Takasago Volunteers
| Takasago Volunteers | |
|---|---|
 Takasago Volunteers were recruited from the Japanese Empire loyalist, Taiwanese aborigines, photograph in 1944 | |
| Active | 1941–1945 |
| Country |  Empire of Japan |
| Allegiance | Empire of Japan |
| Branch |  Imperial Japanese Army |
| Type | Taiwanese aborigine special forces, infantry, suicide paratroopers Kaoru Special Attack Corps Special Attack Units |
| Role | insurgency, guerilla warfare, conventional warfare, airborne assault sabotage suicide missions |
| Size | 1,800-5,000 men |
| Part of | Armed Forces of the Empire of Japan |
| Engagements | World War II |
Takasago Volunteers (高砂義勇隊, Takasago Giyūtai) also known as the Kaoru Special Attack Corps were volunteer soldiers in the Imperial Japanese Army, recruited from the Taiwanese aboriginal tribes during World War II.
Background
After the annexation of Taiwan as a result of First Sino-Japanese War in 1894, the Japanese government pursued a policy of cultural assimilation, directed especially towards the various groups of Taiwanese aborigines.
Unit history
The Imperial Japanese Army was interested in the using Taiwanese aborigines in special forces operations, as they were viewed as being more physically capable of operating in the tropical and sub-tropical regions in Southeast Asia than ethnic Japanese, and, coming from a hunter-gatherer culture, would be able to operate with minimal logistics support. The Japanese military recruited many young men from friendly tribes into service shortly before the start of World War II. The total number was confidential and estimates on the numbers recruited range from 1,800 to 5,000 men. Training was under the direction of officers from the Nakano School, which specialized in insurgency and guerilla warfare. Initially assigned to transport and supply units, as the war condition progressively deteriorated for Imperial Japanese forces, the Takasago Volunteers were sent to front line as combat troops. Units consisting entirely of "Takasago Volunteers" served with distinction in the Philippines, Dutch East Indies, Solomon Islands and New Guinea, where they fought against Americans and Australians forces even before Taiwanese volunteers were recruited into service.
Towards the end of the war, 15 officers and 45 enlisted members of the Takasago Volunteers were organized into the Kaoru Special Attack Corps for a suicide mission similar to that of the Giretsu Kuteitai, and attacked a USAAF landing strip on Leyte.
Notable Takasago Volunteers
The Takasago Volunteers were well known for their jungle survival ability. The most notable example was Attun Palalin, a holdout discovered in Indonesia in 1975. He lived in solitude in the jungle for almost 20 years after leaving other holdouts in 1956.
In popular culture
Takasago Army, the sixth album by the Taiwanese heavy metal band Chthonic, tells the story of Takasago Volunteers as a way to explore the Taiwanese identity.
See also
- Taiwanese Imperial Japan Serviceman
- Taiwan under Japanese rule
- Teruo Nakamura
- Japanese Special Attack Units
- Banzai charge
References
- Befu, Harumi.Eds. (2002). "Chapter 14: The Yamato Damashii of the Takasago Volunteers". Globalizing Japan. Routledge-Curzon. ISBN 0-415-28566-6.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Ching, Leo T.S. (2001). Becoming Japanese: Colonial Taiwan and the Politics of Identity Formation. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-22553-8.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - Trefalt, Beatric (2003). Japanese Army Stragglers and Memories of the War in Japan, 1950-75. Routledge-Curzon. ISBN 0-415-31218-3.
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