many Japanese opinion leaders were of the belief that Japan had an obligation to bring independence and prosperity to Asian countries oppressed under Western colonial rule. As the first modern state in Asia, Japan saw itself as the region’s leader, and sought to establish a new Asian cooperative scheme to counter traditional colonial powers. Firm in their resolve, Japanese leaders became oblivious to growing anti-Japanese sentiment throughout Asia, and a cruel war ensued that pitted Japan against China and other Asian countries.
Chiang Kai-shek aimed for unity in China and from the early 1920s and began advancing through to the north to subjugate military cliques in the region. He reached Beijing in 1928, causing considerable tension with the Japanese Army in Manchuria. In 1931, Japan sparked the Manchurian Incident in northeast China. The following year, the Japanese Army initiated the establishment of “Manchoukuo” (the State of Manchuria) with the “Last Emperor” Pu-Yi of the Qing dynasty on the throne. This action was heavily criticized by the League of Nations and led to Japan’s withdrawal from the organization.
Japan plotted to broaden its interests and influence Beijing and Tianjin in northern China. The main purpose was to cope with the growing influence of Communism exerted by the Soviet Union over northeast China, and to prepare for war with the Soviet Union in the future. Tension continued to escalate between Japan and the anti-Japanese front led by Chiang Kai-shek of the Chinese Nationalist Party, as well as Mao Zedong of the Chinese Communist Party. On July 7, 1937, a confrontation between the Japanese and Chinese armies known as the Marco Polo Bridge Incident broke out in the outskirts Beijing at midnight.
At the time the Japanese Cabinet and Army were divided into factions supporting either all-out war or peaceful negotiation. The pro-war faction looked down on the Chinese Army as lacking vitality and fighting spirit, and assumed that victory could be attained in a relatively short period of time. They took the initiative which led to further repercussions in Shanghai and middle China along the Yangtze River. The Shanghai Incident broke out in August 1937, and military aggression started to intensify. In December that year, Japan invaded Nanjing, the capital of China. Chiang Kai-shek retreated to Chongqing in Sichuan Province to the west of China, thereby establishing a secure center for all out resistance backed by the Americans, British, and the Soviet Union. The second Sino-Japanese War was now in full swing.
The Second World War was fought between the Axis powers (Germany, Italy, Japan) and the Allies. It was triggered In September 1939 with Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland in spite of having had its independence guaranteed by Britain and France. In September 1940, the Tripartite Pact between Germany, Japan, and Italy was concluded under the Fumimaro-Konoe Cabinet. It provoked a strong reaction from the United States and the Allies who enforced strict economic sanctions against Japan such as an embargo on oil and iron exports.
In the spring of 1941 Prime Minister Konoe maximized efforts to negotiate with the U.S. and avert hostilities. A major reason for conflict between Japan and the U.S. was economic competition in China, especially after the Russo-Japanese War. The U.S. grew evermore distrustful of Japan after the Manchurian Incident, and so the crucial issue at the heart of negotiation for the Americans was the withdrawal of the Imperial Japanese Army from China.
In the middle of negotiations in July 1941, the Japanese Army moved into the southern region of French Indochina making the situation extremely volatile. Konoe tried urgently to talk directly with President Franklin Roosevelt. According to the dictates of the Meiji Constitution, however, the prerogative of supreme command for both the Army and Navy was wielded by the Emperor and was completely independent of the Cabinet or Diet. Even the Prime Minister had no mandate to command the nation’s military.
Roosevelt and Churchill were already determined to wage war with Japan at that time, and the slow pace of the negotiations under Konoe gave the Americans ample time to prepare for war. Konoe pleaded with Army Minister Hideki Tojo to withdraw the Army from China. His pleas were rejected outright, resulting Konoe dissolving his cabinet in October 1941. Tojo succeeded Konoe as Prime Minister.
Tojo did not jump immediately into hostilities with the United States as Emperor Hirohito still sought a peaceful resolution. In both the Army and Navy, especially in the Navy, there were staunch opponents to waging war against America. It was acknowledged that Japan had neither the military power nor the resources to match the United States in all out armed conflict. Nevertheless, the line of thought that favored immediate military action in order to acquire territories to bargain with in negotiations came to the fore, lest Japan missed its chance and faced absolute defeat in the future.
The catalyst that finally forced Japan’s hand was the Hull note (“Outline of Proposed Basis for Agreement Between the United States and Japan”) which was delivered to Japan on November 26, 1941. It demanded that Japan abandon its interests and claims in China, not only those which had been acquired by invasion, but also those rights and interests which were legally procured through negotiation after the Russo-Japanese War. It was essentially an ultimatum that Japan could never agree to, and was thus equivalent to a declaration of war.
Commander in Chief of the Combined Fleet, Isoroku Yamamoto, was strongly opposed to the Tripartite Pact and any thought of entering a war against America. Now he was obliged to plan and prepare the Navy for an attack on Pearl Harbor on December 8, 1941. The operation resulted in a spectacular victory and solidified America’s resolve for war. Many have since observed that Roosevelt and Churchill actually desired that Japan make the first move to force America’s hand.
In the early stages of the war, Japan achieved some outstanding victories on the Malay Peninsula, Singapore, Philippines, etc. It expanded its control over the West Pacific and even closed in on the north of Australia. It was the Battle of Midway in June 1942, northwest of the Hawaiian archipelago that proved to be a major turning point in the war. Japan lost many carriers, aircraft, and experienced pilots.
In February 1943, Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands was captured by the U.S. after some furious fighting. In February 1944, Truk Lagoon, Japan’s main military base in the South Pacific theater, was laid to waste by naval air attack and hundreds of Japanese fighter planes were destroyed. In June to July 1944, Japan’s stronghold in Saipan was annihilated in the Battle of Mariana Sea. In October of that year, the Japanese Naval Fleet was routed in the Battle of Leyte Gulf which Odachi participated in while stationed in the Philippines.
In February to March 1945, the U.S. recaptured the Philippine islands which General MacArthur departed with his famous words “I shall return.” Shortly after, Japanese military might was decimated in the Pacific following their defeat at the famous Battle of Iwojima. The Japanese mainland was now the target of ferocious air raids. In the spring of 1945, the U.S. began its operation to take Okinawa. The Japanese Army and Navy stationed there were wiped out by June.
Meanwhile, the war in China was also going badly for the Japanese. Supported by the United States, the staunch anti-Japanese resistance led by Chiang Kai-shek was a constant thorn in Japan’s side. Japan won most of its battles in China initially, and came to occupy major cities throughout the country but could not make China yield completely. The Americans even commenced with B-24 and B-29 raids against mainland Japan and Taiwan from deep within the Chinese mainland.
On July 26, 1945, the Potsdam Declaration demanded Japan’s unconditional surrender. Cabinet, Army and Navy leaders debated furiously about the pros and cons of accepting the conditions. On August 6 and 9, atomic bombs were dropped on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Soviet Union took this opportunity to declare war against Japan and rushed in to take over Manchuria and the northern territories formerly occupied by Japan.
It was with an official declaration by Emperor Hirohito that Japan surrendered to the Allies. At noon on August 15, Hirohito made his official announcement to the Japanese people over the radio. This was just as Odachi’s was about to depart on his final Kamikaze mission from Taiwan. Odachi and his comrades fought against Allied forces for around one year, a relatively short period. However, it was the time in which the writing was on the wall for the Japanese. As many veteran senior pilots had died, the now hopeless responsibility of protecting the country fell on the shoulders of Odachi and his friends through the most desperate of tactics—Kamikaze.
Although we didn’t know it at the time, the Imperial Japanese Navy