Kotoku Sato
Encyclopedia
was a lieutenant general
in the Imperial Japanese Army
in World War II
.
and graduated from the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1913 and the Army Staff College
in 1921.
As a colonel, he commanded the 75th Infantry Regiment at the battle of Lake Khasan
in 1938. His regiment ousted the Soviet forces from the disputed hill in a night assault which the Japanese considered to be a model of its tactical type.
At the time of the Nomonhan Incident in 1939, after his promotion to major general
, Sato was in command of the 2d Sector Unit, 8th Border Garrison Unit (Hailar
) under General Michitaro Komatsubara
. As a lieutenant general, he was assigned command of the IJA 31st Division from the time of its activation in China in March, 1943. Assigned to construction operations in Thailand
, the division was ordered to Burma to join the IJA 15th Army
in September, 1943.
The Japanese plan to invade India, codenamed U-Go
, was originally intended as a spoiling attack against the IV Corps at Imphal, to disrupt the Allied
offensive plans for that year. The commander of the Japanese Fifteenth Army, Lieutenant General
Renya Mutaguchi
, enlarged the plan to invade India itself and perhaps even overthrow the British Raj
. The objections of the staffs of various headquarters were eventually overruled by War Minister Hideki Tojo
.
Part of the plan involved sending the IJA 31st Division (which was composed of 58th, 124th, and 138th Regiments, and the 31st Mountain Artillery Regiment) to capture Kohima
and thus cut off Imphal, and then drive to Dimapur
. Divisional commander Sato was unhappy with his role. He had not been involved in the planning of the offensive and seriously doubted the Japanese chances for success; he had already told his staff that they might all starve to death.
In common with many senior Japanese officers, Sato considered Mutaguchi a "blockhead". He and Mutaguchi had also been on opposite sides during the split between the Toseiha
and Kodoha factions within the Japanese Army during the early 1930s, and Sato believed he had cause to mistrust Mutaguchi's motives.
By the middle of May, Sato's troops were starving. He considered that Mutaguchi and the HQ of Japanese Fifteenth Army were taking little notice of his situation, as they had issued several confusing and contradictory orders to him during April. Because the main attack on Imphal faltered around the middle of April, Mutaguchi wished 31st Division or parts of it to join in the attack on Imphal from the north, even while the division was struggling to capture and hold Kohima. Sato considered that his division was being "messed around" without proper planning or consideration for the conditions. Nor did Sato believe that Fifteenth Army headquarters were exerting themselves to move supplies to his division. He began pulling his troops back to conserve their strength, thus allowing the British to secure Kohima Ridge.
On 25 May, Sato notified Fifteenth Army HQ that he would withdraw on 1 June unless his division received supplies. Finally on 31 May, he abandoned positions north of the road, in spite of orders from Mutaguchi to hold his positions. (For a divisional commander to retreat without orders or permission from his superior was unheard-of in the Japanese Army.) After ignoring army orders for several weeks, Sato was removed from command of IJA 31st Division on 7 July 1944.
Sato refused an invitation to commit seppuku
and demanded a court martial to clear his name and to publicly expose Mutaguchi's. At the prompting of Lieutenant General Masakazu Kawabe
, commander of Burma Area Army, doctors declared that he had suffered a mental breakdown and was unfit to stand trial on 23 November 1944.
Sato was recalled to active duty in 1944, and assigned to the headquarters of the IJA 16th Army, which became the Northeast Area Army in 1945.
After the surrender of Japan
, Sato devoted his efforts to assisting surviving members of his former command, and the group of ex-army men he created erected a monument to the fallen of the Imphal Campaign in Matsuyama, Ehime
and in Shonai, Yamagata
.
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
in 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...
in 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...
.
Biography
Sato was born in Yamagata prefectureYamagata Prefecture
-Fruit:Yamagata Prefecture is the largest producer of cherries and pears in Japan. A large quantity of other kinds of fruits such as grapes, apples, peaches, melons, persimmons and watermelons are also produced.- Demographics :...
and graduated from the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1913 and the Army Staff College
Army War College (Japan)
The ; Short form: of the Empire of Japan was founded in 1882 in Minato, Tokyo to modernize and Westernize the Imperial Japanese Army. Much of the empire's elite including prime ministers during the period of Japanese militarism were graduates of the college....
in 1921.
As a colonel, he commanded the 75th Infantry Regiment at the battle of Lake Khasan
Battle of Lake Khasan
The Battle of Lake Khasan and also known as the Changkufeng Incident in China and Japan, was an attempted military incursion of Manchukuo into the territory claimed by the Soviet Union...
in 1938. His regiment ousted the Soviet forces from the disputed hill in a night assault which the Japanese considered to be a model of its tactical type.
At the time of the Nomonhan Incident in 1939, after his promotion to major general
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
, Sato was in command of the 2d Sector Unit, 8th Border Garrison Unit (Hailar
Hailar
Hailar may refer to:* Hailar River, part of the Russia-China border* Hailar District, district in Inner Mongolia, China...
) under General Michitaro Komatsubara
Michitaro Komatsubara
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, during the Nomonhan Incident.-Biography:A native of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, where his father was a naval engineer, Komatsubara graduated from the 18th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1905. He served as a military attaché to Russia...
. As a lieutenant general, he was assigned command of the IJA 31st Division from the time of its activation in China in March, 1943. Assigned to construction operations in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, the division was ordered to Burma to join the IJA 15th Army
Fifteenth Army (Japan)
The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army during the World War II.-History:The Japanese 15th Army was formed on November 9. 1941 as a component of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group for the specific task of invading the British colony of Burma....
in September, 1943.
The Japanese plan to invade India, codenamed U-Go
Operation U-Go
The U Go offensive, or Operation C , was the Japanese offensive launched in March 1944 against forces of the British Empire in the North-East Indian region of Manipur...
, was originally intended as a spoiling attack against the IV Corps at Imphal, to disrupt the Allied
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...
offensive plans for that year. The commander of the Japanese Fifteenth Army, Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
Renya Mutaguchi
Renya Mutaguchi
- Notes :...
, enlarged the plan to invade India itself and perhaps even overthrow the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
. The objections of the staffs of various headquarters were eventually overruled by War Minister Hideki Tojo
Hideki Tōjō
Hideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...
.
Part of the plan involved sending the IJA 31st Division (which was composed of 58th, 124th, and 138th Regiments, and the 31st Mountain Artillery Regiment) to capture Kohima
Kohima
Kohima is the hilly capital of India's north eastern border state of Nagaland which shares its borders with Burma. It lies in Kohima District and is also one of the three Nagaland towns with Municipal council status along with Dimapur and Mokokchung....
and thus cut off Imphal, and then drive to Dimapur
Dimapur
Dimapur in Nagaland is bounded by Kohima district on the south and east, Karbi Anglong district of Assam on the West, the Karbi Anglong and stretch of Golaghat District of Assam, in the west and the north...
. Divisional commander Sato was unhappy with his role. He had not been involved in the planning of the offensive and seriously doubted the Japanese chances for success; he had already told his staff that they might all starve to death.
In common with many senior Japanese officers, Sato considered Mutaguchi a "blockhead". He and Mutaguchi had also been on opposite sides during the split between the Toseiha
Toseiha
' was a political faction in the Imperial Japanese Army, active in the 1920s and 1930s.Led by General Kazushige Ugaki, along with Hajime Sugiyama, Koiso Kuniaki, Yoshijirō Umezu, Tetsuzan Nagata and Hideki Tōjō, the Tōseiha was a grouping of officers united primarily by their opposition to the...
and Kodoha factions within the Japanese Army during the early 1930s, and Sato believed he had cause to mistrust Mutaguchi's motives.
By the middle of May, Sato's troops were starving. He considered that Mutaguchi and the HQ of Japanese Fifteenth Army were taking little notice of his situation, as they had issued several confusing and contradictory orders to him during April. Because the main attack on Imphal faltered around the middle of April, Mutaguchi wished 31st Division or parts of it to join in the attack on Imphal from the north, even while the division was struggling to capture and hold Kohima. Sato considered that his division was being "messed around" without proper planning or consideration for the conditions. Nor did Sato believe that Fifteenth Army headquarters were exerting themselves to move supplies to his division. He began pulling his troops back to conserve their strength, thus allowing the British to secure Kohima Ridge.
On 25 May, Sato notified Fifteenth Army HQ that he would withdraw on 1 June unless his division received supplies. Finally on 31 May, he abandoned positions north of the road, in spite of orders from Mutaguchi to hold his positions. (For a divisional commander to retreat without orders or permission from his superior was unheard-of in the Japanese Army.) After ignoring army orders for several weeks, Sato was removed from command of IJA 31st Division on 7 July 1944.
Sato refused an invitation to commit seppuku
Seppuku
is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than fall into the hands of their enemies , or as a form of capital punishment...
and demanded a court martial to clear his name and to publicly expose Mutaguchi's. At the prompting of Lieutenant General Masakazu Kawabe
Masakazu Kawabe
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army. He held important commands in the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War, and during World War II in the Burma Campaign and defense of the Japanese homeland late in the war...
, commander of Burma Area Army, doctors declared that he had suffered a mental breakdown and was unfit to stand trial on 23 November 1944.
Sato was recalled to active duty in 1944, and assigned to the headquarters of the IJA 16th Army, which became the Northeast Area Army in 1945.
After 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...
, Sato devoted his efforts to assisting surviving members of his former command, and the group of ex-army men he created erected a monument to the fallen of the Imphal Campaign in Matsuyama, Ehime
Matsuyama, Ehime
is the capital city of Ehime Prefecture on the Shikoku island of Japan. It is located on the northeastern portion of the Dōgo Plain. Its name means "pine mountain." The city was founded on December 15, 1889....
and in Shonai, Yamagata
Shonai, Yamagata
is a town located in Higashitagawa District, Yamagata, Japan. It was created by the merger of the towns of Amarume and Tachikawa in 2005.As of 2005, the town has an estimated population of 24,921 and the density of 249.26 persons per km²...
.