"Favorite Battle of the Pacific War?" Topic

Which 'land' battle do you find the most interesting from WWII's Pacific Theater?

Treasury Island landing on 28 November 1943 — Seabee bulldozer for the overun!

Guadalcanal

Which Guadalcanal battle?

Kwajalien Atoll battles: Roi/Namur landings with BB's providing close in direct fire support, Burton(Ebaye) Island and of course Kwajalien proper.

The whole Guadalcanal campaign.

I've always found the actions during the fight for Saipan to be very interesting.

Saipan, and Iwo Jima.

God Bless You.

Batan and Wake Island

Guadalcanal campaign It was the beginning of the defeat of Japan.

Guadalcanal

I have always liked the battle of Wake island. It was one of the first movies I ever saw.

Tarawa

Wake Island-my uncle was a civilian construction worker there and survived POW camps in China and Japan.
John

None. Zero interest in the Pacific theatre. I think it's down to the lack of Germans in it.

Kohima-Imphal YouTube link

Badoeng Strait: link

Honorable mention -- Koh Chang: link

Japanese invasion of Burma 1944

Guadalcanal Campaign.

Wake Island!

Jeeze, that is hard.

I guess my vote is for Bataan. Most interesting mix of troops and gear for the US.

Bataan wins to me. You have an early WWII US force, which is suppose to be utter crap according to some people, fighting the Japanese to a stand still and actually inflicting the first, serious, repulsed that the Japanese suffered at the hands of a Western ground force in the far east. A full division of Japanese troops were taken off the Japanese order of battle in that fight which also included the very first US armor battles. You've got a fascinating mix of US and Filipino troops, odd but cool gear, and a scary strategic situation with the clock running. All of these elements make for an excellent wargaming situation that almost no one knows or really cares much about.

If Battlefront did this campaign I would be ALL OVER IT. Unfortunately I'm guessing that there isn't really a market in what is already a niche hobby at best.

Then it is a two way tie for Guadalcanal- Bloody Ridge and and Papua New Guinea- Battle of Isurava.

Both of those fights were grueling infantry clashes between determined troops with both sides fighting with real skill and elan. The Australian 39 Battalion's fight at Isurava was a real under-dog story with the scrappy, but inexperienced, militiamen going toe-to-toe with the equally scrappy, but experienced (!), South Seas Force. It was a see-saw fight until the cavalry literally arrived in the form of the AIF 2/16 Battalion. You also can't forget the hard luck 53 Battalion is its sad story too. It was just a great, epic fight.

Bloody Ridge is after that with its cool and odd mix of Marines (parachute and raiders!) led by a cool leader (Red Mike!) going up against a Japanese force that badly outnumbered them. It was a classic last stand situation that was well fought by the defenders against a determined, almost suicidal, enemy! Some epic clashes here too! I am glad this fight gets a lot of attention.

Tough choices, but I'll go with Guadalcanal.

Khalkin Gol. This had the greatest impact on Japan as it pertains to a possible war with USSR. Removed Japan as a player in Axis strategy against Russia. The trickle down defended Mscow in Oct and Nov 1941 when all defending of reserve armies collapsed.

This provided the man power portion to the equation. That led to the failure of Op. Typhon. Yeah I get it says Pacific but that eastern/pacific battle set in motion the variables for German failure to take Moscow.

Lack of supplies the October 10/11 snows. Rasputitsa. Cold. Dwindling trips to cove more territory. But Siberian troops freed from Far East make sure it failed.

JH

Guadalcanal, the entire campaign although if forced to pick a single engagement it would be Bloody Ridge.

Not sure if it is strictly 'Pacific' theatre, but I'll also go with Kohima / Imphal, and specifically, the Battle of the Tennis Court:

link

Kokoda trail

Wau Valley, New Guinea 1943 and the Mantanikau River September & October 1942 on Guadalcanal. Both battles are largely forgotten, but each had an enormous (even decisive) effect on the campaigns they formed a part of.

Slim River in Malaya in January 1942 is also an extremely honourable mention.

I've been wanting to game the Battle of Attu in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, May 1943.

American and Canadians versus Japanese, all in cold weather gear.

Included a Banzai charge that very nearly won the day for the Japanese defenders.

Sugar Loaf Hill, Okinawa. My dad rotated home before Okinawa – he was a pre-war Marine and had served in Iceland. His battalion (2/22 Marines) lost 2/3 of it's men at Sugar Loaf.

Guadalcanal
Japanese invasion of the Philippines
Imphal

peleliu
Extremely high casualties for the americans.

Buna, Gona, Santander – Siege warfare on the north coast of Papua.

For a campaign, the Soviet invasion of Manchuria in 1945. A textbook end of war blitzkrieg that was arguably as effective as an atomic bomb in bringing the war to an end.

For something on a smaller scale, the battle of the tennis court in the overall Kohima battle.

@ langobard

I struggle to think of an army worse-equipped to deal with the Red Army in 1945 than was the Japanese.

In terms of tank and anti-tank doctrine (and equipment) they were still in the 1930s.

Wake island – Last battle of the Old Corps. They were actually within an ace of winning when they surrendered. If communications hadn't broken down the Japanese would have been hard pressed to pull of a victory. They were planning on beaching a destroyer and using the crew on land when the white flag was raised.

Wake Island or the Bataan Campaign.

Okinawa

@ 4th Cuirassier

Quite true.

Despite the invasion of Poland, the fall of France, or the way the Red Army crushed the Germans from Bagration onwards, and while having the Soviet Union on their doorstep the Japanese remained unable to comprehend that war had changed.

And that is without considering that the US had flattened so many of their cities with conventional munitions.

If the Japanese were poorly equipped to face the Red Army, it comes essentially down to their own refusal to adapt.

The Red Army had progressed since Khalkin Gol, the Japanese had not. I'm quite content to give the Soviets one last 'urah!'

New Georgia,Tarawa,Iwo Jima,Wake,for island battles;Midway,Phillipine Sea,for naval/air.

1. Midway
2. Luzon
3. Attu Island
3. Tarawa
4. Iwo Jima
5. Wake Island
6. Cape Gloucester

Guadalcanal
Cape Gloucester
Peleliu

My late great uncle fought in all three.
Joined the Corps at 17.

Semper Fi, Uncle Howard!

The so called 'Siberian' divisions from the Far East contributed very little to saving Moscow in 1941 as there were only about four of them fighting around Moscow out of the 20+ Soviet divisions that stopped the Germans. It is therefore one of the longest bows in history to claim that Khalin Gol caused the failure of Operation Typhoon.

Secondly, the Russian armies that overran Manchuria in 1945 were not the well equipped heavy shock armies that flattened Berlin and East Prussia. The heaviest Soviet tank in the campaign was the sherman and the soviets were using many BT-5 and BT-7 tanks – indicating that they had kept substantial forces in the Far East ever since 1939.

It is also incorrect to claim that the Japanese army had not changed, they had, but the Japanese armoured divisions that had been formed and trained in Manchuria had been sent to the Philippines, or had their tanks removed and distributed around Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Some ended up fighting in Saipan. Another of the amroured divisions was in Southern China taking part in Operation Ichi-Go. None were in Manchuria to fight the Russians. Most Japanese artillery, AA and AT guns had long been sent to locales as divergent as Burma, New Guinea and the Phillippines.

Lastly, the Japanese army in Manchuria consisted mainly of Manchurian conscripts – the expert Japanese Kwangtung army had long ago been transferred and fought and died in Burma, the Soloman Islands, New Guinea and Okinawa. Some of it was still left hiding out in the highlands on Luzon or fighting in Southern China where they had sent to take part in Operation Ichi-Go.

Okinawa, Iwo Jima, and Saipan.

Tarawa and the 8th Marines.

Wolfhag

Guadalcanal was a campaign consisting of many battles. My favorite battle I believe is called Edson's Ridge or Bloody Ridge. Marine Raider Battalions defending Henderson Field. The Best of The Best in a desperate defensive action. Sort of like Frost at Arnhem Bridge and Chard at Rorkes Drift in one Battle. Cheers!

Imphal / Kohima