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Japanese Fortified Temples and Monasteries AD 710-1062
by Stephen TurnbullFrom the 10th century onwards the great Japanese monastic foundations of Nara and Mount Hiei maintained large armies of warlike monks. The tempestuous political rivalries that developed between the different orders of monks and religiously inspired laymen ensured that their temples and monasteries had to be securely sited and robustly defended. This books recreates these enormous fortified monasteries and temples, tracing their development from the 10th century through to the Sengoku Jidai period and the rise of the power of the shogunate under Tokugawa Ieyasu.
Japanese Heavy Cruisers: Myoko and Takao Classes (ShipCraft #Vol. 5)
by Steve BackerThe ShipCraft series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, highlighting differences between sister-ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly-detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the ships, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic gallery of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.rnrnThis volume is devoted to the largest cruisers in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Built in defiance of treaty restrictions, they were the fastest and most powerful heavy cruisers of their day, and were heavily engaged in every campaign from Pearl Harbor to the end of the Pacific War.
Japanese Infantryman 1937-45
by Gordon Rottman Michael WelplyThis book examines in detail the Japanese Infantryman who was, despite comparisons with the notorious German Waffen SS of World War II (1939-1945), an enigma to Westerners. Brutal in its treatment of prisoners as well as the inhabitants of the areas that it conquered, the Imperial Japanese Army also had exacting standards for its own men - strict codes of honor compelled Japanese soldiers to fight to the death against the more technologically advanced Allies. Identifying the ways in which the Japanese soldier differed from his Western counterpart, the author explores concepts such as Bushido, Seppuku, Shiki and Hakko Ichi-u in order to understand what motivated Japanese warriors.
Japanese Inn: A Reconstruction Of The Past
by Oliver StatlerThe beguiling story of the Minaguchi-ya, an ancient inn on the Tokaido Road, founded on the eve of the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate. Travellers and guests flow into and past the inn -- warriors on the march, lovers fleeing to a new life, pilgrims on their merry expeditions, great men going to and from the capital. The story of the Minaguchi-ya is a social history of Japan through 400 years, a ringside seat to some of the most stirring events of a stirring period.'Statler has created a strangely beautiful book that succeeds in conveying intact not only a great deal of its history but the mood of that land. The result is sheer delight. Japanese Inn is the work of a master craftsman; it is so well conceived that the narrative moves from past to present in the same paragraph without the slightest confusion to the reader; it is so well written that only in retrospect is one aware of its remarkable flawless style. Through the author's particular magic, the stories unfold as one narrative, as beautifully and memorably as the unrolling of a long Japanese scroll.'--CURT GENTRY'The reader learns much of Japan's past -- and, as is inevitable in a study of that country, of present-day Japanese as well. Mr Statler's prose succeeds in evoking the pageantry of the past in the brilliant color of the kabuki stage. Nothing seems to have been overlooked by the author. Mr Statler's book is Japanese history made easy, and grand entertainment.'-- NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'Much of it is told in fictional form. Some of the episodes have come out of family annals and memories, some from the records of the temple; some are imagined; but all could have happened ... Mr Statler has told the story vividly and with sympathy. It moves. It has the authentic feel of Japan.'--INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE
Japanese Military Strategy in the Pacific War: Was Defeat Inevitable?
by James B WoodIn this provocative history, James B. Wood challenges the received wisdom that Japan's defeat in the Pacific was historically inevitable. He argues instead that it was only when the Japanese military prematurely abandoned its original sound strategic plan—to secure the resources Japan needed and establish a viable defensible perimeter for the Empire—that the Allies were able to regain the initiative and lock Japanese forces into a war of attrition they were not prepared to fight. The book persuasively shows how the Japanese army and navy had both the opportunity and the capability to have fought a different and more successful war in the Pacific that could have influenced the course and outcome of World War II. It is therefore a study both of Japanese defeat and of what was needed to achieve a potential Japanese victory, or at the very least, to avoid total ruin. Wood's argument does not depend on signal individual historical events or dramatic accidents. Instead it examines how familiar events could have b
Japanese Naval Air Force Fighter Units and Their Aces, 1932–1945
by Christopher Shores Yasuho Izawa Ikuhiko HataAn extensive guide to Japan&’s Naval Air Force Fighter Units and their ace pilots during conflicts in the 1930s and &‘40s, now in English. The book begins by looking at the land- and aircraft carrier-based navy fighter units and their operations from 1932 to 1945, as well as their history and achievements. This is followed with biographical details for all pilots who claimed eight or more aerial victories. The thorough appendix provides detailed listings of all pilots known to have claimed five or more victories (and thus considered to be &“aces&”), listings of the graduation from training of all Japanese Navy fighter pilots, and of fighter pilot casualties. Photographs, maps, and artist&’s side-view drawings and paintings of aircraft relevant to each of the units are also included. This revised edition is a companion volume to Japanese Army Air Force Fighter Units and Their Aces, 1931–1945.
Japanese Naval Aviation Uniforms and Equipment 1937#45
by Gary Nila Bill YounghusbandThis long awaited title provides a fantastic reference resource on the uniforms, dress, flight gear and personal weaponry of the Imperial Japanese Navy airmen of World War II (1939-1945). It includes detailed descriptions of flight gear, including manufacture information, and interviews with IJN pilots such as Sakai, Komachi, Tanimizu, Kawato and Saito regarding the use of a variety of equipment are integrated into the text. Packed with great contemporary illustrations, photographs of original items, and colour pictures, this title provides a meticulously detailed examination of the dress and equipment of the Imperial Japanese Navy's aviators in World War II.
Japanese Pacific Island Defenses 1941-45
by Gordon Rottman Ian PalmerThe prolonged and bloody fighting for control of the Japanese occupied Pacific islands in World War II is a key point in 20th-century warfare. No two islands were alike in the systems and nature of their defensive emplacements, and local improvization and command preferences affected both materials used and defensive models. This title details the establishment, construction and effectiveness of Japanese temporary and semi-permanent crew-served weapons positions and individual and small-unit fighting positions. Integrated obstacles and minefields, camouflage and the changing defensive principles are also covered.
Japanese Paratroop Forces of World War II
by Gordon Rottman Mike ChappellOsprey's examination of Japan's parachute units of World War II (1939-1945). For the first time in English, this book offers a concise but fact-packed account of the organization, equipment, and all operations of Japan's small but elite wartime parachute forces. Correcting and amplifying previous accounts based on wartime intelligence, it traces the Imperial Army's Raiding Regiments and the Imperial Navy's parachute-trained Yokosuka 1st & 3rd Special Naval Landing Forces from the first trials units, through their successful assaults in early 1942, to the last desperate battles and raids of 1944-45. The text is illustrated with rare photographs, and meticulously reconstructed color artwork of the men and their gear.
Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces
by Christa Hook Gary NilaThe spearhead of Japan's assault landing operations both in China pre-Pearl Harbor, and in US and British territory post-Pearl Harbor, was provided by the Special Naval Landing Forces - 12 numbered battalion-size Imperial Japanese Navy units. They garrisoned a number of the islands which the US Marines then had to re-claim in some of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific War of World War II (1939-1945). These included the infamous battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. This book provides a comprehensive treatment of the elite force which has never before been examined in such detail in English, covering weapons and equipment as well as uniform and insignia.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Japanese Swords
by Colin M. Roach Nicklaus Suino"Tracks the fundamental transition from the sword as a mythological instrument to a functional tool for war, and finally to the display art commodity it is today." - Publishers WeeklyAuthor Colin M. Roach collaborated with top-level artisans, historians, and martial arts experts to create a unique, in-depth study of these magnificent weapons from a historical, iconographical, and technological perspective. In addition to a foreword by seventh degree iaido black belt Nicklaus Suino and a sidebar by Mukansa-level polisher Abe Kazunori, Japanese Swords includes rare looks into the world of Mukansa-level swordsmiths Kawachi Kunihira and Gassan Sadatoshi. Complemented by hundreds of stunning high-resolution photos and downloadable material, Japanese Swords is a must-have addition to any Japanophile's library.
Japanese Tanks 1939-45
by Steven Zaloga Peter BullContrary to popular belief, the Japanese Army widely employed tanks within the Pacific theater of war. This title details their key role in the conquests of Singapore and Malaya, as well as their later use in Burma, Saipan, and the Philippines, including in the amphibious assault of Corregidor. Tank development succeeded against the odds, with the programme often neglected to pursue the higher priority of warship development. Their use in the most difficult of terrain is a testament to their ingenuity.Steven J Zaloga's book offers a rare insight into a largely overlooked subject and is rich with photographs and artwork, providing a wonderful resource for the construction and design of these fascinating tanks.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Japanese Throwing Weapons
by Daniel Fletcher Yasuyuki OtsukaJapanese Throwing Weapons is a detailed instruction manual for learning authentic shuriken throwing techniques as practiced in Japan. Daniel Fletcher studied under Japan's most notable shuriken sensei, Yasuyuki Otsuka, of the Meifu Shinkage Ryu and in this book he reveals the secrets learned in his years of study and training.Fletcher explains the origins and purpose of the shuriken as a weapon and provides information on the various types of shuriken used by the historic samurai and ninjas. Fletcher's expert instructions and the enclosed DVD can help anyone become proficient in throwing these weapons.
Japanese Throwing Weapons
by Daniel Fletcher Yasuyuki OtsukaJapanese Throwing Weapons is a detailed instruction manual for learning authentic shuriken throwing techniques as practiced in Japan. Daniel Fletcher studied under Japan's most notable shuriken sensei, Yasuyuki Otsuka, of the Meifu Shinkage Ryu and in this book he reveals the secrets learned in his years of study and training.Fletcher explains the origins and purpose of the shuriken as a weapon and provides information on the various types of shuriken used by the historic samurai and ninjas. Fletcher's expert instructions and the enclosed DVD can help anyone become proficient in throwing these weapons.
Japanese War Crimes
by Peter LiThe question of national responsibility for crimes against humanity became an urgent topic due to the charge of ethnic cleansing against the previous Yugoslav government. But that was not the first such urging of legal and moral responsibility for war crimes. While the Nazi German regime has been prototypical, the actions of the Japanese military regime have been receiving increasing prominence and attention. Indeed, Peter Li's volume examines the phenomenon of denial as well as the deeds of destruction.Certainly one of the most troublesome unresolved problems facing many Asian and Western countries after the Asia Pacific war (1931u1945) is the question of the atrocities committed by the Japanese Imperial Army throughout Asia and the Japanese government's repeated attempts to whitewash their wartime responsibilities. The psychological and physical wounds suffered by victims, their families, and relations remain unhealed after more than half a century, and the issue is now pressing. This collection undertakes the critical task of addressing some of the multifaceted and complex issues of Japanese war crimes and redress.This collection is divided into five themes. In "It's Never Too Late to Seek Justice," the issues of reconciliation, accountability, and Emperor Hirohito's responsibility for war crimes are explored. "The American POW Experience Remembered" includes a moving account of the Bataan Death March by an American ex-soldier. "Psychological Responses" discusses the socio-psychological affects of the Nanjing Massacre and Japanese vivisection on Chinese subjects. The way in which Japanese war atrocities have been dealt with in the theater and cinema is the focus of "Artistic Responses." And central to "History Must not Forget" are the questions of memory, trauma, biological warfare, and redress. Included in this volume are samples of the many presentations given at the International Citizens' Forum on War Crimes and Redress held in Tokyo in Decem
Japanese War Criminals: The Politics of Justice After the Second World War
by Robert Cribb Sandra Wilson Beatrice Trefalt Dean AszkielowiczBeginning in late 1945, the United States, Britain, China, Australia, France, the Netherlands, and later the Philippines, the Soviet Union, and the People's Republic of China convened national courts to prosecute Japanese military personnel for war crimes. The defendants included ethnic Koreans and Taiwanese who had served with the armed forces as Japanese subjects. In Tokyo, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East tried Japanese leaders. While the fairness of these trials has been a focus for decades, Japanese War Criminals instead argues that the most important issues arose outside the courtroom. What was the legal basis for identifying and detaining subjects, determining who should be prosecuted, collecting evidence, and granting clemency after conviction? The answers to these questions helped set the norms for transitional justice in the postwar era and today contribute to strategies for addressing problematic areas of international law. Examining the complex moral, ethical, legal, and political issues surrounding the Allied prosecution project, from the first investigations during the war to the final release of prisoners in 1958, Japanese War Criminals shows how a simple effort to punish the guilty evolved into a multidimensional struggle that muddied the assignment of criminal responsibility for war crimes. Over time, indignation in Japan over Allied military actions, particularly the deployment of the atomic bombs, eclipsed anger over Japanese atrocities, and, among the Western powers, new Cold War imperatives took hold. This book makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the construction of the postwar international order in Asia and to our comprehension of the difficulties of implementing transitional justice.
Japanese War Fantasy 1933: A Translation of "Account of the Future US-Japan War"
by Kyosuke FukunagaA new annotated edition of a shocking Japanese paperback, published in 1933, which foreshadowed a surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet.Learn why the original Japanese version was confiscated and banned in the US. The government went as far as to collect books that had already been sold.The original novel was endorsed by two admirals in the Imperial Japanese Navy, both of whom provided forewords for the book. Although explicitly a work of fiction, the book was implicitly a statement of real IJN strategy.
Japanese Wartime Zoo Policy
by Mayumi ItohThis book examines Japanese wartime zoo policy during World War II, analyzing the reasons why the Home Ministry destroyed more than 300 showpiece animals throughout Japan well before U. S. air strikes were anticipated, with international comparisons of the effects of the war on zoos in Europe, the United States, and the Middle East.
Japanese Women Writers: Twentieth Century Short Fiction (Japan In The Modern World Ser.)
by Kyoko Iriye Selden Noriko Mizuta Lippit"Here are Japanese women in infinite and fascinating variety -- ardent lovers, lonely single women, political activists, betrayed wives, loyal wives, protective mothers, embittered mothers, devoted daughters. ... a new sense of the richness of Japanese women's experience, a new appreciation for feelings too long submerged". -- The New York Times Book Review
Japanese in Wyoming: Union Pacific's Forgotten Labor Force (American Heritage)
by Mr. Daniel LyonImmigration in the Equality State Long before Heart Mountain Internment Camp brought Japanese prisoners to Wyoming, an immigrant work force put down lasting roots. Beginning in 1892, Japanese came to toil on Union Pacific's railroad and coal mines. But they weren't warmly welcomed. Newspapers charged every Japanese section worker was secret Japanese Army. Allegedly, "600 Japs in Utah, [and] about 400 in Wyoming and probably 100 in Colorado," were ready to serve Japan during the Japanese Russo War. George Wakimoto said the number was closer to six. Such misinformation about Japanese laborers spawned violence against Asians. The citizens of Evanston tried to blow them up. Rawlins ran the Japanese out of town. And in Laramie, young boys threw stones and dragged a Japanese man through the street. Author Dan Lyon chronicles Japanese perseverance, before and after both world wars, in their adopted state.
Japans Blitzkrieg: The Allied Collapse in the East, 1941–42
by Bernard EdwardsEarly on the morning of 7 December 1941, 360 Japanese carrier-borne aircraft made a surprise attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, and laid waste to the American Far East Fleet. They sank four battleships, crippled three cruisers and three destroyers, and seriously damaged two other battleships. One hundred and sixty-four planes were destroyed and 2,403 servicemen and civilians were killed. All for the loss of twenty-nine Japanese aircraft and fifty-five men. Two days later, the British battleships Prince of Wales and Repulse, were sunk by Japanese torpedo bombers as they raced north to intercept an enemy invasion force heading for Malaya. In these two bold forays, the Japanese had successfully emasculated Allied naval power in the East. There now remained no big guns afloat anywhere in the Pacific and Indian oceans capable of opposing Admiral Yamamoto's ships.So began Japan's blitzkrieg. The Malay peninsular was rapidly overwhelmed, Hong Kong surrendered on Christmas Day, Manila went the same way on the 31st, and on 15 February 1942, in one of the most ignominious defeats in modern warfare, 85,000 British troops laid down their arms, and the vital base of Singapore was in Japanese hands. Thereafter, the rays of the Rising Sun spread ever outwards, overrunning island after island, until even Australia was threatened. The book tells how the Dutch Spice Islands, Java and Sumatra, became a last refuge for those fleeing before the Japanese whirlwind advance, and it was from here that the remaining Allied merchant ships in the area made their bid for freedom carrying hundreds of refugees. For many of these ships it was to be their last voyage
Japan’s American Interlude
by Prof. Kazuo KawaiHow did the Japanese themselves respond to the American occupation? How were the sweeping reforms—political, social, and economic—of SCAP’s program received? How permanent was their effect, and why did some succeed and others fail completely? How successful in the long view was the democratization induced by MacArthur’s “artificial revolution”? And what tendencies existing in fundamental Japanese attitudes and history might account for this peculiar success?Kazuo Kawai, Japanese-born and educated in America, a political scientist and journalist, brings his unique experience and knowledge to bear on these questions. The result is a book which tells the story of the American occupation of Japan from the Japanese point of view.“This book deals with the American interlude in the history of Japan during which time that country was not only occupied by American troops and politically controlled by American officials but was subjected to almost every conceivable variety of American influence. It does not attempt to tell the story of the Occupation itself, for that story has already been told many times by Americans who, as participants or close observers, were in a position to tell it well. Instead, this work deals only with selected controversial aspects of the Japanese reaction to American influence during the Occupation period.”—Kazuo Kawai, Preface
Japan’s Decision For War In 1941: Some Enduring Lessons - War College Series
by Dr Jeffrey RecordJapan's decision to attack the United States in 1941 is widely regarded as irrational to the point of suicidal. How could Japan hope to survive a war with, much less defeat, an enemy possessing an invulnerable homeland and an industrial base 10 times that of Japan? The Pacific War was one that Japan was always going to lose, so how does one explain Tokyo's decision? Did the Japanese recognize the odds against them? Did they have a concept of victory, or at least of avoiding defeat? Or did the Japanese prefer a lost war to an unacceptable peace?Dr. Jeffrey Record takes a fresh look at Japan's decision for war, and concludes that it was dictated by Japanese pride and the threatened economic destruction of Japan by the United States. He believes that Japanese aggression in East Asia was the root cause of the Pacific War, but argues that the road to war in 1941 was built on American as well as Japanese miscalculations and that both sides suffered from cultural ignorance and racial arrogance. Record finds that the Americans underestimated the role of fear and honor in Japanese calculations and overestimated the effectiveness of economic sanctions as a deterrent to war, whereas the Japanese underestimated the cohesion and resolve of an aroused American society and overestimated their own martial prowess as a means of defeating U.S. material superiority. He believes that the failure of deterrence was mutual, and that the descent of the United States and Japan into war contains lessons of great and continuing relevance to American foreign policy and defense decision-makers.
Japan’s Effectiveness as a Geo-Economic Actor: Navigating Great-Power Competition (Adelphi series)
by Robert Ward Yuka KoshinoGeo-economic strategy – deploying economic instruments to secure foreign-policy aims and to project power – has long been a key element of statecraft. In recent years, it has acquired even greater salience given China’s growing antagonism with the United States and the willingness of both Beijing and Washington to wield economic power in their confrontation. This trend has particular significance for Japan given its often tense political relationship with China, which remains its largest trading partner. While Japan’s post-war geo-economic performance often failed to match its status as one of the world’s largest economies, more recently Tokyo has demonstrated increased geo-economic agency and effectiveness. In this Adelphi book, Yuka Koshino and Robert Ward draw on multiple disciplines – including economics, political economy, foreign policy and security policy – and interviews with key policymakers to examine Japan’s geo-economic power in the context of great-power competition between the US and China. They examine Japan’s previous underperformance, how Tokyo’s understanding of geo-economics has evolved and, given constraints on its national power-projection, what actions Japan might feasibly take to become a more effective geo-economic actor. Their conclusions will be of direct interest not only for all those concerned with Japanese grand strategy and the Asia-Pacific, but also for those middle powers seeking to navigate great-power competition in the coming decades.
Japan’s Gestapo: Murder, Mayhem and Torture in Wartime Asia
by Mark FeltonThe book opens by explaining the origins, organisation and roles of the Kempetai apparatus, which exercised virtually unlimited power throughout the Japanese Empire. The author reveals their criminal and collaborationist networks, which extorted huge sums of money from hapless citizens and business. They ran the Allied POW gulag system which treated captives with brutality and a complete lack of mercy.Other Kempetai activities included biological and chemical experiments on live subjects, slave labour, including 'Comfort Women' drawn from all races.Their record of reprisals against military and civilians was unrelenting. For example Colonel Doolittle's raid on Tokyo in 1942 resulted in a campaign of revenge not just against captured airmen but thousands of Chinese civilians. Their actions amounted to genocide on a grand scale.Of particular distaste is the revelation of the Maruta vivisection campaign.The author backs up his text with first hand testimonies from those survivors who suffered at the hands of this evil organization. He examines how the guilty were bought to justice and the resulting claims for compensation.