Hyotaro Kimura (Kimura Hyōtarō, sometimes spelled Kimura Heitaro) was a Japanese army officer who played a major, although comparatively little-known role in Japanese planning and policy before and during World War 2. German soldiers at the Battle of Stalingrad World War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the worlds nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. ...

Born 1888, he was commissioned as an artillery officer. From 1931 to 1932, as a Lieutenant-Colonel, he commanded the 22nd Artillery Regiment, then was appointed Instructor at the Field Artillery School. Historically, artillery refers to any engine used for the discharge of projectiles during war. ...

In 1935, he first served in an influential role close to the centre of Japanese policy when he was appointed Chief of the Control Section in the Economic Mobilisation Bureau at the Ministry of War. The next year, he was appointed Head of the Ordnance Bureau.

In 1939, he returned to line duty as Lieutenant-General, commanding the 32nd Division in China. A year later, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Expeditionary Army (equivalent to an American or British Army Group), in Manchuria. An army-group is a military organization (formation) consisting of several armies, and is supposed to be self-sufficient for indefinite periods. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

He returned to the Ministry of War in 1941, now as Vice Minister of War, serving under War Minister Hideki Tojo until 1943. In this position, he had a major influence on strategy and policy. Hideki Tojo Hideki Tojo (東條 英機   Tōjō Hideki?) (December 30, 1884 – December 23, 1948) was a General in the Imperial Japanese Army and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during much of World War II, from October 18, 1941 to July 22, 1944. ...

Late in 1944, as the course of the war went against Japan, he was appointed to command the Burma Area Army, defending Burma against the Allied South East Asia Command. The situation there was not promising; the Japanese forces were under severe pressure on every front, and the Allies had complete air superiority. Reinforcements and munitions were short, and it was hoped that Kimura could make his command logistically self-sufficient. South East Asia Command (SEAC) was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allied operations in the South-East Asian Theatre during World War II. The initial supreme commander of the theatre was General Sir Archibald Wavell, initially as head of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command...

Rather than defend all of Burma, Kimura fell back behind the Irrawaddy River, a move which dislocated the Allied plans. Unfortunately, such was Allied material superiority that they were able to switch the main weight of their offensive, and capture the vital positions of Meiktila and Mandalay. From this point, only a delaying action was possible. Kimura opted to preserve his forces rather than defend the capital, Rangoon, to the last man. He was still reorganising his forces when Japan surrendered in mid-1945. The Irrawaddy (newer spelling Ayeyarwaddy) is a river that flows through the centre of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is Myanmars most important commercial waterway. ... MEIKTILA is in Mandalay division of Myanmar; population (1901) 252,305, and is located at 20°53N, 95°53 E. It is situated on the banks of magnificent Lake Meiktila, an ancient irrigation and drinking water reservoir, and at the junction of the Bagan-Taunggyi and Yangon-Mandalay roads. ... Mandalay (Burmese: ) is the second largest city (2000 pop. ... Yangôn, formerly Rangoon, population 4,504,000 (2001), is the capital of Myanmar. ...

In the post-war trials of Japanese leaders, Kimura was accused of war crimes against Chinese civilians and Allied prisoners of war, and for his part in Japan's aggressive policy during and after 1941. Found guilty, he was hanged in 1948.