World War I in the Pacific

Discussions on all aspects of the First World War not covered in the other sections. Hosted by Terry Duncan.
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cj
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#16

Post by cj » 01 Aug 2006, 18:43

any info on the Japanese seizure of Germany's island chains north of the equator? Didn't those islands have Polizeitruppen?

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Scarlett
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#17

Post by Scarlett » 01 Aug 2006, 20:14

- 12 August 1914 British cruisers Hampshire and Minotaur shell and destroy radio station Jap - no landing
- 9 September 1914 Australian cruiser Melbourne shells and destroys radio station Nauru - no landing
- 26 September 1914 Australian cruiser Sidney sends a landing-party to Angaur (Palau-Islands) to destroy the radio station.
The German radio man is sending continually signals, that he is raided. The landing party didn't destroy the antennas
and lost on the return-trip to the ship a part of the radio equipment. So the German radio-man could operate
the station again from 2 October 1914 until Japanese occupation.
- 29 September - 21 October 1914 the Japanese occupy all German islands in Micronesia.
The occupation started in Jaluit, the island that was the most distant from Japan and ended in Rota, the island
nearest to Japan.
In Jaluit the Japanese told the German administration, that they would only occupy as long as German warships
were operating in the Pacific.
A week later they told the Japanese government had decided otherwise.
There was no fighting in Micronesia. On Ponape the acting Bezirksamtmann Koehler escaped into the bush
with his 50 Melanese policemen, but later surrendered without fightimg.


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cj
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#18

Post by cj » 02 Aug 2006, 02:57

A 1915 publication, The Nations at War A Current History, I have mentions "trifling raids" by the Japanese on Germany's Pacific Islands. Doesn't "raids" imply some kind of confrontation? It seems to me that the German Polizei above the equator would at least have provided some token resistance. There had to have been at least a few Germans to return fire, am I off my rocker?

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Chris Dale
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#19

Post by Chris Dale » 02 Aug 2006, 04:40

Hi CJ,
No, you're not off your rocker. There were indeed small forces of Polizeitruppe on these islands but they offered no resistance to the Japanese. They were after all only small police forces of often less than fifty men, poorly trained and armed with obsolete firearms. They were not prepared for war, much less an invasion nor were they expected to be. There were also a few German reservists on these islands but again not in enough quantity to resist an invasion.

On Samoa, where there was also no resistance to the NZ invasion the German governor's instructions from Berlin were simply to negociate with any invading force.

I don't know the book source you mention but I've never heard of any Japanese "raids". As the book was published during the war I wouldn't credit it with too much accuracy. It would be hard to get hold of accurate information during the war and more often than not propaganda was the main purpose behind wartime publications rather than historical accuracy.

I believe that Micsem website mentioned by Peter H earlier in this thread has some photos of the Japanese occupation of these islands.

Scarlett, that's a great summing up of the campaign. I didn't know the Japanese took the islands in order of the furthest first. Do you know why they did it that way around?

Cheers
Chris

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cj
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#20

Post by cj » 02 Aug 2006, 08:03

I still can't imagine there not being any resistance like at Rabaul. But I guess Scarlet put the facts on the table. thanks for the clarification.
I imagine they went from furthest to closest because it was what the Germans would least expect, and if they did plan a defense it would probably intail an retreat fro island to island. Probably just an effort to prevent a possible island hoping campaign and cut straight to the chase.

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#21

Post by Duckman » 02 Aug 2006, 10:29

Chris Dale wrote:I didn't know the Japanese took the islands in order of the furthest first. Do you know why they did it that way around?
When the "balloon went up", Japan sent a heavy cruiser and the battleship Kongo to the eastern Pacific. The Kongo was diverted from near Midway by Vice-Adm Tamin Yamaya and descended on the Marshalls (taking Jaluit) then Truk (Carolines) before moving onto the Marianas. So they were just working in order of where their forces had been positioned.

I'm no expert, but this looks excellent coverage:http://www.nwc.navy.mil/press/Review/20 ... t3-w00.htm

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#22

Post by Scarlett » 02 Aug 2006, 11:02

The Japanese started at Jaluit, the place furthest from Japan, as it was the place nearest to Australian influence.
They just wanted to occupy before the Australians could..
From there they worked backwards towards Japan.

As to a military resistance:
You have to take into account, that in the whole of German Micronesia there was a very small
German adminstration. In 1912 there were only 25 officials, including doctors and medical assistents,
the two teachers of the government-school on Saipan and the crew of the only government-boat.
This could only work, when all people did several jobs in parallel, the administrative people working
in the legal system too, and the doctors and medical assistents working in administration.
There was not much change until 1914.
There were only very few policemen in Micronesia, for instance on Nauru one German and two natives;
only on Ponape there was a force of two Germans and about 50 Melanese, larger because of the insurrection in 1912.
For that reason there were Melanese on Ponape, on the other islands there were Micronesian natives in the police force.
From time to time ships of the Imperial Navy, either from Tsingtao or from the Australian station, passed the islands
to demonstrate the German power.

When the Japanese arrived, they arrived in force.
The Japanese had 2 Squadrons in operation, led by the brand-new battle-cruiser KONGO and the new
battleship SATSUMA respectively. The squadrons operated in parallel and cautiously as they had to take in to account,
that the German cruiser-squadron could be in the area.
They started in Jaluit September 29, then Ponape and Yap October 7, Palau October 8, Angaur October 9,
Truk October 12, Saipan October 14 and Rota October 21
The only place with a larger police-force was Ponape. The deputy Bezirksamtmann Koehler and two German Polizeimeister
went into the bush with their 50 or so Melanese policemen.
The Japanese had arrived with two cruisers, two destroyers and a troop-transport and landed 400 soldiers..
When he saw that force Koehler surrendered the next day.
So, there was not one shot fired on the ground during the occupation of German Micronesia.

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Peter H
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#23

Post by Peter H » 02 Aug 2006, 11:28

As Chris has indicated some photos of the Japanese takeover of German Pacific possessions can be found here:

http://www.micsem.org/photos/jpn_flag/intro.htm

Kongo was involved in the Midway sweep from the 26th August to the 12th September 1914 and it rejoined the First Fleet,Yokosuka.

First Fleet then seized Jaluit,Marshalls 4th October 1914.

My data on other Japanese capital ships involved in the Pacific area Sept-Nov 1914.Note that deployment against Graf Spee's force was a consideration after they seized the German possessions..

1st South Sea Squadron--Battlecruisers Kurama & Tsukuba,Armoured Cruiser Asama--"seizes the Carolines,Truk, Marianas.".(Commander ViceAdmiral Yamaya Tanin)

2nd South Sea Squadron--Pre-Dreadnought Satsuma,Light cruisers Yahagi & Hirado--enroute to Rabaul and seized Palau Islands.(Commander RearAdmiral Matsumura Tatsuo)

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Scarlett
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#24

Post by Scarlett » 02 Aug 2006, 14:12

Peter

You are right concerning the deployment of the Japanese.
Kongo was not part of the two South Sea Squadrons. Just found it out in Halpern's
Naval History of WWI.
The two squadrons were not deployed against von Spee, but they had to take into
account, that von Spee's cruisers could arrive, while they were busy occupying the German islands.
September 22 the German cruiser-squadron had shelled Papeete and, as long as the ships could be
seen from Tahiti, left in westerly direction. During the following days is was not known that the
ships then had turned to the east.

But there is discrepancy regarding the occupation of Jaluit,
Was it September 29 or October 4?
Hiery (http://www.uni-bayreuth.de/departments/ ... lussII.htm), a reliable source, states,
that September 29 the Japanese arrived, landed and told the German Stationsleiter Merz, that Japan would take
over the administration, as long as German warships operated in the Pacific. But they didn't fly their flag and left
again in the evening. Some days later (October 3) they returned and told Merz that "the Japanese
government has decided otherwise".Then they hoisted their flag and staid on the island.
Hiery doesn't mention, what ships were involved on both dates.

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Peter H
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#25

Post by Peter H » 03 Aug 2006, 12:30

Scarlett

Five Japanese warships arrived at Jaluit on the 29th September and landed marines.My impression is that the 4th October date was when they raised the Japanese flag and took officially over the adminstration.Why the delay of a week?Both the British and Japanese Governments had not finalised talks on who was to occupy the former German possessions north of the equator.Diplomatic talks extended even out to November over the other islands and the Australians at one stage formed a North-West Pacific Expedition of naval troops to take over from the Japanese what they had captured.Riots in Tokyo on the handling of these islands over to Australia resulted.The British decided to agree to the Japanese to stay and resolve the matter after the war

Regards
Peter.

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