You may recall Kuribayashi Tadamichi as the Japanese general in the Battle of Iwo Jima. Yet unlike most Japanese generals during World War II, Kuribayashi was one of the few who did not advocate banzai charges, even refusing to allow them at all due to the value he placed in the lives of his soldiers. I was very intrigued by this general who was against such a waste of life yet still managed to put up such an intractable defense at Iwo Jima.
Kuribayashi was born in 1891 in a samurai family, being indoctrinated with a code of honor from birth. As a high schooler, Kuribayashi was both excellent at literature and a natural leader, having led a strike against his own high school at one point. After graduating high school, Kuribayashi joined the Japanese army, graduating in 1914 and continuing to study cavalry in 1918. Kuribayashi graduated from the Army War College with high distinction.
Kuribayashi’s first major encounter with the United States was during his role as deputy military attache (a military expert assigned to diplomatic missions) to Washington D.C. As a captain, he conducted research across the United States, learning how to drive even studying at Harvard for a brief period. He often wrote back to his son describing his experiences in the United States, highlighting Kuribayashi’s extensive studying and diligence. Through his firsthand experience of America’s industrial might, Kuribayashi realized early on as a military general that “the United States is the last country in the world Japan should fight.” Kuribayashi’s cautions about the danger in America, along with the friendships he had established there, brought him disfavor in the military ranks of the Japanese army.
After serving as deputy military attache in the United States, he became the first attache to Canada. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel and then major general in the Imperial Japanese Army. Kuribayashi became the Chief of Staff for the Japanese 23rd army during the invasion of Hong Kong. Kuribayashi already showed an unusual amount of care for his soldiers when he visited his wounded men in the hospital.
In May 1944, he became commander of the 109th division. However, his attitude, that trying to defeat the United States was a futile effort, was interpreted by the extreme militarists that Kurabayashi was a defeatist, which led to a however subtle lack of favor among the Japanese leaders. When Kuribayashi was ordered to defend Iwo Jima at all costs, some historians believe that Kuribayashi was the one assigned due to his lack of popularity among the radical nationalists. There was nobody who didn’t realize that Kuribayashi’s duty was a suicide mission, with Kuribayashi himself believing that even his own body would not be able to be recovered. This particular departing gift speaks for itself: before leaving for Iwo Jima, he sent detailed instructions to his son for repairing his house’s kitchen.
Suffering the sweltering heat and relentless mosquitoes at Iwo Jima, Kuribayashi faced a dire lack of water and rations, forcing them to feed on edible weeds and assemble as much rainwater as possible. Kuribayashi decided early on that they would be fighting a battle of attrition in order to rack up as many American casualties as possible. Having experienced America firsthand, Kuribayashi hoped that a high death count would yield a severe enough public reaction so that an early peace could be reached. He distributed six battle vows, outlining the extent and vigor in which the Japanese soldiers were expected to fight against the Americans.
During the battle itself, as we had read, the Japanese put up a ferocious defense, refusing to relent or be taken prisoner at all costs. Yet one unique aspect of Kuribayashi’s defense was his refusal to allow any of his men to perform any Banzai charges. Similar to Kuribayashi’s unique care for his wounded soldiers, Kuribayashi simply could not allow his men to commit themselves to such wanton losses of life. Kuribayashi instead believed that every single soldier would put their lives to as much value as possible by living and fighting for as much as they could. Instead of ordering reckless charges and yielding meaningless sacrifices, he believed in delaying the American advance as much as he could. Some theorize that his dying poems were meant as a protest to the Japanese practice of sending soldiers to their deaths without reservations.
Although we may think of the Japanese soldiers as reckless and perhaps even foolish for being so unwilling to surrender and constantly charging to their deaths under military tradition, Kuribayashi’s leadership shows that the latter assumption at the very least did not encompass all Japanese. Unlike the diehard militarists in the Japanese government, Kuribayashi was a unique general who was experienced in American affairs and who uniquely valued the lives of his soldiers. Kuribayashi’s story is an important lesson that stereotypes of Japanese leaders should not be generalized, and that the attitude of a country does not necessarily reflect the attitudes of everyone in it.
No comments:
Post a Comment