Imperial Japanese Army

The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1867 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of War, both of which were nominally subordinate to the emperor as supreme commander of the army and the navy.

Imperial Japanese Army in Days of Infamy
The Imperial Japanese Army was the main invasion of force during the conquest of Hawaii in 1941-42. It was also responsible for the day-to-day administration of the territory from 1942-1943, with General Tomoyuki Yamashita effectively operating as military governor, despite the fact that the Japanese goverment had reconstituted the Kingdom of Hawaii under Stanley Owana Laanui.

The traditional rivalry between the IJA and the Imperial Japanese Navy was in many ways intensified during the occupation of Hawaii. Although the IJN was the impetus for the invasion, and was instrumental in first breaking the US Naval forces protecting Hawaii, as the year passed, the IJN's supply lines were stretched to the breaking point. Thus, a US campaign of submarine warfare against Japanese shipping left Hawaii isolated, and left both the IJA and IJN in a progressively weakened position. By 1943, the US was able to overrun the islands, capturing or killing most of the IJA stationed on the island.