J. P. Cross - Jungle warfare : experiences and encounters

Japanese archives hold only limited information regarding training for tropical warfare in the Imperial Japanese Army in the Second World War. In none of the headings does the word jungle appear. Translated extracts include only three aspects of warfare and I give them as I received them from Tokyo:

• Study of Education and Training to adapt Army troops for operations in Southern Theater (or Area);
• Part of Lessons from the experience of operations in South (Imperial Headquarters, Army Section, 1942, August);
• Detailed record of operations by the 5th Division.

Education and Training includes Tropical operations in general, Application of troops, Weapon, supply, sanitation, etc., Miscellaneous .

Subjects that applied to troops are:

1. Activities of troops on vehicles;
2. Reference for anti-airborne combat;
3. Reference for landing combat;
4. Reference for landing combat by field artillery;
5. Reference for commanding motor bicycles;
6. Reference for transportation commander mission while in the ship transportation;

Subjects covered by Weapon, supply, sanitation, etc include:

• 7 Reference for maintenance of aviation (equipment) in tropical area;
• 8 Reference for handling of signal equipment in tropical area;
• 9 Reference for handling of ammunition in tropical area;
• 10 Reference for sanitation (management) while in ship transportation;
• 11 Reference for handling of tank, trailer and automobile in tropical area;
• 12 Reference for medical facilities when staying in tropical area;
• 13 Warning (or advice) for temporary piling and storage of weapons and ammunition in tropical area;
• 14 Warning (or advice) for usage of weapon in tropical area;
• 15 Reference for aliment duties in tropical operations;
• 16 Reference for supply duties in tropical operations;
• 17 Reference for accounting duties in tropical area;

Miscellaneous covers:

• 18 Reference for ideological warfare aiming Southern area (Thailand edition) October 1941;
• 19 Reference for ideological warfare aiming Southern area (Burma edition) December 1941;
• 20 You can win the war just reading this;
• 21 Reference for the identification of aircraft of UK, USA and USSR, September 1941.

You can win the war just reading this was prepared to spread the results of research and study by the Taiwan Army Research Department to all the officers and men participating in the (tropical) operations. It was distributed to each individual on board the troopship. Someone says that the pamphlet was printed 400 thousand copies, and in this case almost all participating soldiers received it. The pamphlet was written in easy colloquial Japanese with 70 pages in 18 clauses. On top the aim of publishing the pamphlet and the items to be well considered are stated and then the following contents are stated:

1. What place is the Southern operation area;
2. Why you have to fight and how to be fought;
3. How will proceed the war;
4. What you should do on board the ship;
5. Landing combat;
6. March in tropical area;
7. Stationing and bivouac in tropical area;
8. Scouting (reconnaissance) and security;
9. Combat;
10. Protection of gas;
11. For signal soldiers;
12. For automobile soldiers;
13. Love your weapon;
14. Ailment;
15. Sanitation;
16. Sanitation of horse;
17. Manoeuvre at specific terrain;
18. Conclusion.

The number of books written about all that I have touched on is legion, with too many to list here. For further reading the following are recommended: