Page 13 - Marutas of Unit 731

years, the Kwantung Garrison supported various warlords to divide up the
power of the Chinese rulers. In 1911, the Kwantung Garrison was involved

in campaigns to dismantle the Qing Dynasty who leased them the area.

Aer the 1919 reorganization, the Kwantung Garrison was renamed the

Kwantung Army and was sep arated from the ter ritor y’s civilian

administration. In the early days of Japan’s occupation of Manchuria, the

Kwantung Army’s main duty was to defend Japan’s economic interest in
Manchuria, including the South Manchuria Railway Zone where the con ict

of the Mukden Incident was sparked on September 18, 1931. e Kwantung

Army utilized that opportunity to take over Manchuria, rename it

Manchukuo, and install Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty.