Logo image
Back
Swordplay: Lord Mountbatten, Count Terauchi and the Japanese surrender in Southeast Asia
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Swordplay: Lord Mountbatten, Count Terauchi and the Japanese surrender in Southeast Asia

M. Sturma
The English Historical Review, Vol.136(580), pp.651-671
2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/ceab110
url
Link to Published Version *Subscription may be requiredView

Abstract

Field Marshal Count Terauchi’s personal surrender of swords to Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten in November 1945 highlights some of the complexities related to the Japanese surrender in Southeast Asia. Japanese swords served as important symbols for both their owners and the Allies. Mountbatten’s determination to dispossess the Japanese of their swords reflected his views on Japan’s militarism and a desire to impress upon soldiers their subservience to British authority when most had not been directly defeated in battle. On the other hand, Mountbatten was constrained by the huge area placed under his command, the lack of resources at his disposal and rising nationalist resistance. In these circumstances, Mountbatten sought the co-operation of surrendered Japanese personnel in British interests. The issue of surrendering Japanese swords underlines Mountbatten’s conflicting objectives and Count Terauchi’s efforts to manipulate the situation.

Details

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#13 Climate Action

Source: InCites

Metrics

165 Record Views
1 Times Cited - Web of Science

InCites Highlights

These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output

Citation topics
6 Social Sciences
6.27 Political Science
6.27.2328 Nuclear Security
Web Of Science research areas
History
ESI research areas
Social Sciences, general
Logo image