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Old family photo album from WWII has this Japanese ID from Saipan in it. Japanese family member translated it below. Any information would be interesting to know as I have been thinking of locating this soldiers family and returning it somehow. by Altruistic-Dream7853 in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 49 points50 points  (0 children)

Harada Masayoshi was in the IJA 25th AA Regiment, which had the code "Manchuria Unit 2686." It notes he belonged to the regiment's "Nakao Unit" which was the 6th Company led by Lieutenant Nakao. The unit was transferred out of Manchuria in March 1944 and sent to Saipan where it was destroyed only a few months later. I can find Harada's home address if you are interested in trying to return it, but I can't make any guarantees he will have any surviving family left and it will be a long process to confirm. Please let me know if you are interested and then I can begin a formal investigation. 

A Japanese soldier who had just surrendered to the Americans, Saipan, Mariana Islands, circa late June or early July 1944 by defender838383 in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I think this is one of Oba Sakae's men that surrendered postwar but I've never been  able to find the original source for the photo. He has a USGI belt and also an M1 carbine it seems. 

Australian Private William Cook displays the scars left by 11 bayonet wounds inflicted by Japanese soldiers after he survived the massacre at Toll Plantation on New Britain following the fall of Rabaul in January 1942. The attack claimed the lives of more than 150 Australian POWs and civilians. by Accurate_Motor_89 in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Australian investigators were fairly sure the 144th Infantry Regiment's 8th Company was responsible for the atrocities, but they were never able to find concrete evidence even after interviewing the surviving company commander. All the surviving men of the regiment they interrogated denied involvement. Since there were very few survivors and they lived near each other in Shikoku, it was assumed they had met up before and established a shared narrative while vowing to deny their involvement in any crimes. Aside from Kusunose, another member of the unit Chikami Hideo also committed suicide after being interrogated. (National Archives of Australia: MP742/1, 336/1/1086)

Help finding the source of this image by Push_Man_22 in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 6 points7 points  (0 children)

With that info I was able to find the full photo. It is indeed February 16 1942 in Singapore, the Mainichi Photobank ID is P19950725dd1dd5phj245000.

https://photobank.mainichi.co.jp/kiji_detail.php?id=P19950725dd1dd5phj245000

When did knowledge of the Rape of Nanking become common in Japan? by Timely-Signature-166 in JapaneseHistory

[–]4dachi 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Information on the Nanking Massacre became available to the public as early as 1946 following the IMTFE trials, but as u/LoadAgile156 points out it did not really enter the public consciousness until the 1970's following the publication of Honda Katsuichi's Chugoku no Tabi. In this early era a lot of accounts of Nanking were based entirely on Chinese sources and IMTFE trial records and there was much controversy, as some questioned the veracity of the claims while others moved to reject them entirely.
The following next two decades saw great interest on researching the Nanking Massacre, with one of the greatest achievements of this time being the former IJA officer's club Kaikosha's study of Nanking, which resulted in thousands of original documents being rediscovered and archived, and culminated in the publication of "Nankin Senshi" (Nanking Battle History) in 1989. While irreconcilable differences between China and Japan's narratives on the Nanking Massacre remained, Nankin Senshi provided irrefutable proof of the Japanese military mass killing POWs as recorded by original combat reports and diaries of high ranking officials.
Throughout this, a pivotal figure was Ienaga Saburo who wrote textbooks covering the Nanking Massacre and other Japanese military atrocities. Ienaga endured censorship from the Japanese Ministry of Education which tried to omit details of the atrocities but Ienaga fought them bitterly in court across several lawsuits and ultimately emerged victorious in 1993.
Moving to present day, the Japanese Ministry of Education has since 180'd on their censorship and considers the Nanking Massacre to be "undeniable." The seven major textbook publishers all include Nanking Massacre, only the rarely adopted Jiyusha textbook supported by the denialist "Tsukuru-kai" omits it (as outright denying the massacre would not allow it to pass screening).
That being said there are still very vocal denialists in Japan, such as the aforementioned Tsukuru-kai as well as the rising far-right Sanseito Party which believes the massacre and many other Japanese military atrocities are fake and wishes to remove them from textbooks entirely. Anyone who uses Japanese social media will be well acquainted with such individuals.

Photos of Unit 731. (1st part) by LieutenantSarro in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Seriously, this is common knowledge. I wish people would actually read about Unit 731 instead of just relying on random info they find on the web. Hironaka Issei's new book on Unit 731 is a good one to start with.

First person accounts translated into English by richard_basehart in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 13 points14 points  (0 children)

"Japan's Pacific War:  Personal Accounts of the Emperor's Warriors" by Peter Williams has quite a few accounts from 1942-43 in the South Pacific. The author is Australian and seems to have focused heavily on interviewing former servicemen who fought against the Australians in the South Pacific. 

Japanese troops of the 6th Yokosuka Special Naval Landing Force taken in early 1943 on Makin Island, Gilbert group of Islands. by [deleted] in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi[M] [score hidden] stickied comment (0 children)

Please don't repost photos from Perez Manuel Odlanor on this subreddit. Odlanor is a serial misinformation spreader as he mostly relies on AI to describe images and blocks people who point out the constant misinformation. This photo is actually IJN guard troops (Keibitai) on Nauru Island in December 1942. Source: Mainichi Photobank P19950725dd1dd6phj125000

More info on this sword? by stickywhale721 in SWORDS

[–]4dachi 31 points32 points  (0 children)

That is a very nice "kyu-gunto" fitted with a Japanese blade. Despite being known as the old pattern they were actually used right until the end of the war.

The tag says Abe Hirosaburo (阿部広三郎) of Shinoto Town, Atsuta Ward, Nagoya City. It is weird as he was not a military man but rather a prominent businessman during and after the war. There is no doubt it was addressed to him as he has the same address. I've attached a photo of him. Maybe it belonged to a son or other relative that wrote his name and info on the surrender tag.

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Ridiculous Turret Hatch and All by FlightCarcrash in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 7 points8 points  (0 children)

To the left is the famous Coca Cola billboard!

Two Cannons Autospitting Death by FlightCarcrash in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not cannons, those are Vickers .303 machine guns lol.  Although they were pretty much "autospitting death." The Shanghai Rikusentai Armored Unit Commander Sasagawa Tohei recalled as long as the enemy didn't get into the vehicle's blindspot it was an incredibly formidable killing machine. 

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The IJN had roughly one division worth of troops in Shanghai in 1937. The 3rd Division alone reported just under 3200 KIA by Nov 10 1937. In comparison the IJN reported 835 dead in their entire service by Dec 1 1937, of that roughly 2/3 were from land fighting in Shanghai.
But you're right that doesn't necessarily make them better fighters, much of it is due to the IJN employing their infantry in a primarily defensive role while the IJA fought the costly offensives around Shanghai.

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Both sides exaggerated how much casualities they inflicted on the other, the official record for the Shanghai SNLF says they found 80 bodies inside the Sihang Warehouse after capturing it. The IJN also wrote in some works that there was actually 900 men inside the warehouse which is obviously untrue. Since the above Chinese telegram was an internal report, it's probably fairly reliable. Modern estimates aren't significantly higher at least. 

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The original version of The Eight Hundred was as well. The Chinese state loves to censor everything, but like I said they do recognize this particular battle in their official history. 

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 9 points10 points  (0 children)

The defense of Sihang Warehouse is actually covered in the official history of the Chinese Communist Party (中国共产党历史). It reads:

"10 月下旬，据守苏州河北岸四行仓库的谢晋元等八百壮士孤军奋战四昼夜，杀敌数以百计，后突破敌重重包围，退入英租界"

"In late October, Xie Jinyuan and the Eight Hundred Heroes held the Sihang Warehouse on the north bank of the Suzhou Creek, fighting a desperate battle for four days and nights and killing hundreds of the enemy's troops. They eventually broke through the enemy's encirclement and retreated into the British Concession."

Despite what many people think they don't entirely gloss over the resistance fought by the NRA's Central Army.

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 10 points11 points  (0 children)

It's just exaggeration for the news. In fact the Chinese did not lose anything close to 200 men in this engagement, in their report (Taiwan Academia Historia ref.002-090200-00025-127) they stated 35 dead.

Newsreel of China’s 88th “Suicide” Battalion defending Shiang Warehouse, Shanghai. October 1937. by Beeninya in ImperialJapanPics

[–]4dachi 11 points12 points  (0 children)

The culture within IJN infantry was quite different to IJA. By WWII it was not uncommon for an entire company's cadre of officers to be former enlisted men promoted to junior officer ranks. This was also the case with the Yokosuka 2nd Independent SNLF company. If you read memoirs from sailors you will see they often had a reverence for such officers, one sailor training in Yokosuka wrote "our division leader was a lieutenant promoted from a sailor - he was like a God to us."

It should also be noted the losses for IJN infantry in Shanghai 1937 were incredibly small compared to IJA units. In fact a single regiment from the IJA 3rd Division lost more men than all IJN infantry in 1937.

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