The Japanese Army (1): 1931-1942

From December 1941 the Imperial Japanese Army shocked the world by its lightning victories over the US, British and Dutch forces in the Philippines, Malaya and the East Indies. The Pacific war occupied much of the US war effort, from Pearl Harbor to Okinawa, but although the broad details of these campaigns are common knowledge, few detailed accounts of the Japanese uniforms and equipment are available. This book, researched from new Japanese language sources, describes and illustrates for the first time in the West the uniforms and equipment used in China in the 1930s and their development for the tropical campaigns of 1941/42.

About the Author
Philip S. Jowett was born in Leeds in 1961, and has been interested in military history for as long as he can remember. His original interest lies in small and little-known wars and armies; before beginning his series on the Italian Army of World War II he was the author of the much praised Men-at-Arms 306 Chinese Civil War Armies 1911-49. A rugby league enthusiast and amateur genealogist, he is married and lives in Leeds. Stephen Andrew was born in 1961 in Glasgow (where he still lives and works). In the last few years he has established himself as one of the best illustrators of military subjects working today. An entirely self-taught artist, he worked as a junior in advertising and design agencies before becoming a freelance illustrator in 1993. Military history is his passion, and since 1997 he has illustrated titles including Men-at-Arms 306 Chinese Civil War Armies 1911-1949, and the five-volume sequence on the World War II German Army.