DAVID HORNER is the Professorof Australian Defence Historyat the Strategic and DefenceStudies Centre, AustralianNational University, Canberra.A graduate of the RoyalMilitary College, Duntroon,who served as an infantryplatoon commander in SouthVietnam, Colonel Homer is theauthor of over 20 books onmilitary history and defence,including High Command (1982)and Blarney: The Commander-in-Chief (1998).

PROFESSOR ROBERT O'NEILL,AO D.PHIL. (Oxon), Hon D.Litt.(ANU), FASSA, Fr Hist S,is the Series Editor of theEssential Histories. His wealth ofknowledge and expertise shapesthe series content and providesup-to-the-minute research andtheory. Born in 1936 anAustralian citizen, he served inthe Australian army (1955-68)and has held a number ofeminent positions in historycircles, including theChichele Professorship of theHistory of War at All SoulsCollege, University ofOxford, 1987-2001, and theChairmanship of the Board ofthe Imperial War Museum andthe Council of the InternationalInstitute for Strategic Studies,London. He is the author ofmany books including works onthe German Army and the Naziparty, and the Korean andVietnam wars. Now based inAustralia on his retirement fromOxford he is the Chairman ofthe Council of the AustralianStrategic Policy Institute.

Essential Histories

The Second World War (1)The Pacific

Essential Histories

The Second World War (I)The Pacific

David HornerOSPREYPUBLISHING

First published in Great Britain in 2002 by Osprey Publishing,

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This book is one of six volumes on the Second World War in

the Osprey Essential Histories series

02 03 04 OS 06 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

Introduction

Chronology

Background to war

The expansion of Imperial Japan, 1891 -1941

Warring sides

Powerful Japan faced certain defeat

Outbreak

The slide toward inevitable war

The fighting

The course of the Pacific War

Portrait of a soldier

Thomas Currie Derrick, an Australian soldier

The world around war

A clash of cultures and races

Portrait of a civilian

Gwen Harold Terasaki, an American in Japan

How the war ended

Not necessarily to Japan's advantage

Conclusion and consequences

How the War transformed the Asia-Pacific

Further reading

Index

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Introduction

The Pacific War, the most significant eventin the modern history of the Asia-Pacificregion, was both a part of the Second WorldWar and a distinct entity within it. Of theAxis powers - Japan, Germany and Italy -Japan played the overwhelmingly major rolein the Pacific: Germany and Italy were barelyinvolved. By contrast, all the principal Allies- the United States, Britain, China, Australia,and the Netherlands - were deeply engaged,and the Soviet Union joined the war near itsend. At the highest level, the Allies saw theSecond World War as one conflict, in whichthe Pacific was just one theater. But althoughthe Allied strategic planners had to juggleresources between theaters, the story of thePacific War can be told separately, with thewar against Germany appearing only asnoises off-stage.

The Pacific War began on 7 and8 December 1941 when Japan attacked PearlHarbor, Malaya, and the Philippines, therebyinitiating a war against the USA and Britain.Japan claimed that after the USA appliedcrippling economic sanctions in July 1941 ithad no alternative. But the war owes itsorigins to Japanese expansionism andmilitarism over a period of half a centurybefore 1941. Japan had been at war withChina since 1937, when it invaded centralChina, and earlier, in 1931 and 1932, Japanhad seized the Chinese territory ofManchuria. While one can argue about whenthe war began, however, there can be nodoubt about its conclusion. It ended inAugust 1945 when US aircraft droppedatomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,and Japan formally surrendered in Tokyo Bayon 2 September 1945.

The war was fought over a large part ofthe earth's surface. Land operations stretchedfrom the fog-bound Aleutian Islands in thenorthern Pacific Ocean to the steaming

tropical jungles of the Solomon Islands inthe South Pacific. To the east, Japanese forcesseized lonely Wake Island in the mid-Pacific;to the west, they fought in the jungle hillsbordering India and Burma. Naval operationswere more widespread, reaching east toHawaii, south to Sydney Harbour and westto Madagascar, off the African coast.

It was a war of daring strategic maneuvers,generally in a maritime environment. Theseincluded Japan's astonishing advances duringthe first six months, the key struggles aroundthe perimeter of the so-called Greater EastAsia Co-prosperity Sphere and the Alliedcounteroffensives. It was a war of great navalbattles, such as those in the Coral Sea, atMidway, at Leyte, and in the Philippine Sea.It was also a war of grim jungle battles, suchas in Guadalcanal, New Guinea, and Burma.There were bold and bloody amphibiouslandings, large-scale land operations (inBurma and the Philippines), savage guerrillawars, clandestine operations, fearsomebombing attacks, and a bitter submarinecampaign.

The Pacific War saw the application ofnew military capabilities and technologies,such as aircraft carriers, ship-borne air power,submarines, amphibious warfare, and signalsintelligence. Finally, atomic bombs were usedfor the first time. The war was fought bysome famous military commanders -Generals Douglas MacArthur, William Slim,and Yamashita Tomoyuki. and AdmiralsChester Nimitz, William Halsey, andYamamoto Isoruku.

It was an unusual war in that althoughJapan initiated it, it never had a chance ofwinning. The Japanese strategy was to seizesouth-east Asia and hope that the Allieswould grow weary and allow them to keep atleast some of their gains. After the 'infamy'of Pearl Harbor, however, the USA was never

Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

going to rest until Japan was crushed, andinevitably Japan was overpowered byAmerican industrial might.

Although Japan was crushed, it didachieve some of its aims. Its successessplintered the invincibility of Europeancolonial power, leading eventually toindependence for the former European andAmerican colonies: Indo-China, Burma,Malaya, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Italso contributed to independence for India.Japan had hoped to find easy pickings in aweak and divided China; instead, Chinabecame unified under communist rule,except for the Nationalist bastion in theformer Japanese colony of Taiwan. Japan lostits other colony in Korea, which became twoseparate but warring nations. Andremarkably, Japan rose from the ashes tobecome an economic powerhouse.

Japan waged a pitiless war, including themassacre at Nanking, the brutal treatment

and enslavement of prisoners of war, and theenforced recruitment of euphemisticallycalled 'comfort women'. This left a legacy ofbitterness across the whole region, butespecially in China and Korea. For thosewhose lives were wrecked by the war, it waslittle consolation to learn that Japan alsotreated its own civilians and servicemencruelly. As usual, the burden of war fellheaviest on the ordinary people, withmillions of deaths in Japan, China, India,and south-east Asia.

The Pacific War therefore completelyreshaped political entities in Asia and changednational attitudes. Although more than half acentury has passed since the end of the war,an understanding of it is still crucial if one isto appreciate the problems faced by thedynamic area now known as the Asia-Pacific.

Note: Spellings of places and people inthis book are those used at the time.

Chronology

1931-32 Japan establishes puppet stateof Manchukuo

1933 25 March Japan leaves Leagueof Nations

1936 25 November Japan signsAnti-Comintern Pact with Germany

1937 7 July Beginning of general attack byJapanese forces on China(China Incident)13 August Fighting begins betweenJapanese and Chinese troopsat Shanghai

1939 2 July Japanese forces in Manchukuocross into Outer Mongolia(Nomonhan Incident)16 September Ceasefire with Sovietforces in Manchukuo

1940 17 July Burma Road closed forthree months22 September Japan granted basesin Indo-China27 September Tripartite Pactbetween Germany, Italy, and Japan

1941 24 July Japanese troops land insouthern Indo-China26 July American government freezesJapanese assets in the USA; GeneralMacArthur appointed to commandUS army in Far East27 July Japanese troops startoccupying French Indo-China17 October General Tojo becomesPrime Minister of Japan7-8 December Japanese attackMalaya, Pearl Harbor, andthe Philippines10 December Prince of Wales and

Repulse sunk; main Japanese landingin the Philippines14 December Japanese start invasionof Burma17 December Japanese land inBritish Borneo24 December Wake Island capturedby Japanese26 December Surrender ofHong Kong

1942 23 January Japanese forcesattack Rabaul30 January Japanese forcesattack Ambon31 January Defending forces inMalaya withdraw to Singapore Island15 February SingaporeIsland surrenders19 February Japanese bomb Darwin19-20 February Japanese forces landon Timor27 February Naval battle of Java Sea28 February Japanese forces landin Java8 March Japanese troops enterRangoon; Japanese land in New Guinea17 March MacArthur appointed tocommand South-West Pacific Area5 April Japanese carrier-borne aircraftattack Colombo9 April American forces onBataan surrender18 April Doolittle raid on Tokyo5-8 May Battle of the Coral Sea6 May American forces onCorregidor surrender20 May Allied forces withdrawfrom Burma31 May Attack on Sydney Harbour4-6 June Battle of Midway Island7 June Japanese land inAleutian Islands

10 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

21 July Japanese land at Gonaarea, Papua7 August Americans land in Solomons8-9 August Naval battle of Savo Island25-26 August Japanese land atMilne Bay17 September Japanese drive overOwen Stanley Range halted atImita Ridge12-15 November Naval battleof Guadalcanal

1943 23 January Organized Japaneseresistance in Papua ends7 February Last Japanese withdrawfrom Guadalcanal13 February First Chindit operationinto Burma2-4 March Battle of the Bismarck Sea18 April Death of Admiral Yamamoto11 May American forces land on Attuin Aleutian Islands30 June Americans land onNew Georgia1 August Japanese declareBurma independent4 September Australians land nearLae, New Guinea16 September Australian divisionsenter Lae7 October Mountbatten takescommand of South-EastAsia Command14 October Japanese declareindependence of the Philippines1 November American troops landon Bougainville, northern Solomons20 November American forcesinvade Makin and Tarawa in Gilberts15 December Americans land onNew Britain

1944 9 January Allied forces overrunMaungdaw on Arakan front in Burma31 January Americans invadeMarshall Islands15 February New Zealand forcesinvade Green Island29 February Americans invadeAdmiralty Islands

2 March Second Chindit operationlaunched into Burma15 March Japanese Imphal offensivefrom Burma begins22 April Americans land at Hollandiaand Aitape24 April Australians enter Madang27 May Americans land on Biak Island5 June Start of Japanese withdrawalfrom Kohima15 June Americans invade Saipan inthe Marianas; American strategic airoffensive against Japan beginsfrom China19-20 June Battle of the Philippine Sea2 July Americans land on Noemfoor18 July General Tojo falls frompower as Japanese Prime Minister21 July Americans invade Guam30 July Japanese begin withdrawalfrom Myitkyina, Burma15 September Americans land inPalau Islands (Peleliu) and on Morotaiin the Halmaheras10 October US Third Fleetattacks Okinawa20 October Americans land on Leyte23-26 October Naval battle ofLeyte Gulf24 November Superfortresses attackJapan from bases in the Marianas

1945 3 January Allies occupy Akyabin Burma9 January American forces landon Luzon22 January Burma Road reopened19 February American forces land onIwo Jima9 March Japanese seize control inFrench Indo-China9-10 March First fire-bomb attackon Tokyo10 March American forces landon Mindanao20 March British capture Mandalay1 April American forces landon Okinawa1 May Australians invade Tarakan3 May British troops capture Rangoon

Chronology 11

10 June Australians land at Brunei Bay1 July Australians land at Balikpapan7 August Atomic bomb droppedon Hiroshima9 August Atomic bomb dropped onNagasaki; Soviet troopsinvade Manchukuo14 August Emperor Hirohito

announces Japanese forces'unconditional surrender15 August VJ-Day; all offensiveaction against Japan comes to an end17 August Sukarno announcesIndonesia independent2 September Japanese signinstrument of surrender in Tokyo Bay

Background to war

The expansion of Imperial Japan

The Pacific War was caused by theexpansionist ambitions of Imperial Japanand the train of events that led to it can bedescribed fairly easily. It is much harder toexplain why Japan initiated a war against theone country that had the power to crush it -the USA. The answer is perhaps found inJapan's unique culture and history. Havingnot experienced defeat for a thousand years,and believing in the superiority of their race,culture, and spirit, the Japanese could notconceive of defeat. Somehow, trusting in theliving-god Emperor, they would win, even ifmany would die in the process.

The origins of the war therefore lie inJapan's emergence after more than twocenturies of isolation from the outside world.To protect itself from foreign influences, inthe early seventeenth century Japan hadexpelled all foreigners and had severelyrestricted foreign access. This isolation wasshattered in 1853, when four Americanwarships appeared in Tokyo Bay and theircommander, Commodore Matthew Perry,began negotiations that led eventually to acommercial treaty between the USAand Japan.

Thereafter the Japanese moved rapidly tomodernize their country. The power of thefeudal warlords collapsed and in 1868 thenew Emperor announced a policy of seekingknowledge from around the world. Japanadopted a vaguely democratic constitutionwith an elected parliament or Diet.Compulsory education was introduced,although with heavy emphasis on obedienceto the Emperor. Asked by their teachersabout their 'dearest ambition,' schoolboyswould answer, 'To die for the Emperor.' TheJapanese craved European technology andexpertise, but did not have the time or theinclination to absorb Western ideas ofdemocracy or liberalism.

Japanese insecurityand expansionism

The Japanese were acutely conscious of theirvulnerability. Over the preceding centuries,European powers had seized colonies in theAsia-Pacific area. Britain held Malaya, Burma,and India, the French were in Indo-China,the Dutch owned the East Indies (nowIndonesia) and Germany had part of NewGuinea. The Europeans and the Americanshad also won concessions from a weak anddisorganized China. If Japan were to survive,it had to establish a powerful and modernarmy, and a capable navy, and to supportthese forces it had to begin a rapid process ofindustrialization. Lacking natural resourcesbut possessing a large, industriouspopulation, Japan had to secure supplies ofraw materials and find markets for its goods.

The Japanese observed that the Europeanpowers had gained economically byexploiting their military and diplomaticpower in Asia. Taking this lead, in 1894Japan initiated a short and successful warwith China over access to Korea, and thefollowing year China ceded Formosa(Taiwan) and the Liaotung peninsula insouthern Manchuria, which included thefine harbor of Port Arthur. Under pressurefrom Russia, Germany, and France, Japan wasforced to withdraw from Manchuria. Russiamoved into Manchuria, while Germany andFrance grabbed further concessions in China.To the enraged Japanese, it seemed that therewas one rule for the European powers and adifferent rule for Asian countries. Three yearslater the USA took control of the Philippines.

The Japanese were determined to gaincontrol of those areas that they saw as vitalto their economic survival. In 1904 Japanblockaded Port Arthur, and moved troopsinto Korea and Manchuria. In a bloody war

Background to war 13

with heavy casualties on both sides, theJapanese defeated the Russian army inManchuria and destroyed the Russian fleetsent to relieve Port Arthur (see OspreyEssential Histories, 'The Russo-Japanese War1904-1905). For the first time, an Asianpower had defeated a European power, andthe Japanese army gained in prestige andpower. Japan took control of the Liaotungpeninsula and stationed troops to protect theManchurian railroad. By 1910, Japan hadannexed Korea.

Japan obtained tremendous advantagesfrom the First World War. As one of theAllies, it seized Germany's possessions inChina and the Pacific, but never sent landforces to Europe. Fueled by the demands ofthe war, Japanese industries continued toexpand and Japan built up its merchant navy.

In the postwar settlement, Japan retainedthe former German Pacific colonies under amandate from the League of Nations, butwas upset by the Allies' refusal to endorse astatement about nonracial discrimination.Japan was thus confirmed as a principalpower in the Pacific, but was viewed withsuspicion by both the USA and Britain. At aconference in Washington in 1921-22, theUSA, Britain, and Japan agreed to limit theircapital ships according to a ratio of 5:5:3,and the USA and Britain undertook not tofortify their Pacific possessions. Japan wasaggrieved at apparent restrictions to its navy,but as both Britain and the USA alsodeployed their forces in the Atlantic, Japanwas left as the most powerful navy in thewestern Pacific. Still suspicious of Japan, in1923 Britain decided to establish a naval baseat Singapore, to which it would send itsmain fleet in time of crisis in the Pacific.

Meanwhile, the Japanese economy andsociety were coming under great strain.During the 1920s numerous earthquakes -the largest striking Tokyo in 1923 - shatteredcities and factories. As the world economicsystem began to falter, Western countriesapplied trade restrictions that hurt Japaneseindustries. The Great Depression is generallythought to have begun with the Wall Streetcrash in 1929, but by 1926 more than

The Japanese Emperor Hirohito, came to the throne in1926, aged 25. He had traveled in Europe and was anamateur marine biologist of repute. He exercised littlepower, but historical debate still continues over whetherhe encouraged the militarists. A Japanese nationalist, heseemed fatalistically to accept the inevitability of war(AKG Berlin)

three million Japanese industrial workers hadlost their jobs. The Japanese governmentcame under increasing pressure frommilitant nationalistic groups, often led byyoung army officers. This was a similarenvironment to that which led to the rise ofNazism in Germany, fascism in Italy andcommunism in various countries. In Japan ahomegrown militarism built on the Japanesepeople's belief in their national uniquenessand their heaven-granted mandate to assumeleadership in east Asia.

In Manchuria and northern China, Japanwas facing new challenges. The Soviet Unionwas likely to oppose Japanese ambitions inthe Far East. And in China, nationalist forceswere being consolidated under ChiangKai-shek. Fiercely nationalistic Japan ignored

14 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

the nationalist aspirations of other Asiancountries such as China and Korea.

The Japanese semiautonomous KwantungArmy, policing the Manchurian railroad, wasa highly political organization that attractedthe best and most ambitious Japaneseofficers and dominated commercialdevelopment in the ostensibly Chineseprovince. On 18 September 1931, officers ofthe Kwantung Army falsely accused theChinese of sabotaging the PortArthur-Mukden railroad. Against the wishesof both the Japanese government and thecommander of the Kwantung Army, Japaneseforces attacked the numerically strongerarmies of the local Chinese warlords andquickly overran Manchuria. Powerless, theJapanese government acquiesced, and thefollowing year Japan established a puppetstate - Manchukuo - nominally ruled byEmperor Pu Yi, but actually controlled by theJapanese commander of the Kwantung Army.In 1932 the Japanese seized the nearby-province of Jehol and added eastern Chaharin 1935. Manchukuo had a population of34 million, of whom 240,000 were Japanese(increasing to 837,000 in 1939).

This so-called Manchurian Incidentmarked the beginning of full-scale Japaneseaggression in Asia. The US Secretary of Statecondemned Japan, and after an investigationthe League of Nations branded Japan as theaggressor. In response, in March 1933 Japanwithdrew from the League of Nations. TheJapanese War Minister, General Araki Sadao,complained that the League of Nations didnot respect Japan's 'holy mission' to establishpeace in the Orient, but vowed that the daywould come when 'we will make the worldlook up to our national virtues.'

Despite these belligerent statements, theJapanese government was actually in disarray- what one commentator described as'government by assassination.' In November1930 the Japanese Prime Minister was gunneddown for accepting allegedly humiliatingconditions at a naval conference in London.In February 1932 two leading politicians wereassassinated by members of the BloodBrotherhood - modernday samurai warriors

who were prepared to sacrifice themselves forthe good of Japan. In May 1932 theymurdered the Prime Minister for criticizingJapanese aggression in Manchuria. Theassassins, described by War Minister Araki as'irrepressible patriots,' received jail terms thatwere later commuted.

In February 1936 radical army officersattempted a coup d'etat, murdering severalleading government ministers. The coupattempt failed, but the army gained even morepower. In 1937 the War Minister (a servingarmy officer) submitted a bill to parliament togive the government absolute control overindustry, labor, and the press. The Diet meeklyvoted its approval. Also the governmentinitiated a plan to expand its heavy industriesto enable it to wage a total war for three years,and it stepped up the naval building program.In November 1936 the army had negotiatedthe Anti-Comintern Pact with Germany andItaly. It was directed squarely against theSoviet Union, which was supporting China.

The Sino-Japanese War

On the night of 7 July 1937, shots were firedat a Japanese detachment on maneuvers afew miles from Peking. Japanese and Chineseforces had engaged in frequent skirmishesduring the previous six years, but this timethe Nationalist Chinese leader, ChiangKai-shek, believed that he could no longertolerate Japanese provocation. To somehistorians the 'China Incident', as theJapanese called it, marks the true beginningof the Second World War. China and Japanwere to remain at war until 1945.

On 14 August 1937, Nationalist Chineseplanes struck Japanese warships at Shanghai.The Japanese deployed 10 divisions to northChina and five to Shanghai. When, inOctober, President Roosevelt finallycondemned Japan's aggression, a leadingJapanese, Matsuoka Yosuke, soon to beForeign Minister, retorted: 'Japan isexpanding and what country in itsexpansion era has ever failed to be trying toits neighbours?' In November the Japanese

Background to war 15

Japanese troops in a victory pose at a captured Chineseartillery camp, Shanghai, November 1937. From August toearly November the Chinese resisted Japanese attempts totake the city. After it fell, the Japanese moved quickly andsecured Nanking on 13 December (AKG Berlin)

army drove the Chinese out of Shanghai andnext month took the Nationalist capital,Nanking, where it engaged in an orgy ofkilling, rape, and looting. More than aquarter of a million civilians wereslaughtered.

Contemptuous of Western public opinion,Japanese planes and shore batteries sank anAmerican gunboat, USS Panay, which wasevacuating diplomatic staffs from Nanking,and the American government chose toaccept a Japanese apology. Nonetheless,Western observers in China, many of themAmerican missionaries, publicized stories ofJapanese atrocities, and the Americangovernment gradually sought ways to assistthe Nationalist Chinese.

Thrusting deeper into China, by the endof 1938 Japan had captured large areas ofnorthern China, the Yangtze valley, and

pockets along the coast. Chiang Kai-shekwithdrew his government to the inland cityof Chungking and tried to come to acooperative arrangement with the ChineseCommunists under Mao Tse-tung. TheCommunists conducted guerrilla warfareagainst the Japanese, who had established apuppet Chinese government in their area ofoccupation. Meanwhile, the NationalistChinese were working hard to winAmerican support.

The Japanese now faced a dilemma. Theycould not conquer all of China, but the warwas a heavy drain on their resources, fuel,and finances. Japanese army leaders hopedto resolve the war in China so that theycould deal with their principal enemy, theSoviet Union. But to conclude the war, Japanneeded fuel and other resources fromsouth-east Asia. If Western countries wouldnot supply this fuel then Japan would haveto seize it. The Japanese navy leaders realizedthat expansion to the south would bringwar, with the USA as their principal enemy.Japan now stepped up preparations for amajor war.

16 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

Japanese soldiers entering Nanking in December 1937.Japanese commanders unleashed days of wantonslaughter in the city, the notorious Rape of Nanking.(AKG Berlin)

troops. In the midst of this campaign, theJapanese were shocked to learn of theNazi-Soviet Pact. They quickly arranged aceasefire in Manchuria.

Towards the end of 1938 the JapanesePrime Minister, Prince Konoye Fumimaro,spelt out Japan's plans for a New Order forEast Asia, involving the eradication ofEuropean and American imperialism and alsoof communism from east Asia. Later theJapanese would declare their nationalobjective to be the setting up of a Greater EastAsia Co-prosperity Sphere. In effect, the Asiancountries would be subservient to Japan,providing it with raw materials and markets.

Meanwhile, Soviet support for theChinese precipitated several clashes betweenthe Kwantung Army and Soviet forces.Finally, in July 1939 the Kwantung Armycrossed into Mongolia. A Soviet armymounted a counteroffensive near Nomonhanthat killed more than 18,000 Japanese

Japan looks south

Bogged down in China and checked by theSoviet Union, the Japanese were unsure oftheir next step. Then, in September 1939Germany invaded Poland, and Britain andFrance declared war on Germany. TheGerman invasion of France in May 1940suddenly offered Japan new opportunities tocut China's overseas supplies. Chased out ofEurope and hammered from the air, Britainwas not strong enough to resist Japan'sdemand in July 1940 to close the road fromRangoon in Burma to Chungking, which wassupplying the Nationalist government withvital supplies. Nor could the Vichy Frenchgovernment, formed after the German

Background to war 17

occupation, resist demands to close the portof Haiphong and to give access to bases innorthern Vietnam from which Japaneseplanes could attack southern China.

But the German occupation of France alsospurred the Americans into action. In May1940 the Americans decided to station theirPacific Fleet at Hawaii and the followingmonth they began a large naval expansionprogram so that their navy could operate inboth the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. InSeptember the US Congress agreed to apeacetime draft, and in December it made$100 million in credit available to theChinese Nationalist government. TheJapanese imperial navy reacted by ordering afull mobilization - a process that would becompleted by December 1941.

Thus, by the second half of 1940, warbetween Japan, the USA, and Britain hadbecome increasingly likely. Britain, the USA(concerned for the security of the Philippines),Australia, and the Netherlands considereddefensive plans in south-east Asia. Belatedly,Britain built up its garrison in Malaya and

The Japanese War Minister, General Tojo Hideki (centre),and the Foreign Minister Matsuoka Yosuke (second fromright), join German and Italian officials to toast theTripartite Pact signed between the three countries inSeptember 1940. The Pact recognized the leadership ofJapan in establishing a new order in Greater East Asia. A'none-too-intelligent professional soldier',Tojo becamePrime Minister in October 1941 and took Japan into thewar. Later, with the additional portfolio of Home MinisterTojo, known as 'the Razor', directed the arrest of hispolitical opponents. (Australian War Memorial)

Singapore with British, Indian, and Australiantroops. But preoccupied by events in Europeand the Middle East, Britain did not give thedefence of Malaya high priority.

The German attack on Russia on 22 June1941 fundamentally changed the situation.Japan could either fall on Russia's Far Eastempire while Russia was fighting for its lifein Europe or it could continue its southernexpansion secure in the knowledge thatRussia would be too preoccupied to attack inManchuria. In April, Japan had signed anonaggression pact with the Soviet Union.On 2 July, Japan decided to strike south.

18 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

The expansion of Japan 1920-1941

Background to war 19

Warring sides

Powerful Japan faced certaindefeat

Any comparison of the military andindustrial strengths of the Japanese Empireand the Allies must conclude that Japan hadno chance of winning. While Japan coulddeploy more than a million soldiers, three ofits enemies could do likewise. And whileJapan possessed the world's third largestnavy, it was opposed by the even strongerAmerican and British navies. Yet Japan beganthe war with considerable advantages. Byseizing the initiative, it severely damaged theUS Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, eliminatedthe dangerous US bombing force in thePhilippines, and threw the British forces inMalaya off-balance. Once the USA lost itswestern Pacific bases, it had to crossthousands of miles of ocean to take the fightto the Japanese. The USA also had to divideits forces between the European and Pacifictheaters. To an even greater extent, Britainconcentrated on Europe, and it could notdeploy its naval strength fully until the lastyear of the war.

Japan's military strength

In 1937 Japan was a strong, technologicallyadvanced nation with a population of70 million. During the 1930s its open,market-oriented economy had beentransformed into a directed war economy, butit weakness was its heavy dependence onoverseas supplies of oil, raw materials, andrice.

By 1941 the Japanese army consisted of31 divisions, with a further 13 in theKwantung Army. Each division generallynumbered about 18,000 men. By Westernstandards, much of the army's heavyequipment was obsolete, but the troops werewell trained and experienced from years ofoperations in China. By the end of the war,

Japan had raised 170 infantry, 13 air, fourtank and four anti-aircraft divisions in a forcenumbering 2.3 million. The lack of adequatetanks and heavy artillery was not animportant factor in jungle and island warfare,although the army's defeat by Soviet forces in1939 had revealed its inadequacy against awell-equipped enemy in open terrain.

One of the strengths of the Japanesearmed forces was the Bushido code of honor- the way of the warrior. All members of thearmed forces were responsible directly to theEmperor. Military instructions emphasizedabsolute obedience to orders and forbaderetreat in any circumstances. These attitudesled to fanatical resistance, often resulting insuicidal banzai charges, with the troopsshouting the battle cry, 'Long live theEmperor!' Later in the war, Japanese aircraftpilots conducted suicidal kamikaze attackson Allied ships. Another outcome was theatrocious treatment of Allied prisoners ofwar. But life was also hard and disciplinebrutal for the conscripted Japanese soldiers.

In December 1941 Japan's navy numbered391 warships, including 10 battleships and10 aircraft carriers. It was a well-trainedforce; its gunnery was good and itsnavigators were skillful. Some ships werenew, with modern weapons - the LongLance torpedo was exceptional - but otherswere older. Its strength was the naval airforce, with its 1,750 fighters, torpedobombers, and bombers, operating from bothaircraft carriers and island bases.

The Japanese army's air force was basedmainly in China, but units were later deployedto larger islands such as New Guinea and thePhilippines. While Japan's considerableindustrial capacity allowed it to constructalmost 70,000 aircraft between 1941 and 1945,it was not able to sustain the constanttechnological improvements that marked the

Warring sides 21

The Japanese Zero - the Mitsubishi A6m2 Navy Type 0carrier fighter - was one of the outstanding aircraft ofthe war Armor plating and self-sealing tanks weresacrificed to give the Zero maximum speed andmaneuverability. It could outperform most Allied aircraftin 1941 and was flown by well-trained and experiencedpilots. (US National Archives)

Allied industrial effort. As the war progressed,the Allies had increasingly superior aircraft.

Theoretically, Japanese military operationswere directed by Imperial GeneralHeadquarters (formed in 1937), but inpractice, the army and navy headquartersstaff operated independently. Armyoperations were generally controlled by theChina Expeditionary, SouthernExpeditionary or Kwantung armies. Belowthis level were the area armies; thesenormally included several armies (equivalentto Western corps) and an air army. MostJapanese warships came under the CombinedFleet, headed in 1941 by Admiral YamamotoIsoruku. This was subdivided into fleets withvarious compositions, such as the battleshipforce and the striking force.

Japan's military operations often sufferedfrom a lack of clear strategic direction,caused by lack of cooperation between armyand navy leaders. More generally, however,the Allies' main advantage lay in theindustrial power of the USA.

The USA's military strength

At the outbreak of war, the Americanpopulation of 141 million was about twicethat of Japan, but its industrial capacity wasconsiderably greater. For example, in 1937the USA produced 28.8 million tons of steel,while Japan produced 5.8 million. Thisindustrial strength and large populationenabled the USA to expand its armed forcesat an unprecedented rate and to manufacturehuge quantities of equipment and warmateriel not only for its own forces but alsofor Allied forces.

The USA fought a war in Europe, but stilldeployed massive forces in the Pacific. In early1940 the US army numbered only 160,000,but after conscription was introduced inSeptember 1940, it grew rapidly: in Decemberits strength was 1.6 million; by March 1945 ithad reached 8.1 million. These figuresincluded the US Army Air Force (USAAF),which grew from 270,000 to 1.8 million inthe same period. In April 1945 the US armyhad 5 million soldiers deployed overseas;1.45 million of these were in the Pacific andChina-Burma-India theaters. The USA alsodeployed 11 field armies. Two remained inthe USA, six went to the European theater,and three were in the Pacific - the Sixth andEighth in the South-West Pacific Area, and the

22 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

Tenth at Okinawa. Each army consisted oftwo or more corps, and each of these had twoor more divisions. During the war the USarmy formed 90 divisions. General George C.Marshall remained the Chief of Staff of theUS army throughout the war.

Of the USAAF's 16 air forces, seven servedin the Pacific and the China-Burma-Indiatheaters. In September 1939 the USAAF had2,470 aircraft; at its peak in July 1944,79,908. The USA's strength was its capacityto construct aircraft - almost 300,000 duringthe war - and its ability to improve aircraftdesigns each year. Although the USAAF wastheoretically part of the army, it acted as anindependent service and its chief, GeneralHap Arnold, was one of the four members ofthe US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

While the US army and USAAF weredivided between Europe and the Pacific, theUS navy deployed the majority of its strengthin the Pacific. Like the other services, it toounderwent a huge expansion. In July 1940 its

Mass-produced Liberty ships under construction in anAmerican shipyard. In 1940 Britain ordered 60 simplydesigned ships, described as being 'built by the mile andchopped off by the yard'. The following year the USAordered 200 of these 7,126-ton, 11 -knot ships. A totalof 27,103 were constructed in the USA during the war(US National Archives)

strength was 160,997; by August 1945 it was4.5 million. In December 1941 the PacificFleet, based at Pearl Harbor, included ninebattleships, three carriers, 21 heavy and lightcruisers, 67 destroyers, and 27 submarines.The Asiatic Fleet, based at Manila, had threecruisers, 13 destroyers, 29 submarines, twoseaplane tenders, and 16 gunboats. The totalforce was inferior to the Japanese navy andthis disparity was increased by the loss ofbattleships at Pearl Harbor.

However, the USA's immense shipbuildingprogram, begun in the late 1930s and 1940,soon changed the balance. During the warthe USA constructed 88,000 landing craft,215 submarines, 147 carriers, and 952 otherwarships. The aircraft carriers included large,fast-strike carriers transporting up to90 aircraft, and numerous, smaller, escortcarriers with 16 to 36 aircraft. The US navyincluded a strong air force (it grew from11,000 in 1940 to 430,000 in 1945) and theUS Marine Corps, which deployed sixdivisions, all in the Pacific. Admiral ErnestKing was appointed Commander-in-Chief ofthe US fleet in March 1942 and remained incommand throughout the war.

The British Empire

By December 1941 Britain had been at warfor more than two years. Its army had beenforced to evacuate France in 1940 and hadfought a series of debilitating campaigns inthe Middle East. Its air force had defendedBritain from air attacks, which were stillcontinuing. The Royal Navy was fighting thebattle of the Atlantic against German U-boatsand was supporting Britain's forces in theMediterranean. Few military resources couldbe spared for the Far East. The imperial troopsin Malaya included two Indian divisions andan understrength Australian division, whilemost of the aircraft there were inferior tothose of the Japanese. There were few majornaval units and no aircraft carriers.

British forces in south-east Asia werealways afforded a low priority for men andequipment, and operations would have been

Warring sides 23

impossible without the assistance of forcesraised in India. Of the 1 million troops thatlater served in South-East Asia Command(formed in August 1943), 700,000 wereIndian, 100,000 were British, and about90,000 came from British colonies in westand east Africa. The equivalent of about17 Indian divisions served outside Indiaduring the war; of these, two served inMalaya and 11 in Burma.

Britain provided a larger proportion of theair forces. In December 1943, for example,Air Command South-East Asia had aneffective strength of 67 squadrons. Of these,44 were from the Royal Air Force, 19 fromthe USAAF, two from the Royal Indian AirForce, one from the Royal Canadian AirForce, and one from the Royal NetherlandsAir Force.

The British Eastern Fleet operated in theIndian Ocean but was not a strong forceuntil 1944. In November 1943 it had onebattleship, one escort carrier, seven cruisers,two armed merchant cruisers, 11 destroyers,13 escort vessels, and six submarines. In

Indian artillery troops training in Malaya in 1941. In 1939the Indian army included about 200,000 Indian soldiers, afurther 83,000 from the princely states, and 63,000British troops. The Indian army expanded rapidly and bythe end of the war numbered 2.5 million - allvolunteers. The Indian units were mostly staffed withBritish officers, and Indian brigades usually included aBritish battalion. (Imperial War Museum. London, printfrom MARS. Lincs)

1945 the British Pacific Fleet was formed tooperate with the Americans in the Pacific.With two battleships, four carriers, fivecruisers, and 14 destroyers it was the largestand most powerful British fleet of the war.

Australia and New Zealand

Before the war Australia had a minusculeregular army with about 80,000 part-timevolunteers in the militia. The air force was alsovery small with about 160 mostly obsoleteaircraft. Only the navy, with six cruisers, fiveold destroyers, and two sloops, was even closeto being ready for battle. The army and air

24 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

force expanded through voluntary enlistmentand, with navy units, they operated withBritish forces in the Middle East and Europe.After the outbreak of war in the Pacific, mostof these units returned to Australia, wherethey became part of the South-West PacificArea under General MacArthur.

By mid-1942 Australia had 11 divisions inAustralia, and during 1942 and 1943Australia provided the majority of the Alliedland forces in the South-West Pacific Area. Atits largest, the army numbered 500,000 froma population of 7 million, and six divisionsserved on operations in the south-westernPacific. The army was divided between thevolunteers of the Australian Imperial Force,who could serve in any area, and the militia,which included conscripts and could serveonly in Australia and its territories. The airforce, with more than 50 squadrons, flyingboth American and Australian-built Britishaircraft, provided a useful supplement to theAllied air forces, although Australia alsomaintained a large contribution to the Alliedstrategic bombing campaign in Europe. Thenavy formed a strong squadron with theAllied naval forces, but had no carriers.Considering its limited population andindustrial base, Australia made a substantialcontribution to the Pacific War.

New Zealand made a much smallercontribution, preferring to leave its largestexpeditionary division in Europe. A smallNew Zealand division, along with air andnaval units, fought in the Solomon Islands.

China

The Chinese armed forces were dividedbetween those under the control of the

Nationalist government, those organized bythe Communist Party, and those undervarious warlords. The Nationalist armyexpanded from a force of about 1.2 millionin 1937 to one of 5.7 million in August1945, organized into 300 divisions. Itwas composed of conscripts, who wereusually treated badly. Poorly equippedand inadequately trained, the Chinesedivisions had generally a low level ofcapability. Several Chinese divisions foughtunder American command in Burma,where they performed creditably. TheChinese air force was organized andflown by American volunteers. The mainCommunist army expanded from about92,000 in 1937 to 910,000 in 1945. Itconcentrated on guerrilla warfare andon establishing good relations with peasantcommunities.

Conclusion

Japan, the USA, China, and India eachdeployed armies of more than 1 millionsoldiers. In addition, the Soviet Union couldalso deploy millions of troops. But with afew exceptions, these forces were neverengaged in intense, large-scale landoperations for long periods. The geographicspread of operations across the maritimeareas of the Pacific meant that air and navalforces played a major role. It was here thatthe industrial strength of the USA gave theAllies a significant advantage. Indeed by theend of the war, the US navy in the Pacificwas the largest in history. Once the Alliescould apply their naval and air strength tothe fullest extent, their final victory wasinevitable.

Outbreak

The slide toward inevitable war

Internal Japanese politics played a crucial rolein shaping the events that led to war inDecember 1941. The most fanatical memberof the government was the Foreign Minister,Matsuoka, who, after Germany attackedRussia, wanted Japan also to attack Russia. Hecould not persuade his colleagues and on2 July 1941 they decided to seize bases insouthern Indo-China. On 16 July the JapanesePrime Minister, Konoye, dropped Matsuokafrom the Cabinet, but the Cabinet could stillnot agree over the extent to which it shouldpursue negotiations with the Americans. TheWar Minister, General Tojo Hideki, waspessimistic about the outcome of negotiationsand was adamant that Japan had to go to warbefore the end of the year, when tropicalmonsoons would make operations difficult.Konoye wanted to negotiate for as long aspossible. All agreed, however, that Japan couldnot withdraw from China.

These tensions partly explain the differentdiplomatic signals emanating from Tokyoduring the following months. But theAmerican and British governments werereluctant to take the Japanese overtures atface value. In an amazing feat of ingenuityand persistence US naval cryptanalysts hadbroken the Japanese diplomatic ciphers andthe resulting intelligence, known as Magic,gave the Americans clear insight intoJapanese intentions. Japan's decision on2 July to strike south was known within a fewdays in Washington, London, and Canberra.

President Roosevelt also learned fromMagic that the Japanese planned to continuediplomatic efforts while they secretlyprepared for a military offensive. He wastherefore well prepared when on 24 July theJapanese moved into southern Indo-China.Two days later the USA, in agreement withthe British and the Dutch, froze Japaneseassets and applied a further embargo that

reduced trade with Japan by three-quarters.That same day General Douglas MacArthur, aretired American officer commanding thePhilippines Army, was recalled to the colorsand appointed commander of the US armyin the Far East. On 1 August, Rooseveltordered an embargo on high-octane gasolineand crude oil exports.

These embargoes had a devastating effecton the Japanese economy. In June 1941 ajoint army-navy investigating committeeconcluded that Japan would run out of oil inmid-1944. Neither the Japanese governmentnor the Japanese people were willing toaccept the massive loss of face that wouldhave resulted from withdrawing fromIndo-China and ultimately from China.There was no alternative but to seize theresources they needed from Malaya and theDutch East Indies. The Japanese navy'splanners also knew that the USA would notremain neutral, and that with its forces inthe Philippines the USA would strike at theflanks of the Japanese invasion fleets.

The Japanese armed forces had beenpreparing for war with the USA from thebeginning of the year. The Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Fleet, AdmiralYamamoto Isoruku, had served in the USA forseveral years and knew the power of theAmerican industrial base. He was opposed towar, but became convinced that Japan's onlyhope was to destroy the US Pacific Fleet witha daring pre-emptive strike at its base at PearlHarbor, Hawaii. The plan was approved andthe Japanese navy secretly began training itspilots to undertake low-level torpedo attacksagainst ships in a remote bay similar to that atPearl Harbor. Yamamoto finally selected thedate for the attack - the morning of Sunday7 December - when most of the US fleet,including its aircraft carriers, were usually inport for the weekend.

26 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

On 6 September the Japanese Cabinet metwith Emperor Hirohito and decided tocontinue negotiations, while preparing to goto war if the negotiations were not successfulby 10 October. When 10 October passedwithout progress in the negotiations, theWar Minister, Tojo, indicated that he hadlost confidence in Konoye, who thenresigned. On 17 October Tojo became PrimeMinister, while retaining his post as WarMinister. Tojo was determined to establishJapanese primacy in the Far East, to defeatthe Western nations that had colonies in theFar East, to incorporate China into Japan,and to establish the East Asia Co-prosperitySphere in the countries of south-east Asia.

On 2 November Tojo appeared before theEmperor and argued that Japan had to seizethe moment. Three days later the Japanesegovernment issued war orders and gave itsdiplomats until 25 November to solve theproblem. On 7 November the USA decipheredJapanese diplomatic messages that showedthat 25 November was a key date. Meanwhile,Japan offered not to seize any of theoil-producing islands if the USA agreed not to

Admiral Yamamoto Isoruku, Commander-in-Chief of theJapanese navy's Combined Fleet, had served in the USAfor several years and knew the power of the Americanindustrial base. In September 1940 he told PrimeMinister Konoye:'If we are ordered to [go to war withthe USA] then I can guarantee to put up a tough fightfor the first six months but I have absolutely noconfidence about what would happen if it went on fortwo or three years.' (US National Archives)

interfere in China. Aware that Japan hadalready set a course for war, on 26 Novemberthe US Secretary of State, Cordell Hull,restated the USA's conditions - that Japanwithdraw from both Indo-China and China,accept the legitimacy of Chiang Kai-shek'sgovernment, and, in effect, withdraw fromthe Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy.

Already Japanese forces were on the move.On 17 November the ships that were toattack Pearl Harbor left their ports and begangathering at an anchorage in the remotenorthern Kurile Islands. On 26 NovemberYamamoto sent Vice-Admiral NagumoChuichi, commander of the carrier strikeforce, a coded message: 'Climb MountNiitaka.' It was the order to set sail for war.Nagumo's force included six of Japan's bestaircraft carriers, two battleships, two cruisers,a destroyer screen and eight support ships.Once they left the Kuriles they were to applystrict radio silence and to sail through the farnorthern Pacific Ocean, well away fromshipping lanes.

The Allies had no knowledge of the carrierforce's progress, but the Japanese could notkeep their other war preparations secret. On26 November Roosevelt was given intelligencethat a large Japanese convoy carrying50,000 troops was at sea south of Formosa.Next day Admiral Harold Stark, chief of USnaval operations, sent a 'war warning' toAdmirals Husband Kimmel and Thomas Hartof the Pacific and Asiatic fleets at Pearl Harborand Manila. The message said thatnegotiations with Japan had ceased and thatan 'aggressive move' by Japan was 'expectedwithin the next few days.' Indications werethat the Japanese might launch amphibiousattacks against the Philippines, Thailand,Malaya, or possibly Borneo.

Outbreak 27

Although the Japanese intended to strikewithout warning, they still played out thediplomatic charade of presenting the USAwith an ultimatum to rectify a list ofgrievances. This diplomatic note was to bepresented to the US Secretary of State at1.00 pm on Sunday 7 December. As soon asthe 14-part message was transmitted fromTokyo to Japan's Washington Embassy, it wasdeciphered by the Americans and on Sundaymorning it was passed to Roosevelt, whoremarked, 'This means war.' The JapaneseEmbassy failed to decipher and translate thecable as quickly as the Americans and theJapanese diplomats were not able to presentthe note formally to Cordell Hull until2.30 pm. By then both Roosevelt and Hullknew that Hawaii had been under air attackfor more than an hour. Japanese surprise hadbeen complete.

The attack on Pearl Harbor

Before dawn on 7 December the Japanesefleet was 275 miles (440km) north of Hawaii,while five midget submarines were already

approaching Pearl Harbor. At 6.00 am theJapanese aircraft began to take off from thepitching decks of the aircraft carriers, and ledby the veteran aviator Commander FuchidaMitsuo, 183 planes gathered in formation:49 Val bombers carrying armour-piercingbombs, 40 Kates with the deadly Long Lancetorpedoes, and 43 Zero fighters to provideprotection and to attack surface targets. Asthe Japanese aircraft made their way throughthe hills of northern Oahu, the air base andport lay unprepared on a sleepy Sundaymorning. At anchor was almost the entireUS Pacific Fleet. All that was missing werethe two carriers, at sea with their escorts,including most of the heavy cruisers. Atabout 7.55 am the Japanese dive-bombersstruck, followed 45 minutes later by a further176 aircraft.

For the loss of 29 aircraft the Japanesesunk six battleships and damaged two. Threedestroyers, three light cruisers, and fourother vessels were also sunk or damaged. On

At 6.00 am on 7 December Japanese planes began totake off from six carriers sailing about 275 miles (440km)north of Hawaii. (US National Archives)

28 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

The battleship Arizona in its anchorage in Pearl Harborafter the Japanese attack on 7 December 1941. Anexplosion in the forward magazine killed 1,103 crewmen,most being trapped below decks. The destruction of theAmerican battleships forced the US navy to rely on itscarriers. (US National Archives)

the airfields 164 aircraft were destroyedand another 128 damaged. Altogether,2,403 servicemen and civilians were killed.

It was a tactical victory, but not thestrategic victory for which the Japanese hadhoped. In due course, all but three shipswere repaired and returned to service. Andthe Japanese failed to destroy the US navy'sextensive oil storage facilities, with a reserveof 4.5 million barrels. Had the oil and otheressential dockyard facilities been destroyed,the US navy would have been forced toretreat to the West Coast. Further, whileeight battleships had been put out of action,the carriers and heavy cruisers had escapeddamage. Vice-Admiral Nagumo might wellhave ordered another attack later in the day.But he went for safety first and headed forhome, loath to remain near to Hawaii, where

he might come under attack from theAmerican carriers. The chance to inflict acrushing blow was lost.

Although the Japanese attack failed tocripple the US Pacific Fleet, it was atremendous blow to American military pride.Admiral Kimmel was struck on the chest by aspent bullet while watching the attack fromhis office. 'It would have been merciful hadit killed me,' he admitted to a fellow officer.Kimmel and Lieutenant-General WalterShort, commanding the US army on Hawaii,were relieved of their commands. Over thenext four years there were seveninvestigations to discover why the Americanshad been caught by surprise.

After the war a joint Congressinvestigation revealed that the USA hadbroken some of the Japanese codes and thatinformation was available that might haveindicated that the Japanese were going toattack Pearl Harbor. Blame was notapportioned to any individuals, but Kimmeland Short believed that they had been madescapegoats for the errors of others.

Outbreak 29

On 8 December 1941 the US President, FranklinRoosevelt, asked Congress to declare war His openingwords were memorable: 'Yesterday, December 7 1941 -a date which will live in infamy - the United States ofAmerica was suddenly and deliberately attacked. Thesurprise attack thus ensured that the USA would notrest until it had crushed Japan. (US National Archives)

In the ensuing years, some historianssuggested that Roosevelt either deliberatelyprovoked the Japanese or at least knew thatthey were going to attack Pearl Harbor, anddid nothing, thereby ensuring that the USAentered the war without firing the first shot.Historians have not generally accepted thisview. One of the most perceptive analysts,Roberta Wohlstetter, wrote in 1962: 'Wefailed to anticipate Pearl Harbor not for wantof the relevant materials but because of aplethora of irrelevant ones.'

The conspiracy theory would not die,fueled by further revelations about thesuccess of the Allied code-breakers. ButRear-Admiral Edwin Layton, chief intelligenceofficer at Pearl Harbor throughout the war,argued in 1985 that the intelligence debaclewas caused by intra- and inter-servicesquabbles in Washington. By the evening of6 December the leaders in Washington knewthat Japan would launch into war in a matterof hours rather than days, but there was noevidence that anyone suspected that PearlHarbor would be a target.

Several authors have claimed that Britishintelligence broke the Japanese fleet code,used by Yamamoto to signal instructions toNagumo, and that the British Prime Minister,Winston Churchill, failed to pass theinformation on to Roosevelt, ensuring thatthe USA entered the war and thus savingBritain from defeat. There is no evidence toprove this theory.

Malaya and the Philippines

While the Pearl Harbor attack was atremendous surprise, elsewhere there wasclear warning of Japanese intentions, eventhough the exact destination of theirinvasion convoys could not be determined.Soon after midnight on 7-8 December, butbecause of the time difference several hoursbefore the attack on Pearl Harbor, aJapanese invasion fleet began bombardingKota Bharu in northern Malaya. Duringthe morning, troops began landing thereand at other locations along the Thai andMalayan coast.

The Japanese knew that they would haveto deal with the 35 US B-17 bombers at ClarkField in the Philippines, but fog on Formosaprevented their aircraft from taking offbefore dawn to attack Clark. GeneralMacArthur had been advised of the attack onPearl Harbor, but failed to act decisively.When the main Japanese attack forcereached Clark soon after midday, it caughtmost of the American aircraft on the ground.In a disaster to rival that at Pearl Harbor, theAmericans lost half of their B-17 fleet and86 other aircraft.

In less than 14 hours the Japanesehad attacked Malaya, Hawaii, Thailand,the Philippines, Guam Island, Hong Kong,and Wake Island, and in that order.The speculations of diplomats andmilitary staffs about Japanese intentionshad ended.

The fighting

The course of the Pacific War

Between December 1941 and March 1942Japanese forces conducted one of history'smost successful series of military campaigns.Perhaps the most remarkable campaign tookplace in Malaya. It began on 8 December withthe landing in north-east Malaya of troopsfrom the Japanese Twenty-Fifth Army, underLieutenant-General Yamashita Tomoyuki.Yamashita's force of 60,000 men was opposedby 88,000 British, Australian, Indian, andMalayan troops under Lieutenant-GeneralArthur Percival, but the Japanese naval andland-based aircraft completely outnumberedand outclassed the British air force. On10 December the British suffered a devastatingblow when Japanese aircraft sank thebattleship Prince of Wales and the battlecruiser Repulse in the South China Sea.

Advancing more than 600 miles(1,000km), by 31 January 1942 the Japanesehad driven the Commonwealth forces back

to Singapore. Although they had sufferedheavily, the Commonwealth forces had,however, been reinforced and nownumbered 85,000. Yamashita attacked with35,000 troops, crossing the Johore Strait onthe night of 7/8 February. On 15 FebruaryPercival surrendered his force. Described byWinston Churchill as the 'worst disaster inBritish military history,' the fall of Singaporeshattered British prestige in the Far East.

Elsewhere, the Japanese were conductingsimilar campaigns. During the second weekof December they landed in the Philippines,with the main landing on 22 December 1941

General Percival (right), accompanied by a Japaneseofficer, makes his way to meet General Yamashita tosurrender his forces at Singapore on 15 February 1942.More than 130,000 Commonwealth troops becameprisoners of war during the campaign. Yamashita'scasualties numbered about 5,000. (Imperial WarMuseum. London, print from MARS, Lincs)

The fighting 31

The conquest of Malaya, December 1941-February 1942

32 Essential Histories • The Second World War

by Lieutenant-General Homma Masaharu'sFourteenth Army, at Lingayen Gulf onLuzon. Realizing that his American andFilipino troops were no match for theJapanese, General MacArthur declaredManila an open city and withdrew into theBataan peninsula, with his headquarters onCorregidor Island in Manila Bay. TheJapanese occupied Manila on 2 January1942. The troops on the Bataan peninsularesisted stoutly but were short of food andammunition. On orders from PresidentRoosevelt, on 12 March MacArthur leftCorregidor by PT boat and, after transferringto an aircraft at Mindanao, continued toAustralia. The force on Bataan surrenderedon 9 April, and MacArthur's successor,Lieutenant-General Jonathan Wainwright,surrendered on Corregidor on 6 May.

The Japanese attacked Hong Kong on8 December 1941. The garrison of4,400 troops, including 800 Canadians,continued the resistance until ChristmasDay. Also on 8 December, Japanese planesbombed the US Pacific base at Wake Island.Shore batteries and US Marine fighter aircraftdrove off an invasion force, but on23 December a larger Japanese forceoverwhelmed the defenders.

With victory in sight in Malaya and thePhilippines, the Japanese turned theirattention to the Netherlands East Indies. Tocoordinate their defenses, on 15 January1942 the Allies established ABDA(American-British-Dutch-Australian)Command with its headquarters on Java. Itscommander, General Sir Archibald Wavell,was responsible for the defense of the areafrom Burma, through Singapore, to the EastIndies and northern Australia, but his forceswere not large enough and Alliedcoordination was poor.

Japanese forces seized Tarakan, off Borneo,on 11 January, crushed the Australian garrisonat Rabaul in New Britain on 23 January,landed at Balikpapan, Borneo, on the sameday, and reached the Celebes on 24 January.The Japanese struck at Ambon on 31 January,and in three days captured the Dutch andAustralian garrison. On 14 February Japanese

paratroops landed on Sumatra, where theywere joined by seaborne troops. Japanese airattacks on the Australian port of Darwin on19 February provided protection for theirinvasion of West (Dutch) and East(Portuguese) Timor the following day.

On 27 February in the Java Sea, fiveAmerican, British, Dutch, and Australiancruisers with nine destroyers, all underDutch Rear-Admiral Karel Doorman, triedunsuccessfully to intercept the Japaneseinvasion fleet bound for Java. In the firstfleet action of the Pacific War, the Allies losttwo cruisers and three destroyers, andDoorman was killed. Next night thesurviving cruisers, the Australian Perth andthe USS Houston, engaged another Japaneseinvasion fleet in the Sunda Strait. They sanktwo ships before they too were sunk. Theway was now clear for the Japanese invasion.The ABDA forces in Java formallysurrendered on 12 March, although Wavelland other senior officers had been evacuatedearlier. It was the end of ABDA Command.

The Japanese landed in southern Thailandon 8 December to facilitate their Malayancampaign. Next day, the Thai Prime Ministerordered his forces to cease resistance andThailand declared war on Britain and theUSA the following month. In mid-Januarythe Japanese Fifteenth Army in Thailandcrossed into Burma. The British had twodivisions (one Burmese and the otherIndian), but they could not prevent theJapanese taking Rangoon on 7 March. Fearfulthat the Burma Road - its supply lifeline -was being cut, China sent forces into Burma,but the Japanese were superior. Theyseparated the Chinese and British forces, andby 20 May had driven the British out ofBurma and back to India. Meanwhile, tostrengthen their hold over their westernflank, Admiral Nagumo's carrier fleet, whichhad attacked both Pearl Harbor and Darwin,entered the Indian Ocean and struck theBritish base at Colombo. Two British cruisersand several other ships, including a carrier,were sunk between 5 and 9 April.

Japan's rapid success caught their plannersunprepared. On 5 January 1942, when it

The fighting 33

looked as they though would achieve alltheir targets by the middle of March, theChief of Staff of the Japanese CombinedFleet wrote in his diary: 'Where shall we gofrom there? Shall we advance into Australia,attack Hawaii; or shall we prepare for thepossibility of a Soviet sortie and knock themout if an opportunity arises?' For twomonths Imperial General Headquartersdebated these questions.

The Japanese army resisted the navy's planto invade Australia, as it could not spare thenecessary 10 or perhaps 12 divisions fromChina or Manchuria. If the Red Armycollapsed before the German blitzkrieg, Japanmight launch an invasion of Siberia. Evenmore crucially, a major assault on Australiawould require 1.5-2 million tons of shipping;most of this shipping was required totransport the newly won raw materials fromsouth-east Asia to Japan. Instead, the armypreferred an offensive in Burma and India.

ABOVE Admiral Chester Nimitz (left). Commander-in-Chief of the US Pacific Fleet and the Pacific OceanArea. After Pearl Harbor, Roosevelt told Nimitz to 'getthe hell out to Hawaii and don't come back until the waris won.' Easygoing and affable, he could be tough whennecessary, was willing to take risks and was anoutstanding strategist. (US National Archives)

The navy was not unanimous about theneed to invade Australia. Admiral Yamamotowanted to attack Midway, in the centralPacific, to draw the US Pacific Fleet intobattle. A compromise was reached: theinvasions of Australia and India were putaside and on 15 March it was agreed tocapture Port Moresby and the southernSolomons, and 'to isolate Australia' byseizing Fiji, Samoa, and New Caledonia. TheJapanese planned to form a defensive ringaround their Greater East Asia Co-prosperitySphere; if Australia could be isolated, itwould no longer be a base for an Americancounteroffensive.

Coral Sea and Midway

In the midst of the Japanese offensive, theAllies struggled to reshape their Pacificstrategy. Global strategy was to bedetermined by the Combined Chiefs of Staff,consisting of the American and British Chiefsof Staff. Priority was given to the war withGermany. The Pacific War was left in thehands of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. The keyfigure was the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the US navy, Admiral ErnestKing, who, despite the focus on Germany,

FOLLOWING PAGES Map1. 7 December 1941, Japanese carrier-borne aircraftattack Pearl Harbor2. 8 December 1941. Japan invades Malaya: 15 February1942, Singapore surrenders3. 8-25 December 1941, invasion of Hong Kong4. 10 December 1941,Japanese invade Philippines;surrendered 6 May 1942

5. 24 December 1941, Wake Island captured by Japanese6. 11 January 1942-8 March 1942, invasion of DutchEast Indies7. 19 January-15 May 1942, invasion of Burma8. 23 January-6 August 1942, invasion of New Britain,Solomons, New Guinea, and part of Papua9. 19 February 1942, Japanese carrier-borne andland-based aircraft attack Darwin

10. 5 April 1942, Japanese carrier-borne aircraftattack Colombo11. 4-8 May 1942, Battle of the Coral Sea12. 31 May-1 June 1942, Japanese submarines attackSydney Harbour13. 3-6 June 1942, Battle of Midway14. 6-7 June 1942, Japanese land in Aleutian Islands

34 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

Japan's conquests December 1941-August 1942

The fighting 35

36 Essential Histories • The Second World War ( I )

ABOVE The crew of the USS carrier Lexington, abandonship while a destroyer maneuvers along side, during theBattle of the Coral Sea, 8 May 1942. Leaking fuel fumesset off an uncontrollable fire and explosions. After shewas abandoned. American destroyers finished her off.Only 216 of her total complement of 2,951 were lost.(US Navy/MARS, Lincs)

was anxious to revitalize Pacific strategy.Admiral Nimitz, with his headquarters atPearl Harbor, had only three aircraft carriers,but was determined to take the fight to theJapanese as early as possible. GeneralMacArthur became Commander-in-Chief ofthe South-West Pacific Area, with hisheadquarters in Melbourne, Australia. Hiswas an Allied command and included all ofAustralia's combat forces as well as relativelysmall numbers of American ships, planes,and combat troops.

Nimitz moved quickly and during Februaryand March planes from his carriers raidedJapanese bases in the Gilbert and MarshallIslands and Japanese shipping near NewGuinea. On 18 April 16 B-25 bombers fromthe USS Hornet, under Colonel JamesDoolittle, raided Japan. The raid did little

damage, but Admiral Yamamoto now won hisargument that he should strike at Midway.

Meanwhile, a Japanese invasion force setsail from Rabaul to seize Port Moresby, onthe south coast of New Guinea. Warned bysignals intelligence, Allied naval forces,including the carriers Lexington and Yorktown,rushed to intercept the Japanese in the CoralSea. On 7 and 8 May, in the first naval battlein which opposing ships never sighted eachother, American aircraft sank the smallcarrier Shoho and damaged the large carrierShokaku. The Americans lost the Lexington,while the Yorktown was damaged.

Although the Japanese had achieved aslight tactical victory, they called off theirsea-borne invasion of Port Moresby,awaiting the conclusion of their attack onMidway in early June. Equally importantly,Japanese losses meant that Yamamoto'sforces would be reduced for the Midwaybattle. The absence of one fleet carrier wasperhaps critical to the outcome of thatbattle. The Battle of the Coral Sea gave theAllies vital breathing space in which tobuild up the force in New Guinea. It was the

The fighting 37

end of an unbroken run of successfulJapanese invasions.

The Battle of Midway was the crucialbattle of the Pacific War. When Americancode-breakers discovered that AdmiralNagumo's strike force of four carriersintended to attack Midway, Nimitz deployedhis limited forces. Yorktown limped back toPearl Harbor, was quickly repaired in anoutstanding feat of engineering, and joinedthe American carrier task force of Enterpriseand Hornet, under the careful, clear-thinkingRear-Admiral Raymond Spruance. Notexpecting to encounter American carriers, on4 June the Japanese were caught off-guard.By the end of the battle on 7 June, theJapanese had lost all four fleet carriers, whileYorktown was damaged and finally sunk by aJapanese submarine. It was the first decisive

American dive-bombers moving in to attack Japanesecarriers during the Battle of Midway on 4 June 1942.American torpedo bombers had carried out futileattacks, losing 35 of 41 aircraft in the first attack. Thisexposed the Japanese fleet to US dive-bombers thatsoon reduced three carriers to burning wrecks.(US National Archives)

defeat inflicted on the Japanese and changedthe naval balance in the Pacific.

Japan now postponed its plans to seizeNew Caledonia, Fiji, and Samoa; instead, thecapture of Port Moresby became even moreurgent. With the loss of the carriers, anamphibious operation was no longerpossible, and on 7 June Lieutenant-GeneralHyakutake Harukichi in Rabaul was orderedto plan a land approach over the forbiddingOwen Stanley Ranges to Port Moresby.Strategically, the tide of war was beginning

38 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

to turn, but the Japanese were still capable ofmounting a deadly offensive.

Guadalcanal and New Guinea

The US navy's success at Midway encouragedthe US Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington,and on 2 July 1942 they ordered an offensivein the New Guinea-Solomon Islands area torecapture Rabaul. Because of jealousybetween the US navy and the US army, theoffensive was to be shared. In June theAmericans had received reports that theJapanese were building an airstrip onGuadalcanal in the southern SolomonIslands. US naval forces under Vice-AdmiralRobert Ghormley were ordered to seizeseveral islands in the southern Solomons,

US Marines on the march to Matanikau, west ofHenderson Field on Guadalcanal. The Matanikaubattle began toward the end of September andthe position was not secured until late October1942. following a fierce Japanese counterattack.(AKG Berlin)

including Guadalcanal, for which he wasallocated the 1st US Marine Division. Oncethe Marines had landed on Guadalcanal,MacArthur planned to occupy the Buna areaon the north coast of Papua, where airstripswould be prepared to support his advancetoward Rabaul.

Unfortunately for these plans, theJapanese moved first. Their advance troopslanded at Buna on the night of 21 July, to bemet by only light resistance. The JapaneseSouth Seas Detachment was now ordered toattack Port Moresby over the mountains.Belatedly, MacArthur began to sendreinforcements to New Guinea.

The Japanese were thrown off-balance bythe landing of the US Marines at Guadalcanalon 7 August. Not pleased to be pushed offtheir new airstrip, the Japanese attacked theAmericans with aircraft based at Rabaul.Vice-Admiral Jack Fletcher therefore withdrewhis three carriers, exposing the remainingforces to the Japanese ships. On the night of8/9 August, in the Battle of Savo Island,Japanese cruisers sank the Australian cruiser

The fighting 39

Canberra and three American cruisers.Following up this victory, the Japaneselanded 1,000 men on Guadalcanal, but on21 August they lost heavily in an attack onthe perimeter of Henderson airfield. Whilethe Americans held the airstrip theycontrolled the surrounding seas by day; butat night the Japanese dominated, bringing inmore reinforcements in an attempt to seizethe vital airstrip.

In Papua, MacArthur's Australian forcesfaced a similar challenge. The Japaneseoffensive began on 26 August with twosimultaneous attacks - one on the KokodaTrail that wound over the Owen StanleyRanges, and the other a landing by JapaneseMarines at Milne Bay on the south-east tip ofNew Guinea. Fearful for his own position,MacArthur tried to blame the Australians fortheir allegedly poor fighting ability. But by6 September two Australian brigades at MilneBay had defeated the Japanese, forcing themto evacuate. On the Kokoda Trail, however,Australian troops conducted a desperatewithdrawal. Eventually the Japanese failed;

the track was much more difficult thanexpected and they had made insufficientprovision for supplies. Importantly, theGuadalcanal campaign caused the Japanesehigh command in Rabaul to divert resourcesto that area, and eventually to order a halt tothe Owen Stanley offensive.

The fighting on and around Guadalcanalturned into a campaign of attrition. DuringSeptember and October the Japanese maderepeated efforts to recover Hendersonairfield. In the Battle of Bloody Ridge2,000 Japanese attacked in massed waves,and some came within 3,000ft (900m) of theairfield. If they had taken it, they might wellhave won the campaign. Lieutenant-ColonelMerrit A. Edson, commanding the forcedefending the ridge, was awarded theCongressional Medal of Honor. The

Australian soldiers of the 39th Battalion on the KokodaTrail in August 1942. Short of supplies, the Australiansconducted a fighting withdrawal in the Owen StanleyRanges that bought time for reinforcements to arriveand caused the Japanese to exhaust their supplies.(Australian War Memorial)

40 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

defenders were supported by Marine aircraftof the 'Cactus Air Force' operating from theairfield, but in October Japanese shipsbombarded the airfield, putting ittemporarily out of action. As reinforcementsarrived, the Marines gradually widened theirperimeter, meeting strong resistance fromthe Japanese on the surrounding hills and inthe jungle-filled valleys.

Naval battles continued aroundGuadalcanal and Fletcher was relieved of hiscommand. One American carrier was sunkand another damaged. On 18 OctoberVice-Admiral William Halsey relievedGhormley of command of the campaign. Inthe Battle of Santa Cruz, the carrier Hornetwas lost and Enterprise was damaged. Thenaval battle of Guadalcanal began on12 November and lasted for three days; in

Admiral William (Bull) Halsey assumed command of theGuadalcanal campaign in October 1942 and remained incommand of the Solomons campaign until March 1944.He and Admiral Spruance then alternated as commanderof the Pacific Fleet's main operational force, known as theThird Fleet when under his command, and the Fifth Fleetwhen under Spruance. (US National Archives)

the first 24 minutes the Americans lost sixships and the Japanese three, including abattleship. Eventually the odds began to tilttoward the Americans.

In New Guinea the 7th AustralianDivision advanced back over the KokodaTrail to the north coast, where it was joinedby the US 32nd Division. Exhausted, sickand with little support, the Australians andAmericans were confronted bywell-constructed Japanese defenses in jungleand swamp. MacArthur unreasonablydemanded a swift victory, telling theAmerican corps commander,Lieutenant-General Robert Eichelberger, 'totake Buna, or not come back alive.' By thetime the Japanese had been driven into thesea at Sanananda on 22 January 1943, theyhad suffered more than 13,000 killed. TheAustralians lost more than 2,000 killed andthe Americans more than 600. Almost20,000 Australian and American troops weresick from malaria.

The Japanese faced a similar outcome onGuadalcanal, but in one of the crucialdecisions of the Pacific War their highcommand decided to move to the strategicdefensive and ordered an evacuation. Thistook place in February. During the campaignthe Japanese lost perhaps 24,000 killed,while American fatal casualties numberedsome 1,600. The Japanese had lost many oftheir best trained pilots and their naval airforce never recovered from these losses.

The campaigns in New Guinea andGuadalcanal were fought in thick tropicaljungles and fetid swamps. Resupply wasdifficult and in New Guinea the Allies reliedon native porters and airdrops. Tropicalillnesses were as deadly as the enemy's bullets.

The Japanese made one last offensivethrust, toward Wau in New Guinea, but thiswas thwarted when an Australian brigade wasflown into the area. Seeking to build up theirdefenses, the Japanese created the EighteenthArmy and planned to reinforce New Guinea.Warned by signals intelligence andreconnaissance aircraft, the commander ofthe Allied air force in the South-West PacificArea, the highly capable Lieutenant-General

The fighting 41

Japanese shipping under attack by American andAustralian aircraft during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea,fought between 2 and 4 March 1943. The Japaneselost eight transports and four destroyers; of almost7,000 troops on the transports, about half perished.(Australian War Memorial)

George Kenney, ordered the convoy to beintercepted in the Bismarck Sea.

Allied code-breakers also gave warningthat Admiral Yamamoto would be visitingBougainville in the northern Solomons.American P-38 Lightnings from HendersonField were directed to his destination and on13 April 1943 they downed his aircraft inflames. It was a further blow to the Japanese,who were already on the defensive inthe south-west Pacific. Yamamoto wassucceeded by Admiral Koga Mineichi asCommander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet.

Aleutian Islands campaign

On the night of 6 June 1942 the Japaneselanded 1,200 troops on remote Attu Island,at the western end of the Aleutian Islands -

an island chain that projected 1,000 nauticalmiles from Alaska into the northern PacificOcean. Next day a small force took Kiska,another westerly island. The islands wereundefended and had few inhabitants. TheJapanese operation was partly to prevent theAmericans using the islands as a base for anattack on northern Japan, but mainly adiversion for the Midway operation. TheJapanese occupations posed little threat, butas the islands were American territory therewas public agitation for their recovery.

In response, the US Eleventh Air Forcemounted a protracted bombing campaign,while American warships tried to prevent theJapanese from reinforcing their garrisons.These were extremely difficult operations asthe islands were often shrouded in fog andrain. In March 1943, in one of the PacificWar's few 'fleet actions' in open seas, Americanand Japanese cruisers pounded each other,with the Americans lucky to survive. But theJapanese fleet turned back and the Japaneseadmiral was dismissed from his command.

On 11 May 1943 the US 7th InfantryDivision landed on Attu, where it faced fierce

42 Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

opposition, culminating in a suicidalJapanese bayonet charge on 29 May. TheUSA lost 600 killed; only 28 Japanese werecaptured and 2,351 bodies were counted.

In a daring operation, on the night of28/29 July 1943, under cover of fog, theJapanese navy evacuated its garrison of morethan 5,000 troops from Kiska. The 34,000American and Canadian troops who landedthere on 15 August took several days todiscover that they faced no opposition. Forthe Japanese, the campaign had been adisastrous waste of men and materiel whenthey had been under increasing pressure inthe south and south-west Pacific.

The advance toward Rabaul

In January 1943 Roosevelt and Churchill metwith their senior military advisers atCasablanca, Morocco, to set the strategicdirection for the coming year. Although theleaders relegated the Pacific War to fifth onthe list of priorities (after the Atlantic, Russia,the Mediterranean, and the UnitedKingdom), the directive of 2 July 1942 tocapture Rabaul remained unchanged. Againthe tasks were shared. Forces from the SouthPacific Area, under Admiral Halsey, wouldadvance from Guadalcanal toward Rabaulwith the intermediate objective ofBougainville in the northern Solomons.Meanwhile, MacArthur's forces would seizethe Huon peninsula in New Guinea and thewestern end of New Britain. The totaloperation was known as OperationCartwheel.

Opposing the Allied forces wasLieutenant-General Imamura Hitoshi'sEighth Area Army with its headquarters atRabaul. Lieutenant-General Hyakutake'sSeventeenth Army defended the Solomonsand New Britain with three divisions, whileLieutenant-General Adachi Hatazo'sEighteenth Army, also with three divisions,was in New Guinea. The Japanese strengthwas between 80,000 and 90,000, but theycould be reinforced by about 60,000 withinthree weeks. The Japanese had about

RIGHT MapLand operations

1. 7 August 1942, Americans land at Guadalcanal; Japanesewithdraw on 7 February 1943

2. 25 August-6 September 1942. Japanese landing at MilneBay is defeated by Australians

3. 26 August-2 November 1942 Japanese advance over theKokoda Trail to within 97 miles (60 km) of Port Moresbyand are then driven back to Kokoda by the Australians4. 16 November 1942-22 January 1943, US and Australiantroops defeat Japanese at Buna. Gona, and Sanananda5. 28 January-11 September 1943, Japanese attack Wauand are driven back to Salamaua by the Australians

6. 30 June 1943, Americans land on New Georgia7. 30 June 1943, Americans land at Nassau Bay

8. 15 August 1943, Americans land on Vella Lavella9. 4 September 1943, Australians land at Lae10. 5 September 1943, Australians land at Nadzab andlater advance up Markham Valley

11. 22 September 1943, Australians land at Finschhafen12. 1 November 1943, Americans land on Bougainville

13. 15 and 26 December 1943, Americans land onNew Britain

14. 15 February 1944, New Zealanders land at GreenIsland

15. 2 January 1944, Americans land at Saidor

16. 29 February 1944, Americans land on Los Negros17. 20 March 1944, Americans land at Emirau

18. 22 April 1944. Americans land at Hollandia and Aitape19. 24 April 1944, Australians enter Madang

Naval battles

A Savo Island, 9 August 1942Cape Esperance. 11 October 1942

Guadalcanal, 12-15 November 1942

Tassafronga, 30 November 1942B Eastern Solomons, 24 August 1942C Santa Cruz Island, 26 October 1942D Bismarck Sea. 2-4 March 1943E Kula Gulf. 5-6 July 1943F Kolombangara, 12-13 July 1943G Vella Gulf, 6-7 August 1943H Vella Lavella. 6-7 October 1943I Empress Augusta Bay, 2 November 1943

320 combat aircraft, while about 270 otherscould be flown in within 48 hours.

The Cartwheel operation began on30 June 1943 when Halsey's troops madetheir main landings on New Georgia andRendova. The New Georgia landing soonturned into a hard-grinding battle, withthree American divisions deployed underMajor-General Oswald Griswold. Meanwhilethe Japanese dispatched reinforcements fromRabaul, escorted by warships that clashed

Allied operations in N

ew G

uinea and the Solom

ons,A

ugust 1942-April 1944

Th

e fig

htin

g

43

Essential Histories • The Second World War (1)

with the US navy. Superior in night fighting,the Japanese navy sank or damaged severalAmerican and Australian ships. But in oneengagement three Japanese transports weresunk with the loss of perhaps 1,500 mendrowned. By mid-September, when theJapanese withdrew from New Georgia, theyhad lost more than 2,000 killed; Americandeaths exceeded 1,000. American forcesjumped to Vella Lavela, and by October,American and New Zealand troops had landedon several islands near to Bougainville.

On 1 November the 3rd US MarineDivision landed at Empress Augusta Bay onthe west coast of Bougainville, bypassing alarge Japanese concentration at the south ofthe island. Next morning a US navy taskforce destroyed a cruiser and a destroyer fromthe Japanese Eighth Fleet. When a powerfulJapanese task force under Vice-Admiral KuritaTakeo appeared at Rabaul, Halsey took a greatrisk and sent his two-carrier task force within

MacArthur's land forces were nominally under theAustralian General Sir Thomas Blarney (right), but mostAmerican operations were controlled by thecommander of the US Sixth Army, Lieutenant-GeneralWalter Krueger (left). Tough and experienced, Blarneycommanded New Guinea Force, which consisted ofmainly Australian units. (Australian War Memorial)

range of Japanese air power. Supported byKenney's land-based Fifth Air Force, US navalaircraft caused such damage that Kuritawithdrew to Truk. Further Allied air attacksforced the Japanese to withdraw their air andnaval units from Rabaul. In March 1944 theAmerican forces resisted a full-scale Japanesecounteroffensive on Bougainville. Thereafterthere was a virtual truce until the Australianstook over from the Americans toward the endof the year.

The fighting in the New Guinea area wasmarked by fewer naval engagements butlarger land operations than in the Solomons.Between March and August 1943, the3rd Australian Division slogged throughjungle-covered hills from Wau towardSalamaua. The Japanese Fourth Air Armyrushed additional planes to New Guinea,but, warned by Allied code-breakers, and bydeploying aircraft to newly constructedforward airfields, Kenney's Fifth Air Forcecaught the Japanese planes on the groun