Following the outbreak of the "September 18 Incident" in 1931, the Japanese army began its plan to invade Asia, but they did not achieve the expected success in the end.
During this period, the brave Chinese people made tremendous contributions to the liberation of Asia.
However, among the many battles launched by the Japanese army in Asia, the one with the heaviest losses did not occur in China, but on another key battlefield.
At that time, the Japanese army planned to conquer vast territories in Asia, with India being their main target outside of China.
Before attacking India, the Japanese army was highly confident. However, when the real battle broke out, only 10,000 out of 85,000 Japanese soldiers survived, and nearly 50,000 of them died of starvation.
This tragic battle is known as the "Battle of Imphal-Kohima."
So, what kind of battle was this? What caused the massive failure of the Japanese army?
Going back to 1944, Germany was retreating on the European front, and to ease the pressure on Germany, Japan urgently needed to open a new battlefield in Asia to divert military pressure from the Western countries.
Japan had to choose a more strategically significant target for the attack, and China was obviously not the best choice because Japan had already suffered multiple defeats there.
After careful consideration, Japan decided, in agreement with Germany, to set the target of the attack as India.
At that time, India was still a semi-colony of Britain, and the troops stationed there were mainly British soldiers.
The reason why Britain chose to station a large number of troops here was obvious: Imphal was not only the connection point between the Indian subcontinent and Burma but also responsible for transporting supplies to the Chinese battlefield.
Therefore, the Japanese army planned to capture Imphal, believing that it could cut off the supply line to the Asian battlefield and seize a large amount of British strategic materials.
More importantly, the Japanese army had previously fought and won some victories against the British in Burma, so they underestimated the British troops stationed at Imphal, believing that these soldiers would also be unable to resist the Japanese attack.
To ensure victory, the Japanese army sent Renya Mutaguchi to command the operation.
He had been the planner of the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident," which showed the importance Japan attached to this battle.
The Japanese army assembled 85,000 troops and launched the attack with great confidence.
Although the Japanese army considered the difficulties of crossing the jungle and the consumption of supplies before departure, they believed they could solve these problems through a strategy of "feeding off the enemy."
In other words, the Japanese army planned to fight while looting supplies from the places they occupied to replenish their provisions.
At first, the Japanese army's operations indeed progressed smoothly, as they successfully captured several strongholds and implemented their strategy of feeding off the enemy.
However, as the battle progressed, the Japanese army underestimated the harsh conditions of the tropical jungle.
The high temperatures and humidity of the jungle not only made the Japanese army's march extremely difficult but also severely affected the health of the soldiers.
The Japanese army gradually realized that, having come from afar, they had difficulty adapting to the tropical jungle climate, especially the high humidity, which made life unbearable for the soldiers.
As time went on, this harsh environment began to severely weaken the Japanese army's combat effectiveness, especially as their supplies became increasingly insufficient.
To reduce the physical exertion of the soldiers, the Japanese army brought along a batch of livestock to transport supplies and serve as emergency food.
However, the livestock gradually became uncontrollable in the jungle, with some even escaping into the dense forest, forcing the Japanese army to form special teams to manage the animals.
This arrangement further slowed the Japanese army's march and also drained their morale and energy.
In contrast to the Japanese army, the British forces adopted a very effective strategy, retreating while destroying supplies to ensure that the Japanese army could not obtain any provisions from the strongholds they occupied.
Not only did the Japanese army fail to obtain food and other supplies from the British, but the strongholds they captured were in ruins, offering no resources necessary for combat.
As the battle dragged on, Mutaguchi repeatedly ordered his troops to launch assaults, hoping to resolve the battle quickly.
However, the British forces, relying on the complex terrain and strong defensive positions, continuously wore down the Japanese army by waging a war of attrition.
As the battle lasted longer, the Japanese army's ammunition and food gradually ran out, and the soldiers' morale plummeted.
The Japanese army had pinned their hopes on resupply from the rear, but due to the Chinese Expeditionary Force's blockades and the tropical rainforest's harsh climate, the supply materials could not be delivered, and air drops were nearly impossible.
In the end, the Japanese army found themselves in a desperate situation with no supplies and low morale.
The situation on the battlefield worsened, and the Japanese army suffered an unprecedented defeat at Imphal.
The arrival of the rainy season made the Japanese army's situation even more dire, as tropical diseases spread rapidly among the troops, causing many soldiers to die due to a lack of medical care.
The British forces seized this opportunity to launch a counterattack, killing 20,000 Japanese soldiers.
In the end, more than 50,000 of the 85,000 Japanese soldiers died of starvation and disease, and only about 10,000 survived.
The disastrous defeat at the Battle of Imphal caused the Japanese army to lose face, while Britain's losses were almost negligible, and Japan suffered a devastating blow.
The root cause of this defeat was Japan's overconfidence in itself, coupled with underestimating the enemy and the complexity of the battlefield environment.
The failure of the Japanese army was a major setback for them on the Asian front and foreshadowed their ultimate defeat.
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