Battle of the Third Reich

Whether Japan’s investigation report differs from the actual situation has little effect on Japan’s handling policy on this incident. Tojo’s investigation report is used to cope with internal questions between the Japanese military and political circles, and has nothing to do with diplomatic mediation.

Tojo predicts that the Japanese Army will definitely suffer some suppression in the past few months. This has been informed that the senior military officers have reached a consensus, but even in the face of such suppression, they can only grind their teeth to endure, because of the pressure The source came from the Tokyo Gyoen. Before the emperor's anger subsided, the army could only silently press the tail to be a man. This is not the Army’s most worrying issue. Since they boast of being the warrior of His Majesty the Emperor, and of course Thunder and Rain are all kings, they are worried that the civil service and the chaebol system may take this opportunity to expand their strength. Suffering.

Most politicians and capitalists in Japan have already begun to express pessimism about the future of China's battlefield. Cabinet ministers, including the prime minister, have privately discussed the withdrawal of troops from China. On this issue, the Army will not agree on it anyway. The Chinese battlefield involves too many interests for the army. Officers can gain military power and wealth from there, and the size of the army has grown rapidly with the extension of the front.

The generals have every reason to seize military expenses from the navy, and they can obtain privileges and influence from the government in a stately manner. Now that the Army can directly intervene in the domestic political situation and participate in the formulation of national policies and regulations, if it continues to develop, it is believed that Japan can certainly be transformed into an ideal military country in the eyes of army officers.

The Army can get to this point, the biggest credential is the Chinese battlefield, from the three eastern provinces to the present half of China, with the expansion of the fighting, the influence of the Japanese Army in the country has also increased correspondingly, rich loot and heroic military achievements. The status of military personnel is extremely honorable, because they allow Japanese people to see the hope of imperial dominance in Asia, and officers and soldiers can stand up and proudly claim. He is a hero of the Great Japanese Empire.

Stopping the war and withdrawing from the Chinese battlefield at this time means that we must give up some of the results obtained by **** fighting. How could the Army tolerate this happening. A Sino-Japanese armistice may bring peace and tranquility to Japan, and digesting the results of the battle of Chinati may bring prosperity for a while, but for the Army, all this amounts to the end of the world.

Once the war ceases, the massive army establishment must be abolished. A large number of Guan Zuo who will do nothing but fight and kill people will start to worry about their lives. The status of soldiers in the peaceful era will definitely decline rapidly, just like the experience of the late Showa and the Taisho era. As before, soldiers no longer have privileges. No longer admired. These are just the first steps, which have made the army generals shudder, not to mention that there will be a series of falling stones.

Therefore, in the handling of this incident, the army has shown absolute cooperation and obedience in order to restore their image in the eyes of the emperor, because as long as the emperor continues to stand on the side of the army, then no matter how tossed by those civilian politicians, No big waves can be turned over.

The Army had already figured out the thoughts of Emperor Yuren, but the weak-looking monarch was extremely happy in his heart. His goal was to surpass his great grandfather. Achieving the dream of Emperor Meiji Hachiko, led Japan to dominate the entire Asia and even stand on top of the world. Although it is usually well covered up, the army veterans and generals regard their attitude towards war. Can clearly feel that this man has more ambitions than his grandfather. As long as the man’s ambitions have not been extinguished, Japan will not stop the pace of expansion, which is the reason why the army is extremely supportive of Yuren. But if the Emperor suddenly no longer trusts and supports the Army on any given day, the result will be disastrous.

Under the deliberate push of both the military and political parties, they have successfully held Yuren as a living god. In the early Showa era, Japan encountered an unprecedented economic depression and social crisis. In the situation of chaos and panic in the entire society, let the subjects believe A mythical king is conducive to the restoration of social hierarchy and order. It is also conducive to the unity and control of the thoughts of the bottom people. For a country like Japan that jumped directly from a semi-slavery society to a capitalist society, Japanese politicians clearly found a simple and effective way. It is used to connect the cultural faults caused by social development.

For a long time, Japan’s traditional culture and ideas have been completely preserved among the people. Ordinary people have never been educated in Western thought. They still adhere to the ancient tradition. The myth of the emperor has a huge influence on the poor national groups at the bottom of these societies. In remote villages, "This is the will of His Majesty the Emperor" is more useful than any government document. The Japanese government It is with this faith fanaticism that he controlled the bottom and the largest number of people.

The Japanese army was even more active in this god-creating movement. The emperor became one of their most powerful weapons for controlling the minds of the troops. The officers found that as long as the emperor was involved, everything they did would represent axioms. And justice. During the Showa period, the Japanese army was expanding too quickly. The military department found that there were not enough officers to train and manage. They wanted these soldiers from the bottom to quickly learn to obey superiors and military regulations. In addition to violent corporal punishment, it was repeated During the brainwashing ceremony, the soldiers believed that the emperor was supreme. Obedience to the superior was the will of the emperor. They were fighting for the emperor, and the army represented the power of the emperor.

Now the question is coming, not many people in Japan have dared to show disrespect to the emperor, and the power of the emperor has overridden everything, even the cabinet dare not oppose the decision made by the emperor, let alone the army navy, as long as Emperor Hirohito gave a purpose that he could deprive any general. This time the army generals knew that Yuren was really getting mad. The Army’s behavior was a blatant violation of the decisions made by the Cabinet. These were all approved by him. This is equivalent to hitting his face in public in front of the world. It is really unbearable. Anyone else will be angry.

Tojo's report to the cabinet was mixed with a lot of water. In order to establish his personal authority and at the same time let the emperor get angry as soon as possible, he must come up with some sufficient weight of victims. From the confessions of the survivors and the left-behind troops, Tojo has actually discovered the truth. This matter is actually a hot-headed Lieutenant Colonel Redu who self-talks to himself. However, it should be said that Mori originally was impulsive, and he can see that he should have been premeditated. Before that, he made a lot of preparations. From this point of view, the captain of the twenty-first wing is difficult to escape the crime of oversight.

But with only one captain and one captain coming out, it is impossible for the emperor and the cabinet to be satisfied. In other words, he couldn’t believe it was a small captain who could do it alone? No one noticed the movement of the seven or eight hundred officers and soldiers. Could it be that all of the fifth division was dead? This kind of report was handed in. Not only was his image irreversible, he even suspected that the army had done things inside and took two Zuojun officers out to blame, apparently to cover the black hand behind the scenes. Was the military department involved in this matter, did that Morimoto have a high-level general behind his back, and what role did the staff headquarters play in it? Is there a second Kawamoto masterpiece beside this Morimoto?

In order to avoid too much association between the Cabinet and Hirohito, Tojo has sold his strength this time, and he has vigorously planted. During these three days, he communicated frequently with his allies in the military, and eventually most of the military generals agreed. In addition to his treatment plan, he also said that whether it is to appease the subordinates or suppress the opposition, they will stand on the side of the army minister.

Tojo wrote in this report that way. Because a handful of senior military officers had misunderstood the national policy of the empire and issued improper orders, which led to the misjudgement of the situation by the subordinate military officers, which eventually led to the tragic cross-border incident. What is wrong understanding, what is the inappropriate command, and what caused the misjudgment, Tojo did not specify, but he believes that some of the people who read the report will be unspoken, and no one will get to the bottom. Anyway, as long as the tone is set, the following things will be easier to handle.

Regarding the handling of the relevant responsible person, Tojo can be said to be extremely ruthless, leaving no room for the other party at all. It is conceivable that after this matter passes, the reputation of the razor Tojo will be sung again in the army. The direct superior unit of the Fifth Division, the establishment of the 22nd Army of the Army, was cancelled, and the headquarters from the commander Lieutenant General Kuna Nai, the Chief of Staff Major General Wakamatsu, and the General Staff were all relieved and transferred Entered the reserve. Lieutenant General Nakamura, the commander of the Fifth Division, was dismissed, and at the same time ordered to retire, the rank was also relegated to Dasuo. The main officer of the division headquarters was all relegated.

21st Wing Wing Leader Misuke Yoshinosuke was arrested and brought to military court for conviction against military orders and malfeasance. If the crime is confirmed, the maximum sentence is death. The main commander of the Wing Command was dismissed and investigated, and the post was taken over by the deputy.

The party, Morimoto Miyake, confirmed that he was dead and exempted from military trial, because his personal arbitrariness caused the Morimoto Brigade to be almost completely annihilated, causing serious losses that the Royal Army has never had in the past few years, and severely dampened the military power and the Royal Army Morale also caused a serious diplomatic incident, hurting the relationship between the Great Japanese Empire and the friendly nations, resulting in the casualties of the friendly sergeants in this incident. The military department decided to deprive Morimoto's military rank and all honors, and imposed a fine of 15,000 yen on it, paid by his family.

All the dead generals of the Morimoto Brigade were expelled from the military, and they were not allowed to be compassionate or enter the shrine to worship. The soldiers who died in the Morimoto Brigade were dedicated to the last person in this incident, and they were allowed to deal with and die in battle.

Other relevant persons in the same case, including three captains, seven lieutenants, eleven lieutenants, six cao changs, two military caoes, and nineteen soldiers have been referred to the Imperial Japanese Gendarmerie Command for investigation. Accept the trial of the military court.

The release of the Tojo report gave the Emperor and the Cabinet an explanation. The question the Japanese faced was how to do so to give the Germans an explanation. (To be continued.)