WW2/Battles of WW2/Date-by-Date/Pacific • Curated by Admin Timeline.sg
The first major Allied offensive against Japan — a six-month land, air and naval grind for an airfield that became the graveyard of Japan's ability to replace losses. (7 August 1942 – 9 February 1943)
Chronological Storyline (24 Milestones)
Aug 7, 1942 CE
1st Marine Division lands on Guadalcanal
US 1st Marine Division under Major General Alexander Vandegrift landed on Guadalcanal and Tulagi, catching the Japanese airfield construction garrison by surprise and securing the partially completed airstrip. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guadalcanal_campaign
Guadalcanal Campaign FULL DOCUMENTARY - Pacific War Animated1st Marine Division lands on Guadalcanal By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=379350
Aug 8, 1942 CE
Japanese bombers strike Allied transports
Japanese land-based aircraft from Rabaul attacked the Allied invasion fleet, damaging a transport and a destroyer, and forcing US Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher to withdraw his carriers early on August 8. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tulagi_and_Gavutu%E2%80%93Tanambogo
Japanese bombers strike Allied transports By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=981746
Aug 8, 1942 CE
Marines secure Tulagi and Tanambogo
After fierce close-quarters fighting, US Marines secured Tulagi, Gavutu, and Tanambogo islands, eliminating the Japanese seaplane base and most of its 886-man garrison at the cost of over 100 American lives. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulagi_(Florida_Islands)
Aug 9, 1942 CE
Battle of Savo Island devastates Allied fleet
A Japanese cruiser force under Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa surprised the Allied covering force, sinking four heavy cruisers and killing over 1,000 sailors, temporarily giving Japan naval dominance around Guadalcanal at night. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Savo_Island
The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Quincy (CA-39) photographed from the Japanese heavy cruiser Chōkai during the Battle of Savo Island, off Guadalcanal, 9 August 1942. Quincy, seen here burning and illuminated by Japanese searchlights, was sunk in this action.The flames at the far left of the picture are probably from the USS Vincennes (CA-44), also on fire from gunfire and torpedo damage. By Imperial Japanese Navy, copied from the Rear Admiral Samuel Eliot Morison World War II history illustrations file. Originally uploaded to English Wikipedia [1] by user Stan Shebs. - Official U.S. Navy photo NH 50346 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=109336
Aug 12, 1942 CE
Goettge patrol wiped out
A 25-man Marine reconnaissance patrol led by Lieutenant Colonel Frank Goettge was ambushed and nearly annihilated by Japanese forces west of the Matanikau River, revealing the danger of underestimating Japanese strength. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goettge_patrol
Aug 18, 1942 CE
Japanese Ichiki detachment lands at Taivu
Colonel Kiyonao Ichiki led 916 elite troops to Guadalcanal's east coast, intending to retake the airfield in a swift counterattack against the US Marine perimeter. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiyonao_Ichiki
Col Kiyonao Ichiki, commander originally designated to take Midway, instead made the first counter-landing against U.S. Marines at Guadalcanal. By Major John L. Zimmerman - The Guadalcanal Campaign, Chapter IV. Establishment of the Perimeter and Battle of the Tenaru, p. 67, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=961529
Aug 20, 1942 CE
Henderson Field becomes operational
Marine engineers completed the captured Japanese airstrip, naming it Henderson Field, and the first Marine fighter squadron (VMF-223) arrived the next day, giving the Allies a critical air base. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henderson_Field_(Guadalcanal)
Henderson Field, Guadalcanal, photographed from a USS Saratoga (CV-3) plane in the latter part of August 1942, after U.S. aircraft had begun to use the airfield. The view looks about northwest, with the Lunga River running across the upper portion of the image. Iron Bottom Sound is just out of view at the top. Several planes are parked to the left, and numerous bomb and shell craters are visible. By U.S. Navy (photographed from a USS Saratoga (CV-3) plane) - Official U.S. Navy photo 80-G-16312 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=886248
Aug 21, 1942 CE
Battle of the Tenaru annihilates Ichiki force
Ichiki's regiment launched a predawn frontal assault across the Ilu River (mistakenly called the Tenaru) and was annihilated by Marine defenses, with 777 Japanese killed including Ichiki himself, shattering Japan's first counteroffensive. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Tenaru
Deceased Japanese soldiers lie on the sandbar at the mouth of Alligator Creek on Guadalcanal on 21 August 1942 after being killed by U.S. Marines during the Battle of the Tenaru. By USMC - Scanned from book: Frank, Richard (1990) Guadalcanal: The Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle, Category:New York: Random House ISBN 0-394-58875-4 Book states that the photo is from the U.S. National Archives without providing any additional information on the image's author., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1314216
Aug 24, 1942 CE
Battle of the Eastern Solomons
Japanese carriers attempted to reinforce Guadalcanal but were intercepted by US naval forces; the carrier Ryujo was sunk and a Japanese transport was destroyed, temporarily halting major reinforcement efforts. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Eastern_Solomons
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6) seen from another U.S. ship while under attack by Japanese dive bombers during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942. An intense fire is burning in her starboard after five-inch gun gallery, the result of a bomb hit that ignited ready-service ammunition. Note the anti-aircraft shell bursts over the carrier. By U.S. Navy - Official U.S. Navy photo NH 97778 (cropped) from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=811164
Sep 12, 1942 CE
Battle of Edson's Ridge begins
Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi's 6,000-strong force attacked the Marine perimeter at Lunga Ridge over two nights; Colonel Merritt Edson's Raiders held, inflicting over 600 Japanese casualties and defending Henderson Field. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Edson's_Ridge
Battle of Edson's Ridge begins By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=958465
Sep 15, 1942 CE
USS Wasp sunk by Japanese submarine
The Japanese submarine I-19 torpedoed the carrier USS Wasp, which sank after a massive fire, and also damaged the battleship USS North Carolina, reducing US carrier strength in the Pacific to a single vessel. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Wasp_(CV-7)
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Wasp (CV-7) entering Hampton Roads, Virginia (USA), on 26 May 1942. The escorting destroyer USS Edison (DD-439) is visible in the background. By Unknown author - U.S. Navy photo 80-G-12240, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49994
Oct 11, 1942 CE
Battle of Cape Esperance
A US cruiser-destroyer task force under Rear Admiral Norman Scott intercepted a Japanese bombardment group off Cape Esperance, sinking a cruiser and a destroyer and temporarily disrupting the Tokyo Express resupply runs. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cape_Esperance
Battle of Cape Esperance By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1127382
Oct 13, 1942 CE
Japanese battleships bombard Henderson Field
Japanese battleships Kongō and Haruna shelled Henderson Field for over an hour, destroying dozens of aircraft and cratering the runway, in one of the heaviest naval bombardments of the campaign. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardment_of_Henderson_Field
Oct 23, 1942 CE
Japanese launch major Matanikau offensive
General Hyakutake's 17th Army began a multi-pronged assault on the Marine perimeter from the south and west; the attacks were poorly coordinated and repulsed with heavy Japanese losses over four days of fighting. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_for_Henderson_Field
Japanese launch major Matanikau offensive By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1573025
Oct 26, 1942 CE
Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands
Japanese and US carrier forces clashed northeast of Guadalcanal; the USS Hornet was sunk and the USS Enterprise damaged, but Japan lost many experienced aircrew, weakening its naval aviation capability for the remainder of the war. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Santa_Cruz_Islands
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6, left) and other ships of her screen firing at attacking Japanese carrier aircraft during the Battle of Santa Cruz, 26 October 1942. One bomb is exploding off her stern, while two Japanese dive bombers are visible directly above the carrier and towards the center of the image. In the right center is the battleship USS South Dakota, firing her starboard 5/38 anti-aircraft guns, as marked by the bright flash amidships. By Official U.S. Navy photo 80-G-20989 from the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command - This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=269251
Nov 12, 1942 CE
Naval Battle of Guadalcanal begins
A Japanese bombardment force attempting to shell Henderson Field was intercepted by US Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan's cruiser-destroyer force in a chaotic night engagement; both Callaghan and Rear Admiral Norman Scott were killed. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Battle_of_Guadalcanal
Smoke rises from two Japanese planes shot down during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 12 November 1942. Photographed from USS President Adams (AP-38); ship at right is USS Betelgeuse (AK-28). By Official U.S. Navy photograph - Official U.S. Navy photo 80-G-32367 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=264822
Nov 13, 1942 CE
USS Juneau sunk with Sullivan brothers
The light cruiser USS Juneau was torpedoed and exploded during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal; among the 683 killed were the five Sullivan brothers, prompting the US Navy to institute sole-survivor policies. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Juneau_(CL-52)
In New York Harbor, 11 February 1942. Photograph from the Bureau of Ships Collection in the U.S. National Archives. By Unknown author - This image has been extracted from another file, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=718168
Nov 14, 1942 CE
US battleships engage Japanese fleet
Rear Admiral Willis Lee's battleship USS Washington sank the Japanese battleship Kirishima in a night gunnery duel, the first US battleship-versus-battleship engagement of the Pacific War, forcing the Japanese bombardment force to withdraw. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Battle_of_Guadalcanal
Smoke rises from two Japanese planes shot down during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 12 November 1942. Photographed from USS President Adams (AP-38); ship at right is USS Betelgeuse (AK-28). By Official U.S. Navy photograph - Official U.S. Navy photo 80-G-32367 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=264822
Nov 30, 1942 CE
Battle of Tassafaronga
Japanese destroyers delivering supplies via the Tokyo Express were intercepted by a US cruiser force; Japanese torpedoes sank one cruiser and damaged three others despite the Japanese losing only one destroyer. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tassafaronga
The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Minneapolis (CA-36) at Tulagi with torpedo damage received in the Battle of Tassafaronga, the night before. The photograph was taken on 1 December 1942, as work began to cut away the wreckage of her bow. By Unknown author - U.S. Navy photo 80-G-211215, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=279548
Jan 2, 1943 CE
Japanese begin Operation Ke withdrawal
The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters secretly decided to abandon Guadalcanal and initiated Operation Ke, a plan to evacuate the remaining 10,600 troops using destroyer transports under cover of air and naval diversion. Source — Wikipedia:
The crew of U.S. PT boat PT-59 inspects the wreckage of Japanese submarine I-1 at Kamimbo on Guadalcanal, February, 1943. I-1 had been sunk during January 1943 by HMNZS Kiwi and HMNZS Moa. By U.s. Army Signal Corps - Frank, Richard B., Guadalcanal, the Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle, (1990), Penguin Group, ISBN 01401.65614, between pages 306 and 307 states that the source of the photo is the U.S. National Archives., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=958490
Jan 10, 1943 CE
US forces launch final offensive
Major General Alexander Patch's XIV Corps, now including Army troops alongside Marines, launched a westward offensive along the Guadalcanal coast, pushing the starving Japanese forces toward Cape Esperance. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Patch
Lieutenant General Alexander Patch By Forrest C. Pogue - US Army in World War II. European Theater of Operations. The Supreme Command. Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C., 1954 The University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill High-resolution version: Patch board appointed, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3659470
Feb 1, 1943 CE
First evacuation wave departs Guadalcanal
Japanese destroyers under Rear Admiral Raizo Tanaka completed the first of three evacuation runs, removing approximately 4,900 troops from Cape Esperance under cover of bad weather and air attacks on Henderson Field. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Ke
The crew of U.S. PT boat PT-59 inspects the wreckage of Japanese submarine I-1 at Kamimbo on Guadalcanal, February, 1943. I-1 had been sunk during January 1943 by HMNZS Kiwi and HMNZS Moa. By U.s. Army Signal Corps - Frank, Richard B., Guadalcanal, the Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle, (1990), Penguin Group, ISBN 01401.65614, between pages 306 and 307 states that the source of the photo is the U.S. National Archives., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=958490
Feb 7, 1943 CE
Final Japanese evacuation completed
The last Japanese evacuation run removed the remaining 2,000 soldiers from Guadalcanal; the operation succeeded with no ships lost, and US forces did not detect the final withdrawal until the troops were already gone. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Ke
The crew of U.S. PT boat PT-59 inspects the wreckage of Japanese submarine I-1 at Kamimbo on Guadalcanal, February, 1943. I-1 had been sunk during January 1943 by HMNZS Kiwi and HMNZS Moa. By U.s. Army Signal Corps - Frank, Richard B., Guadalcanal, the Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle, (1990), Penguin Group, ISBN 01401.65614, between pages 306 and 307 states that the source of the photo is the U.S. National Archives., Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=958490
Feb 9, 1943 CE
Guadalcanal declared secure
Major General Alexander Patch declared Guadalcanal and Tulagi secure, ending the six-month campaign; approximately 31,000 US and 38,000 Japanese casualties were suffered, and the Allied strategic initiative in the Pacific permanently shifted. · Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guadalcanal_campaign
Guadalcanal declared secure By Unknown author, Public domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=379350
