Text/Jibu As we all know, on December 7, 1941, Japan directly attacked Pearl Harbor in the United States without declaring war. At this point, the Pacific War officially broke out. At the same time, while Japan was attacking Pearl Harbor, they sent another force quickly south and

Text / Jibu

As we all know, on December 7, 1941, Japan directly attacked the Pearl Harbor of the United States without declaring war. At this point, the Pacific War officially broke out. At the same time, just as the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor , they dispatched another force quickly south and directly launched a crazy attack on the Southeast Asian colonies controlled by the established Western powers.

After the war started, Japan relied on its advantage to dominate Southeast Asia. It can be said that it was able to "walk sideways" and beat back the troops of the United States, Britain and other countries. In less than a year, Little Japan swept almost the entire Southeast Asia region.

It is worth mentioning here that many friends will have some doubts about this. At that time, the comprehensive strength of the United States and Britain was very strong, and they had been operating colonies in Southeast Asia for many years. So why did Japan rely on its own efforts? Can it "easily" sweep across Southeast Asia?

Pacific War

The editor will give you a brief analysis. Although the comprehensive strength of the old powers such as the United States and Britain was relatively strong at that time, and they had been operating in Southeast Asia for a long time, when the Pacific War broke out, the old Western powers The defensive force deployed in Southeast Asia is very small.

Moreover, there were four major powers that were relatively powerful in Southeast Asia at that time. They were Britain, France, the United States, and the Netherlands . But among these four countries, the Netherlands and France have almost all lost their territories, and their overseas colonial powers have lost their roots and are almost in a state of survival.

Let’s look at the UK again. When the European battlefield broke out, they were busy fighting Germany and Italy. The main British troops were also transferred to the battlefields in Western Europe and North Africa. At that time, there were only some "old, weak, sick and disabled" left in the British Southeast Asian colonies. "Colonial troops with little combat effectiveness.

Pacific War

Although the number and number of these troops are large, their equipment is poor and the morale of the soldiers is also very low. It is not an exaggeration to describe them as a mob. To put it nicely, these guys are limited to maintaining local order. It works. In order to defend their territory in Southeast Asia, they have pinned all their hopes on the United States.

However, although the United States did not participate in the war at that time, their situation in Southeast Asia was not much better than that of the British. According to statistics, there are more than 100,000 people in the Philippines in the United States, but regardless of the number of people, they are also colonial troops like the British, and the serious troops are only a little more than 20,000.

The more than 20,000 "regular troops" of the United States are actually reorganized from the 8,500-strong guard dispatched from the country. In order to expand, a large number of Filipino soldiers were added to it. In terms of combat effectiveness, , not even a second-rate level.

Pacific War

Therefore, it is almost unrealistic to expect these British and American "miscellaneous" troops to fight against the "elite" of small Japan. After Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, it mobilized half of its navy and 400,000 elite troops from its army, and then divided its forces to attack from Hong Kong, Myanmar, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and other places.

Little Japan invested about 110,000 army elites in the Malayan Campaign alone. At the same time, the navy also used dozens of warships, including 3 combat aircraft carriers. It can be said that Little Japan has done something this time. The blood capital occupies an overwhelming advantage.

For this battle, Little Japan used half of its navy and hundreds of thousands of front-line army troops to fight against the American and British colonial forces who had little combat effectiveness. The result can be imagined. Therefore, Little Japan was able to win in just a short period of time. It’s no surprise that it swept through almost all of Southeast Asia in one year.

Pacific War

However, when Little Japan’s troops hit India, Australia and Midway Island area, they encountered the "regular army" that really encountered the United States and Britain. As you can imagine, Little Japan was beaten badly by the United States and Britain. Very miserable.

Battle of Imphal, Little Japan also had a very difficult life. They were beaten to pieces by the second-rate British and Indian troops. In New Guinea, Little Japan's troops were beaten to pieces by the well-equipped Australian army. The ground was looking for teeth, and then, in order to take revenge, the Australian army attacked Little Japan from Southeast Asia to the Japanese mainland.

Therefore, it can be said that it was not how powerful the Japanese army was at that time, but that they did not encounter any real tough opponents. Assuming that Japan was sent to the European battlefield, it is estimated that they relied on their "family background" "I can't even dance for a few days. Because compared with the established Western powers, Japan's foundation is still far behind.

Pacific War

References for this article: "The Complete History of World War II", "General History of the World", "Detailed History of World War II", "History of the Pacific War", etc.