Consequences of the Nomonhan Incident

Hideki Tōjō, Japanese Prime Minister (1941-44)
and Minister of War (1940-44) (wikipedia).

The Nomonhan Incident ended on the 15th September 1939 as a result of a humiliating Japanese defeat against the Soviets. This loss raised a discussion in the core of the Japanese leading officers, about if they should keep pursuing their north expansion plans (Hokuhin-ron) or switch their focus to the south (Nanshin-ron) instead. 

The end of the Nomonhan incident coincided in time with the German invasion of Poland, which was followed by the German invasion of France a year later. During this time, the Nanshin-ron was the leading policy in Japan, still fighting China in the Second Sino-Japanese War. The lack of progress in China led to the Japanese invasion of the whole French Indochina in July 1941. This invasion, due to the weakness of the French, the British and the Dutch after the war in Europe, would help to cut off foreign aid supply to China and enable the creation of a Southern front.

Type 41 75mm Regimental Gun

The Type 41 75mm mountain gun was accepted in 1908 (the 41st year of Emperor Meji's reign, which gives it its Type 41 name), originally a license-build copy of the German Krupp M.08 mountain gun. From 1934, when the new Type 94 75mm mountain gun was accepted, the Type 41 gun become an infantry regimental gun (Rentai Ho). Every infantry regiment was equipped with four Type 41 75mm guns, hence a triangular division as the IJA 23th Infantry Division had twelve guns.

Type 41 75mm mountain gun (commons.wikimedia.org).

Hohei Regimental Gun Platoon!

The Hohei Regimental Gun Platoon consists on a command team, an observer team and two Type 41 75 mm gun. Used for infantry support, every regiment was equipped with four Type 41 guns, which adds up to twelve guns per division. Detailed info on how to assemble, paint and base Japanese guns can be found in older posts.

Regimental Gun Platoon Command team. 

Type 94 37mm Rapid-fire Gun

The Type 94 Rapid fire gun was an anti-tank and infantry support gun designed in 1934 (2594 in the Japanese imperial year, from where it takes its type "94"). It was the main Japanese anti-tank gun until the development of the Type 1 47mm Anti-Tank gun in 1941. However the Type 94 gun remained active in all the fronts through the end of the war, as the new Type 1 could not be produced fast enough.

Japanese Type 94 37mm anti-tank Gun abandoned in Guadalcanal, 1942 (ww2db).

Hohei Type 94 37mm Rapid-fire Gun Platoon!

The Hohei Rapid-fire Gun Platoon is formed by a command team and two Type 94 37mm anti-tank Gun. This is the main anti-tank gun of the Imperial Japanese Army in Rising Sun. Every infantry regiment was equipped with a battery of four Type 94 guns, so a triangular division would field twelve guns. You can find detailed info on how to assemble, paint and base the guns in older posts.

Rapid-fire platoon command team. 

Type 92 70mm Battalion Gun

The Type 92 Battalion Gun was a light howitzer introduced in 1932 (2592 in the Japanese imperial year, from where it takes its type "92"). Since every infantry battalion was equipped with two Type 92 guns, it was named Battalion Artillery (Daitaihō), and therefore a triangular division as the IJA 23th Division was equipped with eighteen Type 92 guns.

Type 92 70mm gun (www.historicalfireamrs.info)

Hohei Type 92 70mm Battalion Gun Platoon!

The Hohei Battalion Gun Platoon consists of a command team, an observer team and two Type 92 70mm Gun. This gun was used as infantry support, as it could be used as a mortar or in direct fire. Every infantry battalion was equipped with two Type 92 guns, so a triangular division would field eighteen guns. You can find detailed info on how to assemble, paint and base the guns in older posts.

Command team.

IJA 7th Infantry Division

Jacob Meckel (Wikipedia)

In 1895, the Japanese government started a reorganization process of the Imperial Japanese Army with the purpose of modernizing it. The army was to be modeled after the Prussian army, due to the German victory against the French in the Franco-Prussian War. Prussian Major Jacob Meckel was invited to Japan as military adviser to oversee the rebuilding process.

The first infantry division created following Meckel´s advice was the 7th Infantry Division, nicknamed as Bear Division, formed in Sapporo, Hokkaidō on 12 May 1888. Its original duty was the defence of Hokkaidō, and was garrisoned in Asahikawa.

It was originally a square division, meaning that it was formed by four Infantry Regiments, and with two regiments forming a Brigade. It was not yet converted to a triangular division until 1942. At the beginning of the 20th century, the 7th division components were:

Japanese Guns: Basing!

After assembling and painting, it´s time to base the guns. The command and observer teams can be based exactly as infantry teams. The gun bases, however, require a little extra work. Due to the lack of holes for the men, if you glue the guns and the crew directly to the base, the own man's base will be visible. So we will need to add some plaster filler before gluing the guns.

First step is to place the guns and crew on the bases, in a position that looks cool and realistic. I tried to place the men in different positions for each base, and also switched a couple of men between types of gun. Remembering the setup, glue the crew to the base, leaving place for the gun (but don't glue the gun yet!).

Place the gun and crew in a nice position before gluing the crew to the base.

Japanese Guns: Painting!

As the assembly post, this one will describe how to paint the Type 41 75mm Regimental Gun, but the same instructions can be followed to paint the Type 92 70mm Battalion Gun and the Type 94 37mm Rapid-fire Gun. The exact color palette can be found here.

First step is to prime the gun in Black.

Gun primed with black spry. 

Japanese Guns: Assembly!

This post will describe how to assemble the Type 41 75mm Regimental Gun. The same instructions can be followed to assemble the Type 92 70mm Battalion Gun and the Type 94 37mm Rapid-fire Gun, as they all consist on the same parts.

Each gun blister contains parts to build two guns, gun crew, command team, observer team (except the Type 94) and the needed bases. The guns are divided in five parts: the main body, the cannon, the shield and two wheels.

Different parts of the Type 41 gun.

Type 3 Heavy Machine Gun

The Type 3 Heavy Machine Gun (also known as the Taishō 14 Machine Gun) was the first Japanese machine gun to be domestically designed. It appeared in 1914, designed by General Kijiro Nambu, and was based on the french Hotchkiss M1914.

Type 3 Heavy Machine Gun (worldofweapons.blogspot.com).

Some differences with the Hotchkiss model were the feed, the fire controls and the locking system. It also modified the caliber, as the French one used 8mm cartridges and the Japanese used their then standard 6.5x50mm Arisaka ammunition.