According to Wikipedia, Michitaro Komatsubara committed suicide, but only in October, 1940.
“According to Wikipedia, Michitaro Komatsubara committed suicide, but only in October, 1940.”
An interesting story behind this...
Komatsubara wanted Lt. Col. Ioki, the armoured forces commander, to take responsibility for the defeat of the Japanese forces at Zhukov’s hands, instead of himself, and urged he commit suicide.
Ioki refused, stating his forces had been surrounded by over 100 tanks, and pounded by over 30,000 artillery shells a day, for several days, held out as long a humanly possible before running out of ammunition and withdrawing.
Anything else would have been suicide, and resulted in the destruction of his entire force, he claimed. he DID NOT commit suicide, like so many other commanders did that day, when faced by over-whelming Soviet Forces.
Anyway, after a TON of psycological pressure from Komatsubara, and wounded himself, Ioki committed suicide, but STILl would not take responsibility for the loss.
Capt. Siuji Kiyoshi, the 27th Regiment Artlillery Commander, was also pressured in to ritual suicide by Komatsubara. He was among the first officers to reccomend withdrawal, and saved Ioki from death. Other officers would suffer the same fate.
This idealism would cost the IJA a great deal many experienced and competent officers over the next years. And Komatsubara himself would later succumb to his own shame, after being paid in to the Reserves for his failure.