Twenty-Seventh Army (Japan)

The Japanese 27th Army (第27軍, Dai-nijyūnana gun) was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army during the final days of World War II.

Japanese Twenty-Seventh Army
Japanese ski troops in the Chishima Islands
ActiveMarch 16, 1944 – February 1, 1945
CountryEmpire of Japan
BranchImperial Japanese Army
TypeInfantry
RoleCorps
Garrison/HQEtorofu
Nickname(s)Hokubu (北部, Northern)
EngagementsSoviet invasion of Manchuria

History

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The Japanese 27th Army was formed on March 16, 1944, as part of the last desperate defense effort by the Empire of Japan to deter possible landings of Allied forces in the northern Chishima Islands territories from northeastern Hokkaidō to Kamchatka during Operation Downfall. It was headquartered on Etorofu.

The Japanese 27th Army consisted mostly of poorly trained reservists, conscripted students and home guard militia. It was disbanded on February 1, 1945, and its units were incorporated directly into the Japanese 5th Area Army

List of Commanders

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Name From To
Commanding officer Lieutenant General Shozo Terakura 10 March 1944 1 February 1945
Chief of Staff Major General Keiji Suzuki 10 March 1944 1 February 1945

See also

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References

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  • Drea, Edward J. (1998). "Japanese Preparations for the Defense of the Homeland & Intelligence Forecasting for the Invasion of Japan". In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-1708-0.
  • Frank, Richard B (1999). Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-679-41424-X.
  • Jowett, Bernard (1999). The Japanese Army 1931-45 (Volume 2, 1942-45). Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-354-3.
  • Madej, Victor (1981). Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945. Game Publishing Company. ASIN: B000L4CYWW.
  • Marston, Daniel (2005). The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-882-0.
  • Skates, John Ray (1994). The Invasion of Japan: Alternative to the Bomb Downfall. New York: University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 0-87249-972-3.
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