10 Mind-Blowing Facts You Never Knew About World War II

8. Small Pockets Of Japanese Soldiers Continued Fighting Well Into The 1970s

The Japanese Bushido mentality is fascinating, however it decimated its own people. History tells us the last of the Samurai were killed the late nineteenth century, but taking a look at the Japanese soldiers in World War II shows us they still lived in spirit. American forces could do little, but gape open mouthed, as the enemy would charge to their deaths with swords than rather surrender. The mentality of death before dishonor would dictate most of Japan's decisions throughout the war. In 1945, the order to surrender was either largely ignored or not received by many Japanese commanding officers throughout the pacific theatre. This lead to Japanese soldier holdouts which continued to fight on for decades joining any conflict they could against Western forces. Many of these men would join up with Viet Minh and fight France and America in the Vietnam War. Some would go on to fight the local governments of whatever island they were trapped on. It is believed Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda and Private Teruo Nakamura were the last Japanese soldiers to surrender in 1974, but stories of others holding out continued to circulate as late as 1990. In 1989, the last two known soldiers of the war returned home to Japan after fighting for decades alongside communists in Malaysia.