1st Division (Imperial Japanese Army)

1st Division
Rebel 1st Division troops in the February 26 Incident
ActiveJanuary 1871–1945
CountryEmpire of Japan
BranchImperial Japanese Army
TypeInfantry
Garrison/HQTokyo, Japan
Nickname(s)Jade Division
EngagementsFirst Sino-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
February 26 incident
Soviet–Japanese border conflicts

World War II

Commanders
Notable
commanders

The 1st Division (第1師団, Dai-ichi shidan) was an infantry division in the Imperial Japanese Army. Its tsūshōgō was the Jade Division (玉兵団, Tama-heidan). The 1st Division was formed in Tokyo in January 1871 as the Tokyo Garrison (東京鎮台, Tōkyō chindai), one of six regional commands created in the fledgling Imperial Japanese Army. The Tokyo Garrison had responsibility for the eastern region of Honshū (Kantō region), centered on the Tokyo metropolitan area. The six regional commands were transformed into divisions under the army reorganization of 14 May 1888, based on recommendations by the Prussian military advisor Jakob Meckel to the Japanese government.