In one of the few departures from British Naval Tradition that the Imperial Japanese Navy engaged in (remember that the bricks for the Japanese Naval Academy were imported from England so as to help give the cadets the proper esprit), there was no Japanese equivalent of a separate Marine Corps. Instead the Japanese Navy developed a tradition of forming Naval Landing Parties from its sailors as needed for different operations. By the early 1930's, however, the problems with this concept had become evident. Details of sailors assembled for an operation lacked the training and unit integrity needed for successful combat operations. Starting in 1932, the Japanese Navy began to form full time Naval Landing Forces, who were first and foremost soldiers. As they were part of a Navy whose war would range across the Pacific, amphibious warfare and local defense became their special forte. The Special Naval Landing Forces were organized at the various Naval Bases of the Japanese Navy, and took their title from their home base. In keeping with the Japanese practice of tailoring unit organizations to the mission at hand, organizations varied. The following is a suggested organization. 1938-1945 SPECIAL NAVAL LANDING FORCES TROOP QUALITY: Experienced to Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, each with: 1 Command stand 3 RIFLE STAPIDS, each with: 1 Command Stand 1 Weapons Stand 5 Rifle Stands 1 MMG Stand 1 WEAPONS COMPANY, with 1 Infantry Gun 1 Gun Crew Stand (DS) 1 Medium Truck Java 1942 To show the variation within the different Special Naval Landing Forces, consider the following. When the 16th Army invaded Java in early 1942, the following six different Special Naval Landing Forces were assigned to it. The following are the organizations of these commands: 1st KURE SPECIAL LANDING FORCE Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand and 4 Rifle Stands 1 MACHINE GUN COMPANY, with: 2 MMG Stands 2nd KURE SPECIAL LANDING FORCE Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand 5 Rifle Stands 1 MACHINE GUN COMPANY, with: 2 MMG Stands 1 AA COMPANY, with 1 Gun Crew Stand 1 75mm AA Gun 1 Medium Truck 1st SASEBO SPECIAL LANDING FORCE Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand and 3 Rifle Stands 1 MACHINE GUN COMPANY, with: 2 MMG Stands 1st YOKOSUKA SPECIAL LANDING FORCE (Airborne) Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 11 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Parachute Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand and 3 Rifle Stands 2nd YOKOSUKA SPECIAL LANDING FORCE Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand and 5 Rifle Stands 1 MACHINE GUN COMPANY, with: 2 MMG Stands 3rd YOKOSUKA SPECIAL LANDING FORCE Troop Quality: Veteran Morale: 10 FORCE HEADQUARTERS, with: 1 Command Stand 3 RIFLE COMPANIES, each with: 1 Command Stand and 4 Rifle Stands As the war progressed, and the role of the SNLF changed, additional attachments were made. Additional weapons in the form of AA guns, AT Guns, mortars and tanks/tankettes were added to reinforce the SPNF units. Labor and Pioneer Units were created as well, with the same limitations as with Army units. Back to Table of Contents -- Command Post Newsletter WWII Japanese Army Supplement To Command Post Quarterly List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1991 by Greg Novak. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com