--- product_id: 16293486 title: "Japan's Imperial Army: Its Rise and Fall, 1853-1945 (Modern War Studies Series)" brand: "edward j. drea" price: "€ 116.66" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.hr/products/16293486-japans-imperial-army-its-rise-and-fall-1853-1945-modern store_origin: HR region: Croatia --- # Japan's Imperial Army: Its Rise and Fall, 1853-1945 (Modern War Studies Series) **Brand:** edward j. drea **Price:** € 116.66 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Japan's Imperial Army: Its Rise and Fall, 1853-1945 (Modern War Studies Series) by edward j. drea - **How much does it cost?** € 116.66 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.hr](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/16293486-japans-imperial-army-its-rise-and-fall-1853-1945-modern) ## Best For - edward j. drea enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted edward j. drea brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Full description not available ## Images ![Japan's Imperial Army: Its Rise and Fall, 1853-1945 (Modern War Studies Series) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71C-JxRcHxL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Work on an Army Responsible only to Itself and its Emperor *by A***R on Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2009* This is an excellent, scholarly work, providing the American reader with an overview of the the history of the Japanese Army and its role in the rise of Japan from the Meiji restoration through World War II. My only criticism is that the book should have been three times as long as its 262 pages, since there were many subjects and incidents that needed to be expanded. Therefore, it must be considered as a comprehensive overview with many subjects to be expanded through further reading by those interested. Please do not take this to mean this work is introductory, however, it is much more than that. One might also read other works like the venerable "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" by Ruth Benedict to more fully comprehend the Japanese culture that gave rise and support to the army. Most history books pass over the Meiji Restoration as inevitable given the decadence of the Shogunate and the backwardness of Japan before Perry's appearance. Clearly, the restoration was by no means inevitable, and the military support given to it by two domains/provinces, Choshu and Satsuma, determined the makeup and leadership of the Army for many years thereafter. In Japanese culture, fighting was done by samurai, not by the common people, and indeed, it took some time before it was appreciated that individuals of common or humble origin could make good soldiers. The pattern of brutality in the army arose out of the culture with the assumption that the common soldier needed to be brutalized to become a good fighting man. In addition, the army belonged to the emperor, not the country, and a militaristic spirit was taught to the soldiers as well as the people. This fighting spirit was supposedly able to trump all adversity, including material deficiencies, and as an outgrown of that, logistics and other service emements in the Japanese Army were neglected and often failed in fulfilling their roles. Nonetheless, thirty-five years after the Meiji government began reorganizing the army, it was able to defeat a major European power, Russia. The text shows the difficulties in forming this army, which was more or less constantly in a state of re-organization the entire time. Officers were sent to French and German military schools for training, and European instructors were brought to Japan. Transforming small regional samurai forces relying on medieval weaponry into modern mass formations of trained common soldiers with substantial firepower and artillery was not easy to accomplish. But even by the Boxer Rebellion, Japanese detachments were proving their combat worth as equal to the Europeans. This book does not focus on the Japanese Navy which underwent similar teething problems and development. The army greatly impacted Japanese politics as a separate force, and the Army Minister held a position of importance far above what a similar title held in the West. In addition, younger army officers were always capable of rebelling in the name of the Emperor and for the good of the state, usually paying with their lives for their actions. But Prime Ministers were assassinated, and the army was able to bully its opposition. On top of that, junior officers could even start wars, like they did at the Marco Polo Bridge. The army was simply a state unto itself, with the power to dominate the government and take the nation into war as desired. Until after the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, the army leadership was undecided on whether it wanted Japan to be a regional power or a world power. Their preceived humiliation in the terms of Portsmouth led them to the latter course, a path that Japan had neither the population nor the material (including economic) resources to travel. Although the army prepared well for the next war with Russia, it became embroiled in a long war with China where their lack of population doomed their efforts at conquering China or winning a negotiated peace. Then the Navy pushed Japan into adopting a strategy of southern expansion -- a strategy for which the army was unprepared and could not fight. Although their armored formations were weak as compared to the Soviet Union's, the army had prepared for war with the Soviet Union rather than the United States. Against the US, their only chance was to cause the US sufficient casualties so that the American people would lose heart and call for their government to make peace (like they did over Vietnam.) Unfortunately for the Japanese, Pearl Harbor prevented that. All in all, this is an excellent book, subject to the limitations given above. I recommend it to all those readers interested in Japan or World War II. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you want to know about the Japanese Imperial Army (IJA) *by C***O on Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2014* I could begin this review saying that reading this book you will be able to understand why Japan has been able to win the first Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) and the Russo - Japanese War (1904-05) and to lose WWII, but this book gives you much more , indeed it gives the IJA's most complete history that you can possibli find.The author explaines how happened the transition from the samurai's time to the imperial army, he gives you a complete account of all the rebellions and the attempted coups happened in the Japan's history since 1853.At the same time the author follows the IJA's technogical and tactical evolutions.He explaines how Japan got involved in the first Sino-Japanese War and how he won it, then he follows the birth and the development of the causes of the Russian-Japanese War and he shows all the problems and the failures met by the IJA before to effectively win this conflict.Then coming near to WWII, he is able to show how the IJA and the IJN (Imperial Japanese Navy) were not able to agree which would have been to be considered the next Japan's "true" enemy, indeed the IJA was thinking about Soviet Union, and the IJN was thinking about the USA, and because of the fact that in Japan it had never existed a political or militar control about both IJA and IJN, this question has never been solved , bringing to the absurd situation that both of them wanted an huge budget to fight, each, their own "true" enemy.So, Japan has been able to unify, even before the WWII's beginning in Europe, two groups very different groups of nations, as Soviet Union and USA and the British Empire, in an undeclared coalition against itself, when Japan began the long war against China (1931-1945).The book is full of first hand accounts, because of the author's access to a lot of diaries; the maps are detailed and relevant.The author brings to the discovery of an entire world, with its traditions, legends and myths.Very, very interesting and charming. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.0 out of 5 stars Shows the Impact of Organizational Culture *by T***E on Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2020* This book is excellent but for uncommon reasons. The book like the title infers covers the Japanese Army. It focuses heavily on events pre-WWII era. The book covers the impact of things like decisions, trends and wars. Through the coverage of the pre-events you will see the impact in Japanese fighting during WWII. This story will exhibit how organizational culture evolves. Any leader of a large organization will love this book for that. Decisions, budgets and priorities have impacts and at times for years later.An example is how the Japanese injected an overdoes of enthusiasm in to the organization. It took the form of bushido culture setting up standards of conduct for the individual soldier. That gave birth to the Kamikaze. It also justified or covered up the lack of equipment for the Army. The soldier bravery will compensate not having modern weapons. The book is very light on the events of WWII. 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