The result was the creation of vehicles like the Type 91 (22 tons) and the Type 95 (24 tons). The attraction of these foreign models was based on the Japanese original desire to field “heavy” tanks, each weighing at least 20 tons. The Russian T-35 (produced in 1933) also caught Japanese attention and was copied by them but only in small numbers. As a result, the first concepts adopted by Japan were multi-turret affairs exemplified by Western patterns such as the French Char 2C, the British Independent, and the German Nbfz, all in vogue in the period 1920 to 1933. Without any previous work in the field of tank design, the Japanese initially looked to Europe for their inspiration. Grounded in the tank theories and usage they studied from the experiences of the European powers during World War I, the members of the commission were the prime movers in all future Japanese armored fighting vehicle design and armored combat doctrine and tactics from the mid-1920s to the end of World War II. This body, a section of the Army Technical Headquarters, was made up of young junior officers interested in the design and employment of tanks and their use in combat. These activities were overseen by a commission of officers based at the Army’s Osaka Military Arsenal. Later that year the government launched the nation’s first domestic program for the design and manufacture of armored vehicles. At the time, Chiba was the Imperial Army’s center for the development and study of armored warfare doctrine and tactics. One of these formations was designated experimental and attached to the Chiba Infantry School. Imperial Japan’s first hesitant steps toward adoption of armored fighting vehicles occurred in 1925 with the creation of two company-strength tank units.
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