Was a World War 2 Japanese Offensive in 1944 a Master Stroke?

The 1944 Japanese offensive of “Operation Ichigo” is one of the more under reported offensives of World War Two. However, this offensive would have an important effect on the outcome of the Pacific theater. This operation took place in China and accomplished some important Japanese military objectives. It would have a direct consequence on the U.S. bombings over Japan, and was a major Japanese military victory.

Daniel Boustead returns to the site and explains.

Japanese forces invading Henan, China in 1944.

In April 1944, the Japanese launched their first major offensive in China since they captured Hankow in 1938 ([1]). The operation was code named Ichigo meaning “Number One”. The plan involved Japanese forces in north China who were ordered southward to take the main north-south rail lines and the capture the U.S. Army Air Force’s east China Air bases. At the same time, other forces holding an enclave in the far south around (Canton and Hong Kong) were instructed to drive to the west and clear a line to the French Indochina border. This separate action was designed to open a direct line of communication between the Japanese in China and those Japanese forces in Southeast Asia.

The principal objectives for Operation Ichigo were as follows: seize the north-south rail line, a series of key towns, and the air bases. These were built by General Claire Chenault in 1938 and 1939. Chenault built these air bases for the Chinese Air Force and would be subsequently expanded to accommodate his Fourteenth Army Air Force.

This Japanese force consisted of 15 Imperial Japanese Army Divisions, plus five independent Imperial Japanese Army brigades. This force was commanded by General Shunroku Hata.

Early success

The Japanese achieved one of their first goals early in the operation. As the Japanese advanced the Chinese Army of 300,000 men simply capitulated to them ([2]). Japanese units consisting of only 500 men routed thousands of Chinese. In the resulting panic, Chinese officers commandeered most of the available trucks to escape with their families and possessions. It took only three weeks from April to May, 1944, for the Japanese to capture their first important objectives of the Yellow and the Yangtze Rivers. It was soon after the Japanese captured the Yangtze River in May 1944, that they pushed forward to General Chennault’s air bases. The Chinese city of Changsa barred the Japanese from Chenault’s air bases.

Changsha was defended by Chinese General Hsueh Yueh, who would soon make a fatal mistake that sealed the fate of the city. Right before the attack, General Yueh moved his headquarters 100 miles to the south to prepare the defense of Hengyang, China, where General Chenault’s northernmost air bases were located ([3]). This resulted in no one being able to coordinate the defense of Changsha. When the Chinese army artillery commander of Changsha asked General Yueh for infantry to protect his artillery, General Yueh refused. The outcome of these fatal decisions was apparent. The Japanese quickly destroyed the unprotected artillery and then swept away the unprotected infantry as Changsha fell to Japanese control in May 1944.

Advances

The Japanese Army then turned their attention to capturing Hengyang, China ([4]). It surrounded Hengyang by June 1944 and captured it by August, 1944(5).  On August 26, 1944 6,000 Japanese counterattacked at Lungling, China and the Chinese Y-Force was forced to retreat (22). In September 1944, the Imperial Japanese Army captured the Fourteenth Air Force base at Lingling, 80 miles southwest of Hengyang, China (6). By October 1944, Imperial Japanese Army forces were threatening Kweilin, China, home of the largest of General Chennault’s air bases. On November 10, 1944 the Imperial Japanese Army captured Kweilin, China (7).  In the aftermath of the fall of Kweilin in November 1944, Imperial Japanese forces began advancing towards Kunming, China (13). The Kunming advance further threatened General Chennault’s Fourteenth Air Force bases. The Japanese forces then moved to take over Chennault’s base at Liuchow, some 100 miles to the southwest of Kweilin. It was soon after this they pushed southward to take four bases around Nanning. They then drove southwest for a link up with other Japanese forces in French Indochina.

The Imperial Japanese Army had succeeded in their twin objectives: capturing the east China airfields and securing the main railway line to the south. As part of this Ichigo advance the IJA’s Eleventh Army (under the command of Lieutenant Isamu Yokoyama), began operating under his own his initiative, and quickly captured the American Chinese air base. This air base was located on the northwest trail towards the Chinese city of Kweiyang. The Chinese who were defending this air base quickly capitulated to the Japanese. This was due to their lack of supplies and weapons.

By early December 1944, the only thing that stood in the way of the Japanese Eleventh Army and the Ichigo offensive were Chennault’s air force. The Japanese forces also were facing the Chinese Army forces in their drive towards Kunming and Chunking China. Chennault’s air force was operating east of the Ichigo advance. The Japanese 11thArmy stopped its advance towards Kunming in December 1944. They had outrun their supply lines and retreated back slightly to garrison for the winter.

Operation Ichigo was such a success that American General Wedemeyer estimated that it would result in the Japanese Army releasing 25 divisions to fight elsewhere. General Wedemeyer also estimated that if the Japanese captured all of China, they could hold out for years, long after the Americans invaded the Japanese Home Islands.

Allied air strikes

On February 15, 1944 at an Allied meeting in New Delhi, General Wolf presented General Order No.16 (14). In General Order No.16, it stated that General Chennault and his Fourteenth Army Air Forces would be responsible for fighter defense of B-29 bases in China. The Japanese knew it was only a matter of time before the B-29 Bombers would be using the Fourteenth Army Air Force bases. The first B-29 Bombers took off from Chengtu, China, to bomb the Coke Ovens at the Imperial Iron and Steel Works at Yawata, Japan (8). The first B-29 Yawata raid lasted from the nights of June 15 to June 16, 1944. The photoreconnaissance results of the raid were disappointing. Only a single bomb wrecked a small building about three quarters of a mile away from the Coke Ovens. On July 7 to July 8, 1944, B-29 Bombers took off from a base near Chengtu, China to strike the Japanese Naval base at Sasebo, Japan (9). The raid was a failure because the bombs had missed the port facility by as much as 12 miles. This was due to mechanical problems with the radar bombing system. On August 10, 1944, 24 B-29 Bombers flew from Chengtu, China to Nagasaki and dropped 63 tons of incendiaries and fragmentation bombs on the city’s shipyards (10). On August 20, 1944, B-29 Bombers launched from Chengtu China caused little damage to the coke ovens at the Imperial Iron and Steel Works at Yawata Japan (11). On October 25, 1944, 78 B-29 Bombers took off from Chengtu, China and bombed Omura, Japan (12). According to strike photos and later reconnaissance on November 6, 1944, the Omura raid did a considerable amount of damage on the target, especially in the aluminum fabrication industry of the city. B-29 raids based out of China and India would end in early 1945 (21).

The early B-29 raids from the Mariana Islands on Japan produced varied results. On November 24, 1944, a group of B-29 bombers took off from Saipan island (15). The group of 111 B-29 Bomber’s target was the Nakajima Musashino aircraft-engine plant in northwest, Tokyo (16). This raid resulted in only 24 B-29 Bombers who managed to make a hit on the Nakajima Musashino aircraft engine plant. This bombing raid was severely weakened by the 130 MPH Jet Stream wind that blew the bombs off course. On November 27, 1944, a group of B-29 bombers took off from Isley Field Saipan and tried to hit the same target again (17). The results of this second raid were not very good due to poor aiming over the target, and that was only slightly mitigated by radar (18). On December 3, 1944, 86 B-29 Bombers took off from the Marianas Islands to hit the same target (19). The results of this raid were that only 26 bombs hit the target area and the damage to the factory was negligible. On December 13, 1944, a group of B-29 Bombers (based out of the Mariana Islands) struck at the Mitsubishi Aircraft Engine Works at Nagoya, Japan (20). The results of this raid (according to strike photographs) were one-fifth of the plant’s huge roof was blown in. Furthermore, the plant’s engine production was cut from 1,600 engines per month to 1,2000 engines per month and some vital parts of the factory were completely destroyed (20).

Conclusion

The Japanese capture of the American air bases severely reduced the damage to Japanese cities. The early B-29 raids from China and the Mariana Islands produced sparse results. They would have devastated Japan if they had been better coordinated, lasted longer, and had better weather intelligence. Even if the Japanese did not capture the air bases that directly house the B-29 Bombers, the Japanese military offensive along with America’s decision to concentrate on bombing missions from the Mariana Islands, made the Americans realize that bombing from China was no longer a viable option.

“Operation Ichigo” is an often-overlooked military operation. However, it had a strategic and tactical impact on the course of the war.  The operation captured key air bases, railways, and allowed for a link up with forces in Indochina. In addition, it drove the Allies to use nuclear weapons and Operation August Storm to negate the effects of this operation. “Operation Ichigo” was a very successful Japanese offensive.

In Loving memory of my Grandfather Richard Strayer Shue, a World War II veteran, a published Historian, and my inspiration. Born March 9, 1923 and died July 23, 2023.

[1] Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 179.

[2] Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 180.

[3] Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 180 to 181.

[4] Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 181.

5 Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 172.

22 Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 183.

6 Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 188.

7 Moser, Don. China-Burma-India. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1978. 190.

13 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982.71.

14 US Air Force, Office of Air Force History. The Army Air Forces In World War II: The Pacific: Matternhorn to Nagasaki June 1944 to August 1945., Volume No.5. Edited  Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate. 1983. 46.

8 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 57 to 59.

9 Dorr, Robert F. Osprey Combat Aircraft .33 : B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2. Edited by Tony Holmes. Oxford,  Osprey Publishing Limited, United Kingdom, 2002, (2003 reprint). 20.

10 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 61 to 63.

11 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 63 to 64.

12 US Air Force, Office of Air Force History. The Army Air Forces In World War II: The Pacific: Matternhorn to Nagasaki June 1944 to August 1945., Volume No.5. Edited  Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate. 1983. 140.

21 Dorr, Robert F. Osprey Combat Aircraft .33 : B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2. Edited by Tony Holmes. Oxford,  Osprey Publishing Limited, United Kingdom, 2002, (2003 reprint). 31.

15 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 101.

16 Frank, Richard B. Downfall: The End of the Japanese Empire. New York: New York. Random House. 1999. 53.

17 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 103.

18  Frank, Richard B. Downfall: The End of the Japanese Empire. New York: New York. Random House. 1999. 54.

19 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 105.

20 Wheeler, Keith. Bombers Over Japan. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books Inc. 1982. 105 to 106.

The Second Sino-Japanese War and its Legacy: A National Trauma and a Family Tragedy

I was 12 when I went to my great-grandfather's grave in Anhui province, China. Buried under thick undergrowth, the stone coffin bespoke of age with discolouration and cracks. My mother told me that he was a hero, and I didn't know that until I saw the exhibition at a nearby pavilion, detailing his deeds.

Here Jiaxin Liu explains his family’s story amid the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Japanese troops in the ruins of Shanghai in 1937.

Born to a well-to-do family in 1919, my great-grandfather came of age when the Japanese invaded China during World War 2. The Chinese theater was brutal — the Japanese broke through Chinese defense with their technological prowess and committed some of the most unspeakable atrocities. The Yangtze region — where Anhui was situated — was quickly subjugated, and my great-grandfather became a personification of resistance as he led his forces in guerilla battles throughout the countryside. He threatened Japanese control, and a bounty of 8,000 yuan was administered for his capture, dead or alive. In 1942, my great-grandfather was betrayed, resulting in a protracted torture session that resulted in death. Refusing to surrender, my great-grandfather was strapped to the tiger chair, repeatedly whipped, and had his shoulder pierced by screws. It was a storybook sacrifice, and he was memorialized as a local martyr whose valor should be emulated by future generations.

Invasion

Tense relations characterized the war's prelude as a result of Japanese imperialist policy and weakening Chinese authority from civil strife. After controlling Manchuria, the Japanese launched a full scale invasion of China in 1937 after a skirmish at the Marco Polo Bridge. Beijing and Tianjin soon fell, and Chiang Kai-Shek—then leader of the Republic of China (ROC)—declared a full-on resistance movement. The Japanese responded by sieging Shanghai, where they encountered heavy air, sea, and naval opposition as the best Chinese troops were stationed there. Failing to achieve air dominance, the battle dragged on for 3 months until overwhelming Japanese firepower overtook the Chinese, who were often poorly equipped with small arms. Nanjing was next, where a brutal massacre of civilians revealed the utmost depravity of mankind. Yet, advances stalled as the Japanese had insufficient manpower to take over key inland cities such as Chongqing, and the mountainous terrain of Western China provided the natural setting for guerilla warfare as the Chinese decided to "trade space for time", engaging in a war of attrition. This was not easy—concurrently, the ROC were battling the Communists, and the temporary alliance of the Second United Front to fight against the Japanese was tenuous at best. My great-grandfather was under the Communist's wing, and there was little cooperation as he conducted raids on an independent scale. It was a messy period in China's history, one that was characterized by internal and external strife. However, like our nonchalance towards ongoing wars in Yemen and Ethiopia in comparison to the Russo-Ukrainian war, most modern audiences in the West are unfamiliar with this immense conflict. Behind Russia, China accrued the greatest number of war casualties, yet people only hear of Bulge and Dunkirk, not of Nanjing or Shanghai.

Animosities towards the Japanese ran deep after the "Asian holocaust" the Japanese committed in China, most notably expressed in the Rape of Nanking, where the Imperial Japanese Army massacred more than 200,000 civilians. Looting, rape, and mass burials were characteristic behaviours of the "Kill All, Burn All, Loot All" policy of Emperor Hirohito. My great-grandfather's death was a personal anecdote that revealed the ultra-aggressive militarism and coercion which dominated Japanese rule. Such hatred is entrenched—to this day, my grandmother is unable to shake off an innate disaffection towards the Japanese. The Second Sino-Japanese War has embedded deeply into the Chinese psyche. Being the last major foreign invasion to take place in contemporaneity, older generations can personally recount this "darkest age" of Modern Chinese history. In a wider context, it was a climatic coda to the Century of Humiliation — a period of foreign interference in Chinese affairs — that tore down a 5,000 year tradition of imperial dynasties. In a sense, the Second Sino-Japanese war ushered in the conscience of Modern China. China had to become a modern nation subscribed to the Western-centric international order, not a civilization that believed in its unequaled superiority of being the "middle kingdom of the universe". The brutal Japanese invasion was the latest in a string of wake-up calls that made the Chinese question their fall from grace. It was an unforgettable lesson.

Turning

By 1939, the tides had turned with Chinese victories at Changsha and Zaoyi. The aftermath of the victory left China's economy in shambles and civil war between the Nationalists and Communists continued. The Communists, who won the heart of the populace with their indefatigable tenacity of grassroots mobilisations, drove the Nationalists to Taiwan, and the conflict remains till today. Their dominance could not have been possible without the Sino-Japanese war, and the invocation of this pivotal event remains etched in state propaganda and TV shows.

The Chinese victory has recently passed its 77th anniversary on September 3rd. The newer generation worries more about housing prices and job opportunities rather than death by gunfire. To many of my younger cousins in China, Japan is viewed positively with its huge cultural influence of anime and manga. Times change, and so do perceptions. Yet, the horrors of war—while distant—materializes itself in those late-night conversations I had with grandparents. In their trembling tone, they narrated a life much different from ours: instead of seeking to thrive, they merely wished to survive. My paternal grandfather remembered peeking from behind a bush at a Japanese execution of the village elders. My maternal grandfather told me of air raids that seemed like armageddon. The war left an indelible mark on Chinese history, and even people like me, more than half a century after the war, can obtain a first-hand account. Its subtle influence should be preserved, and it is now my generation’s duty to remind posterity that peace is not an a priori condition we take for granted, but an outcome we should work towards.

What do you think of the impact of the Second Sino-Japanese War? Let us know below.

Biography

My name is Jiaxin, and I am currently residing in Singapore. I am passionate about history, especially cultural history, as well as interactions between civilizations. In my free time, I enjoy playing strategy games such as Europa Universalis IV, as well as playing sports and going to the gym.