The messages from the Dace and the Darter, warning of the advance of Kurita’s fleet, began arriving in Flag Plot aboard USS New Jersey at 6:20 am on Oct. 23. Halsey and his staff pondered the significance of the sightings by the two submarines. Halsey was not the only fleet commander tracking the Japanese movements. … More The Battle of Leyte Gulf – Part 2
The Battle of Leyte Gulf was the last great naval confrontation in history and the largest naval battle of World War II in term of ships and men. It was fought from Oct. 23 to 26, 1944, between combined American and Australian forces and Imperial Japanese Navy in the waters off the Philippines. The battle … More Battle of Leyte Gulf – Part 1
Alligators Charge toward the Foe on Leyte. Official U.S. Coast Guard photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Seventy-five years ago today, MacArthur fulfilled his pledge and returned to the Philippines. Even with reports of weak resistance and the expedited time schedule, the Leyte invasion promised to be the largest and most complicated … More October 20, 1944 – Invasion of Leyte
Baguio is a lovely town nestled aloft a high plateau with old Spanish houses and parks with profusion of flowers on a pine-clad mountain. Baguio is located in the southern part of the Province of Benguet, approximately 180 miles from Manila with an elevation of almost 5,000 feet above sea level. The province of … More Baguio – The Summer Capital of the Philippines
Excerpts from Col. Irvin Alexander’s memoir, “Surviving Bataan and Beyond”, edited by Dominic J. Caraccilo. As soon as he hung up, General King sent for General Parker and his chief of staff, telling them that General Jones reported he did not have a single organization that was capable of making a march followed by … More April 9, 1942 – The Fall of Bataan
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