*** war and social upheaval: World War II Pacific Theater -- American defense of Corregidor








Japanese Invasion of the Philippines: Battle of Bataan (January-April, 1942)

World War II Corregidor
Figure 1.--

"We’re the battling bastards of Bataan;
No mama, no papa, no Uncle Sam.
No aunts, no uncles, no cousins, no nieces,
No pills, no planes, no artillery pieces.
And nobody gives a damn.
Nobody gives a damn.

--by Frank Hewlett, 1942

Bataan was a small peninsula west of Manila. It was already identified as the plave to base a strategic retreat in the event of a Japanese invasion. Yet there wa no pre-invasion staging of supplies there nor was there a real effort to transfer supplies, food and amunition or heavy weeapons there kin the early phase of the Japanese invasion. MacArthur's behavior seems deluisdional. Admiral Kimmel and Gen. Short wr pilloried after Pearl Harbor for the sucess of the Jaoanese suroprise attack, MacArthur on the other hand receibed a Medal of Hinor for an even more incompetent defense of the Philippines dofr which he had amplel warning. MacArthur after suffering stunning defeats, stasged a cgasogtic retreat to Bataan, Corregidor and three small islands in Manila Bay. He concentrated his forces there and was in place, but little in the ways of supplies to support his fiorces (January 7). He seems tio hasve hoped that he could hold out until relieved by the Pacific Fleet. He did not fully appreciate the extent of the damage to the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor and the full power of the Imperial Navy, especially the Japanese carriers. Tragically MacArthur did not properly use available time to transfer the needed supplies for his forces. The Americans and Filipinos lost most of their supplies asnd heavy eqwuipment during the withdrawal. The Japanese naval blockade prevented resupply or the landing of reinforcements. The American and Fhilipino forces in Bataan put up a valliant defense. Their resistance was heroic and inflicted substantisl casualties in gthe Japanese. At the same time, self agrandising press releases fron Gen. MacArthur's headquarters focused on manufactured heroism being duisplayed by the General. The American public bought it. One person who dud not was the newly appointed Gen. Eisenhower in the Army War Plans Division who had srved under MacArthure in the Philippines. He understood that the disaster in the Philippines was in part tacticasl blunfers as well as the result of sufrrounding himself with sycophant rather than talent. The real heroes on Bataan rapidly ran out of food, amunition, medical supplies. The devestated Pacific Fleet was unable to resupply them. The starving men on Bataan held out against an overwhelming Japanese force. They in fact performed far more than could be reasonably asked. U.S. troops on Bataan were reduced by hunger, disease, and casualties. They were no longer capable of resisting the well-supplied Japanese. Maj. Gen. Edward P. King, Jr. surrendered the forces on Bataan (April 9, 1942). It would be the largest surrender in American military history. Mac Arthur safely enconsed in Australia was incensed. He wanted both King and Wainwright court marshaled. They were the first real ground resistance the Japanese faced in the Pacific War. The next would be the Australian Army on New Guinea and the American Marines on Guadalcanal (August 1942).







HBC








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Created: 7:47 AM 1/23/2023
Last updated: 7:47 AM 1/23/2023