The Japanese 55th Army was formed on April 8, 1945, under the
Japanese 15th Area Army as part of the last desperate defense effort by the
Empire of Japan to deter possible landings of
Allied forces in
Shikoku during
Operation Downfall. From June 15, the commander of the 55th Army was also commander in chief of all Japanese forces on Shikoku, and received his appointment directly from
Emperor Hirohito. The Japanese 55th Army was based in
Kōchi city,
Kōchi Prefecture. Despite its prestigious status of reporting directly to the emperor, as with other emergency army corps raised during this time, it consisted mostly of poorly trained and poorly armed
reservists,
conscripted students and
Volunteer Fighting Corps home guard militia. It was
demobilized at the
surrender of Japan on August 15, 1945, without having seen combat. ==List of commanders==