group for the specific task of invading the British colony of Burma.

Under Lieutenant General Shōjirō Iida, the IJA 15th Army invaded southern Burmese province of Tenasserim. The 15th Army consisted initially of the highly regarded 33rd Infantry Division and the 55th Infantry Division, which attacked from northern Thailand, which had signed a treaty of friendship with Japan on December 21, 1941. The 15th Army quickly advanced through southern Burma, defeating the British and Indian Burma Army in several engagements, and capturing the capital, Rangoon by 7 March 1942. The Army was reinforced by troops released by the Fall of Singapore and drove northwards into Central Burma, defeating the British Burma Corps and the Chinese forces, ultimately driving the Allies from Burma.

During the following year, the Army remained as a garrison force in Burma, defeating an Allied offensive in Arakan and inflicting heavy casualties on a long-range penetration raid under Orde Wingate.

For 1944, Fifteenth Army became part of the Burma Area Army. Lieutenant General Iida was posted back to Japan and Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi took command of Fifteenth Army. He forcefully advocated an offensive against British India. The offensive, Operation U-Go, was launched in March. As a result of poor logistics and Mutaguchi's underestimation of the difficulties, the Army was almost destroyed in the Battle of Imphal and the Battle of Kohima.

Mutaguchi, his Chief of Staff and several other officers were removed in the aftermath. Lieutenant General Shihachi Katamura took command. As the monsoon season ended, the Army attempted to forestall an Allied offensive into Burma by withdrawing behind the Irrawaddy River. They were unable to prevent British and Indian troops securing bridgeheads across the river, and the army was weakened by losses and detachments to other parts of the front. Once Mandalay was captured, the Army could only retreat southwards, badly disorganised.

The remnants of Fifteenth Army were later absorbed as a subsidiary unit within the Japanese 18th Area Army.

The IJA 15th Army was demobilized at Lampang Province, Thailand on the surrender of Japan in 1945.

List of Commanders

Commanding officers

Chief of staff

Organization (at the First Arakan Campaign)

15th Army
* 18th Infantry Division
* 31st Infantry Division
* 33rd Infantry Division

Organization (at the Imphal Campaign)

15th Army
* 15th Infantry Division
* 31st Infantry Division
* 33rd Infantry Division

Organization (at the end of the war)

15th Army
* 4th Infantry Division
* 31st Infantry Division
* 33rd Infantry Division

References

*cite book
last = Latimer
first = Jon
authorlink = Jon Latimer
year = 2004
title = Burma: The Forgotten War
publisher = John Murray
location = London
id = ISBN: 978-0719565762
*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

External links

*cite web
last = Wendel
first = Marcus
url = http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=6926
title = Axis History Factbook
work = Japanese Fifteenth Army

Notes