Mitsuru Ushijima

Mitsuru Ushijima was a Japanese general who served during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. He was the commanding general of the 32nd Army, which fought in the Battle of Okinawa during the final stages of the war. Ushijima's troops were defeated, and at the end of the battle he committed suicide by seppuku. Ushijima was born in Kagoshima city, where his father had been a samurai in the service of Satsuma Domain and later a career officer in the early Imperial Japanese Army. He graduated from the Imperial Japanese Army Academy and the Army Staff College with honors, and was noted for his mastery of the Jigen-ryū school of Japanese swordsmanship. He served in various staff and command positions, including the Siberian Intervention, the Army Infantry School, the Army's Toyama School, the 23rd Infantry Regiment, the Shimonoseki Fortress, the 11th Division, the 41st Division, the China Expeditionary Army, the 15th Army, and the Southern Expeditionary Army Group. In 1944, Ushijima was appointed as the commander of the newly formed 32nd Army, which was responsible for the defense of Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands. He faced the overwhelming invasion force of the United States in the Battle of Okinawa, which lasted from April to June 1945. Ushijima adopted a strategy of attrition, using the natural terrain and fortified positions to inflict heavy casualties on the American troops. He also ordered the mobilization of the local population, including women and children, to join the fight against the invaders. Ushijima's army resisted fiercely, but was gradually pushed back to the southern tip of the island. On June 22, 1945, Ushijima and his chief of staff, Cho Isamu, performed ritual suicide at their headquarters on Mabuni Hill, after sending a farewell message to the Emperor. Ushijima was posthumously promoted to the rank of general. His ashes were divided between the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo and his hometown of Kagoshima.