The Taiwan Army of Japan was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army stationed on the island of Taiwan as a garrison force. Taiwanese were relegated to non-combatant civilian work as manual labourers, porters and Chinese language interpreters. Taiwanese were not allowed as combatants until 1942 when volunteers were permitted to enlist and all combatant soldiers from the Taiwan army of Japan before 1942 were ethnic Japanese. Japan only conscripted ethnic Taiwanese in 1945 in a last ditch attempt for manpower.

Shiba Gorō was a samurai of Aizu Domain and later a career officer and general in the Meiji period Imperial Japanese Army.