The {{nihongo|'''Japanese 21st Army'''|第 21 軍 |Dai-nijyūichi gun}} was an [[corps|army]] of
the [[Imperial Japanese Army]] during the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]].
==History==
The Japanese 21st Army was formed on September 19, 1938 under the [[Imperial General Headquarters]]. It was transferred to the control of the [[China Expeditionary Army]] on September 23, 1939 and assigned the primary role in the [[Canton Operation]] (the invasion of [[Guangdong]] Province in southern [[China]]), together with the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]]’s [[IJN 5th Fleet|5th Fleet]].
On October 12, the [[IJA 18th Division|18th]] and [[IJA 104th Division|104th Division]]s landed, followed by command units the following day. By October 21, the provincial capital of [[Guangzhou]] was under Japanese control. The [[IJA 5th Division]] continued to advance up the [[Pearl River (China)|Pearl River]] and by November 5 had taken the city of [[Foshan]]. By the end of November, the entire province was under Japanese control.
The Japanese 21st Army was disbanded on February 9, 1940. Its command staff joined the staff of the [[Japanese Southern China Area Army]], and its divisions were reassigned to other areas.
==List of Commanders==
===Commanding officer===
{| class=wikitable
! || Name || From || To
|-
|1|| General [[Motoo Furushō]] ||8 September 1938 || 9 November 1938
|-
|2||General [[Rikichi Andō]] ||9 November 1938 || 10 February 1940
|-
|}
===Chief of Staff===
{| class=wikitable
! || Name || From || To
|-
|1|| Lieutenant General [[Hisaichi Tanaka]] ||8 September 1938 || 1 August 1939
|-
|2|| Lieutenant General [[Yuitsu Tsuchihashi]] ||1 August 1939 || 1 December 1939
|-
|3|| Major General [[Hiroshi Konpon]] ||1 December 1939 || 10 February 1940 |-
|}
==Organization (as of February 9, 1940)==
'''21st Army'''
* [[IJA 5th Division|5th Infantry Division]]
** 9th Infantry Brigade
*** 11th Infantry Regiment
*** 41st Infantry Regiment
** 21st Infantry Brigade
*** 21st Infantry Regiment
*** 42nd Infantry Regiment
** 5th Mountain Artillery Regiment
** 5th Cavalry Regiment
** 5th Engineer Regiment
** 5th Transport Regiment
* [[IJA 18th Division|18th Infantry Division]]
** 23rd Infantry Brigade
*** 55th Infantry Regiment
*** 56th Infantry Regiment
** 35th Infantry Brigade
*** 114th Infantry Regiment
*** 124th Infantry Regiment
** 22nd Cavalry Battalion
** 18th Mountain Artillery Regiment
** 12th Military Engineer Regiment
** 12th Transport Regiment
* [[IJA 38th Division|38th Infantry Division]]
***228th Infantry Regiment
***[[229th Infantry Regiment (Imperial Japanese Army)|229th Infantry Regiment]]
***230th Infantry Regiment
* [[IJA 104th Division|104th Infantry Division]]
** 107th Infantry Brigade
*** 108th Infantry Regiment
*** [[170th Infantry Regiment (Imperial Japanese Army)|170th Infantry Regiment]]
** 132nd Infantry Brigade
*** 137th Infantry Regiment
*** 161st Infantry Regiment
** 104th Field Artillery Regiment
** 104th Cavalry Regiment
** 104th Engineer Regiment
** 104th Transport Regiment
* [[IJA 106th Division|106th Infantry Division]]
* 111th Mountain Artillery Regiment
* 10th Independent Mountain Artillery Regiment
* 15th Independent Military Engineer Regiment
==References==
*{{cite book | last = Dorn
| first = Frank
| coauthors =
| year = 1974
| title = The Sino-Japanese War, 1937-41: From Marco Polo Bridge to Pearl Harbor
| publisher = MacMillan.
| location =
| isbn = 0-02-532200-1
}}
*{{cite book
| last = Madej
| first = Victor
| coauthors =
| year = 1981
| title = Japanese Armed Forces Order of Battle, 1937-1945
| publisher = Game Publishing Company
| location =
| id = ASIN: B000L4CYWW
}}
==External links==
*{{cite web
| last = Wendel
| first = Marcus
| url = http://www.axishistory.com/index.php?id=6951 | title = Axis History Factbook
| work = Japanese Twenty-First Army
}}
[[Category:Japanese armies|21]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1938]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1940]]
