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War History Online
Facts That Prove the Guadalcanal Campaign Was One of the Most Important Battles in the Pacific Theater
By Todd Neikirk,
1 day ago
The battles of Iwo Jima and Midway are widely recognized as some of the most important clashes in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Yet, one could argue that the Guadalcanal Campaign of 1942-43, spanning several months, was almost equally as crucial. Here are six key facts that highlight why it was one of the vital moments of the war.
Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands, was the first offensive campaign by the Americans in the Pacific Theater of World War II . Following the successes at Midway and the Coral Sea , the decision was made to move from a defensive stance to an offensive one, with the hope being to break Japan's territorial control in the South Pacific.
On August 7, 1942, a force of 6,000 US Marines landed on Guadalcanal and the nearby Florida Islands, with additional troops arriving on the shores of Tulagi. Supported at sea and in the air, they caught the estimated 2,000 Japanese troops stationed on Guadalcanal off-guard. However, they were quick to regain their strength, leading to months of fighting, both on land and at sea.
Between the first landings and February 9, 1943, a series of engagements were fought as part of the Guadalcanal Campaign:
When all was said and done, the Guadalcanal Campaign resulted in an Allied victory. However, it wasn't without its casualties . The Japanese lost 31,000 men, nearly 40 ships and hundreds of aircraft. The Allies, while suffering less human losses (7,100), saw their naval and aerial forces heavily hit.
'Operation Shoestring'
Photo Credit: Mondadori / Getty Images
The United States had hoped to avoid involvement in WWII, but the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 altered that stance. Although leadership would have preferred to be better prepared for the Guadalcanal campaign, the situation left no room for preparation, resulting in a rushed operation.
Eager to build on the success of the Battle of Midway, Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander in Chief of the US Fleet, pushed for an immediate assault on the Japanese stronghold. Conversely, Major General Alexander Vandegrift, commander of the 1st Marine Division, felt that at least six months of training was necessary, given the sparse intelligence on Guadalcanal. The forces had only a few maps of the island and its surrounding waters.
Furthermore, American troops in the area were inadequately equipped, lacking both aircraft and port facilities. Despite these issues, King was resolute and insisted that the landings would proceed, going so far as to say they would occur "even on a shoestring." As such, the mission was humorously dubbed, "Operation Shoestring" by troops.
Following the Battle of Midway, the Japanese forces knew the United States would keep attacking, but they didn't exactly know where the troops would strike next. Aircraft regularly flew reconnaissance around the Solomon Islands, but severe storms were brewing just as the US Fleet neared Guadalcanal.
The poor weather significantly affected the reconnaissance missions and the approaching troops went unnoticed . On the night of August 6, 1942, the Allies made their move, coming ashore in what became known as the "Midnight Raid on Guadalcanal."
Every branch of the US military took part in the Guadalcanal Campaign
Photo Credit: CORBIS / Getty Images
The Guadalcanal Campaign was unique in that it took place on land, at sea and in the air. As such, every US military branch that existed at the time - Army, Navy, Coast Guard and the Marines - were involved.
The US Marine Corps was responsible for the lion's share of the fighting on the ground, but the men were unprepared for the hot and humid weather and harsh jungle conditions of Guadalcanal. Over the months of fighting, they grew mentally and physically exhausted, meaning they were more than pleased when US Army reinforcements arrived in October 1942 and January '43.
The US Navy played the important role of transporting troops to Guadalcanal and providing support from the water, whether that be attacking Japanese ships or delivering supplies to shore. What's more, it teamed up with the US Army Air Forces (USAAF) for aerial assaults and defense, which, along with aircraft manned by Marines, provided more than enough air support.
In regards to the US Coast Guard, its members were largely charged with ensuring the safe landing of troops and supplies on the island - one even received the Medal of Honor for his actions as the service moved into more of a ground support role.
Douglas Munro and the Medal of Honor
Photo Credit: U.S. Coast Guard / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
As aforementioned, the US Coast Guard was involved in aiding the Marine Corps during the Guadalcanal Campaign. For much of the offensive, the Japanese held the majority of the island, with the Americans only controlling the westernmost part.
Lt. Col. Chesty Puller was eager to get a foothold on the other side of Guadalcanal and Signalman Douglas Munro , along with his friend, Raymond Evans, volunteered to lead a group of unarmed landing craft to pick up the Marines and drop them off at points along the Matanikau River.
However, the group soon found themselves under attack, resulting in mass casualties. Both Coast Guardsmen volunteered to stay back while their comrades pulled out the injured Marines, using suppresive fire to mask the evacuation. While things overall went well, Munro was sadly shot in the head by a Japanese machine gunner and killed.
On May 24, 1943, US President Franklin Roosevelt presented Munro's parents with a posthumous Medal of Honor - the only Coast Guardsman to receive the distinction . In his honor, three US military vessels have been named for him.
American air success set the tone for the rest of World War II
Photo Credit: CORBIS / Getty Images
The American forces shocked Japan by destroying multiple aircraft carriers during the Battle of Midway, but their domination in the air throughout the Guadalcanal Campaign proved the prior engagement was no fluke. US Marine, Army and Navy aviators all participated in aerial combat and slowly, but surely took out a significant portion of the elite Japanese aircrews.
This domination in the air was crucial at Guadalcanal, but also had a trickle-down effect for the rest of the Second World War. So many of Japan's best airmen were taken out, making it easy for the Americans to maintain air superiority in future conflicts.
Operation Ke : Retreating in secret
Photo Credit: Universal History Archive / Universal Images Group / Getty Images
The Guadalcanal Campaign was devastating for the Japanese in several ways, from disease and starvation to battle wounds and deaths. As such, the decision was made to orchestrate a secretive retreat from the island, to prevent more casualties. Officially known as Operation Ke , it had the approval of Emperor Hirohito and involved Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and Army (IJA) personnel leaving Guadalcanal under the cover of darkness over three nights: February 1, 4 and 7, 1943.
To ensure the success of the operation, the Japanese began preparations that January. They changed their codes, to make it more difficult for the Allies to gather intelligence, and began building up their naval presence at nearby islands, which were believed to be the enemy's way of diverting attention from action in the Solomons. The plan was then to bring support troops to Guadalcanal and move westward.
On high alert, the Americans didn't make the Japanese evacuation easy, launching attacks on the retreating troops under the belief they were planning something. When they came across only sick and injured enemy troops on February 8, it was finally realized that the build-up and movements of the previous weeks hadn't been offensive in nature.
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