Information AboutTadamichi Kuribayashi |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT TADAMICHI KURIBAYASHI | |
| 1891 births | |
| 1945 deaths | |
| japanese generals | |
| japanese military personnel of world war ii | |
| people from nagano prefecture | |
| battle of iwo jima | |
Tadamichi Kuribayashi (, 1891 in Nagano City , Japan – March 23 , 1945 on Iwo Jima , Japan ) was a Lieutenant General in the Imperial Japanese Army , best known as overall commander of the Japanese garrison during most of the Battle Of Iwo Jima in World War II . Assigned by Prime Minister Hideki Tojo to defend the island of Iwo Jima , Kuribayashi led a force of 21,000 men without air or naval support against the United States invasion force of 100,000. In the ensuing battle almost all Japanese soldiers fought to the death. Only 216 surrendered. The general died near the end of the battle and has since been recognized by the Japanese Government for his dedication in commanding the staunch Defense of the island against overwhelming odds, with the certain knowledge that he and his men would die in the inevitable defeat. Kuribayashi sent many letters home to his family prior to the engagement. The letters remain a valuable chronicle of the time. LIFE BEFORE THE WAR Kuribayashi was born into a low class Samurai descent family. After graduating from Nagano high school, he passed the college entrance exam in Shanghai . Although he had aspired to be a journalist, Kuribayashi was persuaded by his high school teachers to join the Imperial Japanese Army Academy . After graduating from the Academy in 1914, he trained as a cavalry officer. In 1923 he graduated from the Army War College with splendid marks and received a military sabre from Emperor Hirohito . Kuribayashi married Yoshie Kuribayashi in December of that year. Together they had three daughters and a son. He was designated as the deputy Military Attaché to Washington DC in 1928. For two years Kuribayashi traveled across the United States , conducting extensive military and industrial research. For a short time he studied at Harvard University . He precisely evaluated the overwhelming industrial capacity of the US. In one of his letters to his family he said, "It is desperate to enter the war with the USA." After returning to Tokyo he was promoted to the rank of Major and appointed as the first IJA military attaché to Canada in 1931. During his services in IJA staff headquarters in Tokyo he wrote lyrics for several martial songs. In 1940 Kuribayashi was promoted to Major General. BATTLE OF IWO JIMA See Also: Battle of Iwo Jima See Also: Planning for the Battle of Iwo Jima There were two things of which Kuribayashi was certain: that Iwo Jima would eventually fall to the United States and that he and his garrison would all perish. Nevertheless he was determined to make the fall of Iwo Jima as costly as possible to the United States. General Kuribayashi had carefully studied other US assaults and had determined that it would be wisest not to seriously contest the beach landings. Instead, the defense of Iwo Jima was fought almost entirely underground. However, to appease those in the Japanese High Command, he committed a battalion of troops to defensive positions just off the beaches. American naval gunfire and intense air support would wipe out nearly all of these defenders before the first LVT s touched the volcanic ash of the Iwo shore. The Japanese honeycombed the island with more than 30 km (18 miles) of tunnels, 5,000 caves, and Pillboxes . He also instructed his troops that each man should kill 10 of the enemy before they were killed in turn. Kuribayashi strictly forbade the Banzai Charge — he viewed it as ineffective, especially because the loud scream before the suicidal charge gave the enemy early warning. His men proceeded with the "silent" charge, which confused many of the Americans, who were used to the loud banzai charge in the Battle Of Saipan . The cause of General Kuribayashi’s death remains a mystery. His men provided contradictory reports and his remains could not be traced. He was most likely killed in action upon leading the final assault. The general's body could not be identified afterwards for he had taken off his rank badge to fight as a regular soldier. Less credible theories of his death include suicide ( Seppuku ) or murder by a fellow Japanese soldier. The US declared Iwo Jima secure on March 26 , 1945 , after 6,800 U.S. Marines were killed and more than 17,000 wounded. Only 216 of the 21,000 Japanese defenders survived to be captured. PORTRAYAL IN FILM Kuribayashi is portrayed by actor Ken Watanabe in '' Letters From Iwo Jima '', a film directed by Clint Eastwood about the Battle of Iwo Jima from the Japanese perspective. The film was released in December 2006. Eastwood also directed a precursor, '' Flags Of Our Fathers '', which told the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima from the American perspective. It was released in October 2006. A tentative title for ''Letters from Iwo Jima'' was "Lamps Before the Wind," taken from a line in a letter from Kuribayashi to his son, Taro: ''"The life of your father is just like a lamp before the wind."'' James Bradley, Flags of Our Fathers, page 148 REFERENCES
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