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Army (軍,gun) was a term in theImperial Japanese Army used in different ways to designate a variety of large military formations that corresponded to thearmy group,field army, andcorps in the militaries ofWestern nations.

The General Army (総軍,Sō-gun) was the highest level in the organizational structure of the Imperial Japanese Army. It corresponded to thearmy group in western military terminology. Intended to be self-sufficient for indefinite periods, the general armies were commanded by either afield marshal or a fullgeneral.

The initial General Army was theJapanese Manchurian Army, formed from 1904 to 1905 during theRusso-Japanese War as a temporary command structure to coordinate the efforts of several Japanese armies in the campaign againstImperial Russia.

In terms of a permanent standing organization, the Japanese Army created theKantōgun, usually known in English as the Kwantung Army, to manage its overseas deployment in theKwantung Territory andManchukuo from 1906.

Subsequent general armies were created in response to the needs of theSecond Sino-Japanese War andWorld War II, in which increased overseas deployment called for an organizational structure that could respond quickly and autonomously from theImperial Japanese Army General Staff inTokyo. As a result, Japanese forces were re-organized into three separate overseas operational commands: (Manchuria,China andSoutheast Asia), with theJapanese home islands forming a fourth.

Towards the end of World War II, the home island command (i.e. theGeneral Defense Command) was restructured geographically into theFirst General Army in the east,Second General Army in the west, and theAir General Army in charge ofmilitary aviation.

With the officialJapanese surrender in September 1945, all of the general armies were dissolved, except for the First General Army, which continued to exist until November 30, 1945, as the1st Demobilization Headquarters.

Area Armies (方面軍,Hōmen-gun) in Japanese military terminology were equivalent tofield armies in western militaries. Area Armies were normally commanded by ageneral orlieutenant general. There is much confusion between the similarly numbered Area Armies and Armies in historical records, as many writers often did not make a clear distinction when describing the units involved.

The Japanese Army (軍,gun) corresponded to an armycorps in American or British military terminology. It was usually commanded by alieutenant general.

• • First Army – China
  • Second Army – China
  • Third Army – Manchukuo
  • Fourth Army – Manchukuo
  • Fifth Army – Manchukuo
  • Sixth Army – Manchukuo
  • Tenth Army – China
  • Eleventh Army – China
  • Twelfth Army – China
  • Thirteenth Army – China
  • Fourteenth Army – Philippines
  • Fifteenth Army – Burma
  • Sixteenth Army –Java
  • Seventeenth Army – Solomon Islands
  • Eighteenth Army – New Guinea
  • Nineteenth Army – easternNetherlands East Indies
  • Twentieth Army – China
  • Twenty-First Army – China
  • Twenty-Second Army – China
  • Twenty-Third Army – China
  • Twenty-Fifth Army – Malaya, Singapore, Sumatra
  • Twenty-Seventh Army –Chishima Islands
  • Twenty-Eighth Army – Burma
  • Twenty-Ninth Army – British Malaya
  • Thirtieth Army – Manchukuo
  • Thirty-First Army –Truk
  • Thirty-Second Army –Okinawa
  • Thirty-Third Army – Burma
  • Thirty-Fourth Army – Manchukuo
  • Thirty-Fifth Army – Philippines
  • Thirty-Sixth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Thirty-Seventh Army –Borneo
  • Thirty-Eighth Army -Indochina
  • Thirty-Ninth Army -Thailand
  • Fortieth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Forty-First Army – Philippines
  • Forty-Third Army – China
  • Forty-Fourth Army – Manchukuo
  • Fiftieth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-First Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Second Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Third Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Fourth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Fifth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Sixth Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Seventh Army – Japanese home islands
  • Fifty-Eighth Army – Korea
  • Fifty-Ninth Army – Japanese home islands
  • China Garrison Army – China
  • Mongolia Garrison Army-Inner Mongolia
  • Army of Tokyo Bay
  • Tokyo defense Army
• Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
  • First Air Army – HQTokyo, basing in theKanto Plain covering theJapanese home islands,Taiwan,Korea andKarafuto.
  • Second Air Army – HQXinjing, coveringManchukuo
  • Third Air Army – HQSingapore, coveringSoutheast Asia
  • Fourth Air Army – HQRabaul, covering theSolomon Islands andNew Guinea
  • Fifth Air Army – HQNanjing, covering Japanese-occupied portions of southern and easternChina.
  • Sixth Air Army – HQKyūshū covering Taiwan andOkinawa

• Peacebuilding National Army

• Manchukuo Imperial Army
• Mengjiang National Army
• Indian National Army
• Burmese National Army
• Kempeitai
• Japanese Korean Army

• Organizations of Imperial Japanese Army & NavyArchived 2012-04-26 at theWayback Machine

• Lists of military units and formations of World War II
• Military units and formations of the Imperial Japanese Army
• Japan in World War II-related lists

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