Article about: Is it Japanese, Chinese or Taiwanese? In the early part of the 20th Century, China looked upon its neighbor, Japan for training and equipping its military. For instance, Chiang Kai-shek was
In the early part of the 20th Century, China looked upon its neighbor, Japan for training and equipping its military. For instance, Chiang Kai-shek was trained as an officer in the 19th Field Gun Regiment of the Japanese Army in the years preceding WW1. Thus in the same manner as Japan patterned its equipment after the German army, the Chinese naturally copied Japan's.
Therefore what looked like a variation IJA ammo pouch may actually be Chinese, instead. Here are two excellently done Taiwanese videos, showing the evolution of Chinese (Qing Dynasty, Kuomintang, PRC and Manchurian) Army uniforms and field gear for the last 100 years (1905-1918). One video features enlisted men and the other one is for officer items.
You will see many items you could easily mistake as Japanese, so you might want to recheck some of your items whether they are properly marked according to Japanese regulations.
I’ll add some screenshots below to whet your appetite.
Thank you, and thank you again. Over the last few years my interest has gone from Edo era swords, to Shin-Gunto and then on to the whole topic of the Great Eastern War, and then further as to the politics and campaigns of the early 20th C in China and Japan. Fascinating and horrifying in equal measure.....
First of all.....Just to let those who watch those videos know... they equipment is not that accurate at times and can be considered a quick guide, but one should not use it for true reenacting purposes. The group who made this is known to not have all depicted everything correctly.
This one had its caption cut off, but this soldier (bottom left corner) is a reformed ROC government supported by the Japanese.. aka the Wang ROC government or puppet government. I don't know to what extent the IJA supplied the Chinese army. They are using a 1960s PLA canteen which is based of the IJA canteen.
The only time I would say that equipment and uniforms were heavily copied was during the 1960s by the PLA. Canteens, overcoats, calvary swords, helmets, ammo pouches, are some examples they copied and implemented to be used at that time. During the warlord period, warlords did buy Japanese rifles and equipment, and copied a few things. But they mostly bought European arms and equipment.
Some items were war trophies used post war in the Chinese Civil War. There is a famous picture of Shanghai Youth Corp that has troops wearing repainted IJA helmets and American supplied double buckle boots. ROC forces on Taiwan in the late 1940s were training with captured Japanese rifles. Women civilian corps of the 1960s and 70s used Japanese rifles to train as a civilian force to fight off any impending PLA invasion. Although eventually, by the 1950s and 60s, Japanese captured items were turned into scrap as American supplied equipment and arms were much effective. I am not sure if many of the Mauser and Arisaka rifles still survive, locked up in some forgotten storage facility.
I would say Japanese items are only a small part of the overall picture. You also had British, German, Russian, French, and American equipment in different parts of China in the first half of the 20th century.
For this video, at the 48 second mark, I have never seen this uniform worn so far, during post war up till 1949. The only source I have seen where it comes from are the Chinese TV dramas. Other than that, they need better fitting uniforms.
Is it Japanese, Chinese or Taiwanese?
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by nick komiya
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