The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army

Imperial Japanese Army

-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...

 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

History

The Japanese 23rd Army was formed on June 26, 1941 under the Imperial General Headquarters

Imperial General Headquarters

The as part of the Supreme War Council was established in 1893 to coordinate efforts between the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy during wartime...

. It was transferred to the control of the China Expeditionary Army on August 12 of the same year. It was based in Guangdong

Guangdong

Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...

 province and on Hainan

Hainan

Hainan is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China . Although the province comprises some two hundred islands scattered among three archipelagos off the southern coast, of its land mass is Hainan Island , from which the province takes its name...

 Island to replace the Southern China Area Army

Japanese Southern China Area Army

-Notes:* On March 9, the 106th division was recalled to Japan for demobilization from Central China. It was disbanded in Central China in April 1940 never having reached South China....

 which was disbanded June 26, 1941.

The Japanese 23rd Army was primarily a garrison

Garrison

Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....

 force to deter the possible landings of Allied forces

Allies of World War II

The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...

 in southern China. It was involved in the Battle of Guilin-Liuzhou

Battle of Guilin-Liuzhou

The Battle of Guilin–Liuzhou , also known as the Battle of Guiliu was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War....

 (part of Operation Ichi-Go) from August-November 1944. The Japanese 23rd Army surrendered to the Chinese Kuomingtang forces on August 11, 1945 with the surrender of Japan

Surrender of Japan

The surrender of Japan in 1945 brought hostilities of World War II to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy was incapable of conducting operations and an Allied invasion of Japan was imminent...

 and was disbanded in Guangzhou

Guangzhou

Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...

.

Commanding officer

	Name	From	To
1	General Hitoshi Imamura Hitoshi Imamura -External links:...	28 June 1941	6 November 1941
2	Lt. General Takashi Sakai Takashi Sakai -Notes:...	6 November 1941	1 March 1943
3	Lt. General Hisaichi Tanaka Hisaichi Tanaka -External links:* - Notes :...	1 March 1943	9 September 1945

Chief of staff

	Name	From	To
1	Lt. General Seizo Arisue	28 June 1941	15 September 1941
2	Lt. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi Tadamichi Kuribayashi General was a haiku poet, diplomat, and General of the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff. He is best known for being overall commander of the Japanese garrison during the Battle of Iwo Jima....	15 September 1941	10 June 1943
3	Major General Yosuke Adachi	10 June 1943	16 December 1944
4	Major General Katsunobu Uzawa	16 December 1944	15 April 1945
5	Major General Naosuke Tomida	15 April 1945	1 September 1945