



Guadalcanal Campaign

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThis article deals particularly with the events taking place on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. For details on the Solomons Campaign, please see this article.

ww2dbaseLanding at Guadalcanal:

7 Aug 1942

ww2dbase"Even before one drop of blood had been spilled on its fecund soil or a single corpse buried in it," Dan van der Vat said, "Guadalcanal stank". Even Morison, the US Navy's own historian, used the self-coined word "faecaloid" to describe the humid jungle island. When asked about the conditions on the island, United States Marine Corps veteran and author William Manchester said "[m]ove a thousand yards inland. Just be sure you take a compass and leave a Hansel-and-Gretel trail behind you. If you don't you will die." Such was the awful conditions that Japanese and American men fought in.

ww2dbaseBefore the Japanese began constructing an airfield on Guadalcanal, the island was mostly ignored even by the Japanese occupiers. At the evidence of such an airfield being constructed, however, the mosquito and disease-plagued island, with the waters around it, soon became a hotly contested zone for the next six months. On 7 August 1942, the US First Marine Division landed on the island of Guadalcanal successfully albeit amateurish amphibious landing techniques (this was one of the first amphibious assaults in the war). The landers lacked information about the terrain, the tide, and the weather; some of the Marines were even wielding WW1-era rifles. On 0910 that morning, two battalions of the Fifth Marine Regiment established a 2,000-yard beachhead very quickly, and the airfield subsequently fell under American control. Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa, the newly installed commander of the Japanese Eighth Fleet based at Rabaul, ordered an air assault on the Allied ships, but did not meet success. Mikawa then gathered every ship he could find and start sailing south.

ww2dbaseSome days ago, Mikawa actually had already sent six transports filled with troops for Guadalcanal. While in transit, Meiyo Maru was attacked by American submarine S-38 commanded by Lieutenant Commander H. G. Munson, sinking her with a loss of 342 men. The rest of the transports turned back for Rabaul. Had this transport mission succeeded, the fight on the island of Guadalcanal would be much tougher for the American Marines.

ww2dbaseThe airfield was named Henderson Field after Lofton Henderson, a Marine pilot lost during the Battle of Midway.

ww2dbaseThe Japanese troops continued to shell the field with artillery, attempting to destroy or recapture the field. Bombers from Rabaul, despite constant Allied attack on that Japanese air field, were sent to attack Henderson as well. However, Allied engineers were able to keep the field available for aircraft to land and take off. Meanwhile, the American Marines slowly drove back the land elements of the Japanese forces on the island with superior firepower. The Americans held on to Henderson Field, but the Marines there felt helpless due to the lack of adequate naval support while the Japanese controlled the sea.

ww2dbaseBattle of Savo Island

9 Aug 1942

ww2dbaseA few moments after midnight during the early morning of 9 August 1942, Mikawa's fleet of aging cruisers and two destroyers arrived at the southern shore of Savo Island. He launched a night attack against the Allied fleet which consisted of American and Australian ships. The Japanese fleet sneaked by the destroyer USS Blue, but maintained stealth because Blue's lookouts committed a common mistake of lookouts: they scanned in every direction for hostile ships except for the sea behind them. The tired American sailors, who had been under constant stress for days, also gave Mikawa a greater ability to maintain undetected. The American forces were divided into three groups to guard the three entrances of the area that would eventually be named Ironbottom Sound. Mikawa's task force was consisted of the following:

CA Chokai

CA Aoba

CA Kako

CA Kinugasa

CA Furutaka

CL Tenryu

CL Yubari

DD Yunagi

ww2dbaseAt 0137, Mikawa's radar-less ships launched torpedoes toward the American ships at the distance of about 5,000 yards. About this time, American destroyer Patterson sighted the Japanese ships and sent out the broadcast "Warning-Warning: Strange Ships Entering Harbor!" But the warning was not announced in time. At 0143, before the torpedoes struck, the Japanese guns opened up. Very soon after, the Australian cruiser Canberra was struck by two torpedoes on her starboard side; it was immediately followed by a hit by shells, which mortally wounded Captain Getting of the ship. Canberra sank five minutes later. Torpedoes reached the American cruiser Chicago a little bit later, giving her a chance to fire a few more rounds out of her 5-inch guns, but she still could not escape the fate of being struck by the Japanese torpedoes. She was then hit by a shell which caused little damage, but did start a fire that marked her as a target for Japanese guns. Chicago and Patterson continued to fight bravely, but they committed a great mistake: they did not ensure the group immediately north of them that they had engaged the Japanese. The notification did not go out until 0210, by then the northern group had already engaged in combat.

ww2dbaseThe heavy cruiser Vincennes of the northern group was sailing in calm waters with the other ships in a box patrol formation when she was suddenly illuminated by Japanese spotlights. She was attacked first by shells, then was struck by a torpedo launched long before. Mikawa's cruisers, split up to two columns by mistake, surrounded the Allied ships on both sides and opened fire with their guns. Aboard the cruiser Astoria, damage control officer Lieutenant Commander Topper felt the concussions of the southern battle a few minutes before, but shook it off as distant destroyers launching depth charges. Astoria did not realize they were under attack until they were illuminated by Japanese star shells. They turned their guns and started firing, but momentarily the firing was ceased because the captain of the ship, who had just been awakened, feared that they were firing on friendly ships in all the confusion. Astoria was soon hit by an 8-in salvo, and the fire marked her as a clear target for Japanese ships under the night sky. The cruiser Quincy probably received the worst attack among these cruisers. Illuminated by Japanese searchlights, the Japanese sailors laughed us they noticed Quincy's guns were all trained in. They had caught her completely by surprise. "We continued the battle very easy minded, without any worries," commented the executive officer of Chokai after this discovery. Quincy's seaplane catapult was struck quickly, creating a torch to mark her location, therefore the searchlights were no longer necessary. She eventually sank at 0235.

ww2dbaseFearing an American retaliatory attack by air at daybreak, Mikawa turned his two columns to port and returned westwards. By this action, he had failed to attack his primary targets: the poorly defended Allied transports off Lunga Point, loaded with vital food and ammunition that the American Marines desperately needed to fight on Guadalcanal. Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto of the Combined Fleet personally noted his displeasure for this failure, though Mikawa argued that he had already expended all his torpedoes, therefore it was not worthwhile to risk the Allied air raid at daybreak to commence the attack on the transports. What Mikawa did not realize was that American Admiral Frank Fletcher's carrier group had left the general vicinity only a day ago, therefore American retaliation by air actually would not had been a concern.

ww2dbaseThe Japanese fleet sailed back to New Ireland with minor damage and utmost pride, however, only 70 miles out of the destination port of Kavieng, cruiser Kako was sank by American submarine S-44 under the command of Lieutenant Commander John R. Moore with four torpedoes. The American submarine escaped easily.

ww2dbaseThe final tally heavily favored the Japanese. Mikawa's forces suffered a destroyed torpedo tube on Aoba, a destroyed chart room on Chokai, a storeroom flooded by a shell hole and some damage to turret number one and port steering control room on Kinugasa, and the cruiser Kako sank. The damage on the Allied side was much greater, probably best illustrated by the amount of casualties reported by the US Navy after the battle:

Killed or Died of Wounds Wounded Canberra 84 55 Chicago 2 21 Vincennes 332 258 Quincy 370 167 Astoria 216 186 Ralph Talbot 11 11 Patterson 8 11 Jarvis ? ?

ww2dbaseThe casualty counts on DD Jarvis were unknown because she was sunk by an air attack later that day.

ww2dbaseAfter the battle, the American Navy conducted an analysis of the American failures that led to the disaster. Among the top of the list were the men's inadequate preparedness for night action, failure to communicate between battle groups, and the failure to detect enemy reconnaissance aircraft before the attack.

ww2dbaseMiscellaneous Engagements

9 Aug-15 Sep 1942

ww2dbaseWith the Japanese Navy patrolling the waters off Guadalcanal, the Marines at Henderson Field knew they had to hold on to the airfield at all costs. Without a functional airfield, they would be truly isolated from the rest of the Allied forces. Major General Alexander Vandegrift of the United States Marines Corps set up a five-mile defense line from the Tenaru River to Kukum, while putting his 75-mm half-track vehicles and captured Japanese 3-in guns on the coast as makeshift coastal batteries. Some 90-mm anti-aircraft guns were deployed around the airfield against low-level bombing attempts, but they did little to keep away the Japanese high-level bombers.

ww2dbaseBecause the Japanese controlled the sea, supplying the Marines was difficult. The American admirals decided that typical transports were too slow and too vulnerable to venture into Japanese-controlled waters, therefore destroyers must be re-fitted to perform supply missions. On 15 Aug destroyers Colhoun, Gregory, Little, and McKean made the first run to Guadalcanal and brought in aviation fuel and ammunition, leading the way for later destroyer supply runs.

ww2dbaseOn 19 Aug, a small scale offensive was conducted by the Americans to keep the Japanese on their toes. The Americans were able to capture the villages of Kokumbona and Matanikau at the cost of 65 Japanese and 4 Americans, but Vandegrift pulled back his Marines to the original perimeter due to the lack of men and resources.

ww2dbaseThe Japanese commander at Guadalcanal was General Harukichi Hyakutake of the Japanese 17th Army with headquarters in Rabaul. Underestimating the American numbers at Guadalcanal, he believed 1,000 troops were all he needed to re-take the island. He sent Colonel Kiyono Ichiki, the man originally assigned to be the occupier of Midway, to accomplish this task. Ichiki landed his 916 men on the island after a bombardment by six destroyers to aid his landing. The Americans detected Japanese reinforcements on the island after an attack on a 34-man Japanese patrol on 19 Aug found the Japanese killed to be cleanly-shaven and neatly dressed, which was very unlike any soldier on either side once he had spent more than two weeks on this hot and stinky island. In the evening of 20 Aug, American defenders detected large-scale movements. At 0130 on 21 Aug, 200 Japanese soldiers charged the Americans' eastern flank at the mouth of Tenaru River. The Japanese troops charged close to the line and engaged in savage fighting involving bayonets and rifle butts. Many Japanese soldiers purposely overran the American perimeter and threw grenades and firecrackers to create confusion among the American defenders. By day break, the American Marines fended off the Japanese attack, killing every single attacker. Lieutenant Colonel Lenard Cresswell led a group of men eastward and by 1400 that day had enveloped the remainder of Ichiki's men. Despite the initial determined defense and subsequent desperate bayonet charges, Ichiki was not able to break the envelopment. About 1600 that afternoon, five American light tanks joined the attack, putting additional pressure on the Japanese who were already demoralized after being strafed by American aircraft. By sun down, nearly every man in Ichiki's group was killed; Ichiki committed suicide in disgrace. The very few who survived the battle fled and eventually joined up with Rear Admiral Raizo Tanaka, who commented that "this tragedy should have taught us the hopelessness of bamboo spear tactics."

ww2dbaseDuring Ichiki's attack, escort carrier Long Island reinforced Henderson Field by bringing 19 Wildcats and 12 SBD Dauntless dive bombers. The sight of these aircraft landing at Henderson was recalled by Vandegrift as "one of the most beautiful sights of my life. I was close to tears and I was not alone." On 22 Aug, a portion of the Army's 67th Fighter Squadron arrived at Henderson. Although the aircraft and pilots were from different services and were of all sorts of models, the hodge-podge air group was able to contribute to the airfield's defense. These aircraft and their crew received a great boost on 1 Sep when the first of the US Navy's 6th Construction Battalion arrived on Guadalcanal. The CBs, or often called Seabees, brought six 5-in guns and their expertise in engineering and construction. With their skills, they were able to repair damage done to the runway of the airfield by Japanese bombing within 40 to 60 minutes. During a particular hour on 14 Oct, for instance, 13 bomb craters were counted; while American aircraft circled above waiting to land, the Seabees filled them all within the hour.

ww2dbaseGeneral Hyakutake sent a convoy with 3,500 men to reinforce Guadalcanal. When this convoy entered American aircraft range on 28 Aug, it was detected. At 1800 that day, eleven Marine Corps dive bombers attacked the convoy 70 miles north of Guadalcanal. Destroyers Asagiri was sunk, and Shirakumo and Yugiri damaged. The landing was cancelled after the attack as the ships returned to the Shortlands. The Americans only lost one aircraft in this engagement.

ww2dbaseOn 29 Aug, five Japanese destroyers sortied in retaliation. After landing 450 soldiers on Guadalcanal, they failed to find American targets. The next day, fast transports Colhoun and Little were found by Japanese bombers and were attacked promptly. In a rare display of accuracy from bombers against moving ships, a stick of bombs dropped only 50 feet from Colhoun, causing horrific concussion damage to the transport that was converted from an older destroyer. She sank within minutes, taking 51 lives with her. Behind the bombers, destroyer Yudachi followed; that evening Yudachi disembarked the troops she transported at Taivu.

ww2dbaseOn 31 Aug, Japanese submarine I-26 found carrier Saratoga's task force and planted a torpedo on her starboard side. Destroyer Monssen was charged to hunt down the submarine, which she reported she had destroyed, but in actuality I-26 escaped the scene safely. Saratoga was not critically damaged, but her speed was knocked down to 12 knots. She would require three months of work in the docks to patch her up again. Also on 31 Aug, seven or eight Japanese destroyers ran the American aerial blockade and landed 1,200 troops (along with their commander Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi) on Guadalcanal.

ww2dbaseIn the early morning hours of 5 Sep, destroyer transports Greg and Little ran across a Japanese night patrol consisted of three destroyers (Yudachi, Hatsuyuki, and Murakumo) and destroyer transports. Originally successful in sneaking up to the Japanese force, a Navy Catalina reconnaissance aircraft operating out of a separate unit found the Japanese ships at the same time and dropped five flares. The sudden illumination of the area exposed the American destroyer transports. Greg was badly damaged by 5-in shells and abandoned, and Little followed suit. The engagement ended at 0135 after the Japanese ships left the area. Survivors were picked up by landing boats after daybreak.

ww2dbaseOn 15 Sep, carrier Wasp's group was escorting transports containing men of the 7th Marine Regiment destined for Guadalcanal. The group was found by Japanese submarines I-19 and I-15. A spread of torpedoes fired by I-19 struck Wasp, and either a stray torpedo from that salvo or a separate torpedo launched by I-15 struck North Carolina. Wasp remained afloat for hours, but eventually the fire was becoming out of control. Captain Sherman ordered abandonment of the ship, and he personally left the ship at 1600 that day. By nightfall, Wasp had proven to be unwilling to go down, and destroyer Lansdowne was ordered to fire torpedoes to scuttle the ship. Five torpedoes were fired, but only three exploded. Wasp sank at 2100. North Carolina fared better; with her good construction and a skilled damage control team, she was making 25 knots not long after the torpedo struck, although she had to use that good speed for her return to Pearl Harbor for proper repairs. Not from from North Carolina, the destroyer O'Brien was also struck by a torpedo. She survived the battle with good damage control and was later patched up temporarily at Espiritu Santo. However, while en route for the west coast of the United States for proper repairs she broke apart on 19 Oct and sank.

ww2dbaseBattle of the Ridge / The First Battle for Henderson Field

12-13 Sep 1942

ww2dbaseDuring the day on 12 Sep, the American Marines reported an unusual number of skirmishes with Japanese patrols, and Vandegrift prepared his forces for an attack. He formed his defenses at the area known as the Ridge 1,500 yards from Henderson Field. The Ridge's close right flank was guarded by Marine engineers and pioneers, and the far right flank on the coast by Lieutenant Colonel Biebush. The close left flank was guarded also by Marine engineers, and the far left flank at Tenaru River by Lieutenant Colonels Pollock and McKelvy. The Japanese, under the command of General Kiotake Kawabuchi, attacked after nightfall. Biebush, Pollock, and McKelvy fended off the secondary attacks amongst Japanese yells of "banzai!" and "Maline (sic), you die!", but the main thrust at the Ridge was a different story. Japanese troops charged the Ridge wave after wave with grenades, rifles, and bayonets, with each wave signaled by red flares which attracted attention from American mortars. During the battle, salty exchanges of "US Maline (sic) be dead tomorrow!", "Hirohito eats shit", and "Eleanor eats shit" were heard in between bursts of machine gun fire. Throughout the night, the fearless Japanese attackers charged and charged, pushing the Marines to the last knoll of the Ridge. If the Japanese could push the Marines off of the last knoll, then there would be no further natural obstacles defending Henderson Field. The Marines held. The last charge took place at dawn, and after that charge the Japanese offensive ceased. The Marines noted that the Ridge was "littered with Japanese bodies sprawled in the pitiful and repulsive attitudes of death." As American aircraft took off and strafed remaining Japanese units still in the area, the Marines buried 40 of their fallen comrades and treated the 103 wounded. The Japanese casualties were much greater. Out of the 2,000 troops committed on this night offensive, over 800 were killed in battle (200 reported by McKelvy, 600 reported by Colonel Edson at the Ridge), and hundreds more died of their wounds on their retreat to the coast. By the end of Kawaguchi's campaign, he had little over half of the 3,450 troops he had at the time he landed on the island.

ww2dbaseBattle of Matanikau

23 Sep-9 Oct 1942

ww2dbaseAfter Wasp's sinking, the 7th Marine Regiment finally made their way to Guadalcanal on 18 Sep. With the fresh reinforcements, Vandegrift thought it was time to mount the counter offensive that he had long wished to commence. The Japanese forces were heavily entrenched near the Matanikau River, with strong natural defenses consisted of steep hills, sharp kunai grass fields, and ravines running along the coast. On 23 Sep, Lieutenant Colonel Lewis Puller of the 7th Marine Regiment led his men northwest from Henderson Field toward the mouth of the river while Lieutenant Colonel Griffith led his men toward a Japanese-held bridge upstream. Lieutenant Colonel McDougal's men were dug in along the eastern bank of the river. Though heavy artillery fire, Griffith's man attacked the bridge without success, and was bogged down there for four days before being recalled downstream.

ww2dbaseIn attempt to break the stalemate, Puller sent three companies of his men under the command of Major Otho Rogers to land behind enemy lines in Higgins boats. Rogers was killed shortly after the landing, and the group was soon surrounded on a kunai grass knoll being attacked on all sides. They were evacuated later that afternoon under the cover fire from destroyer Monssen and SBD aircraft from Henderson Field.

ww2dbaseWith Rogers' attack failed, the stalemate ensued for the next ten days. Vandegrift had his men build up defenses along the perimeter so that some of the men assigned to defensive duties could be freed for a follow-up offensive. On 7 Oct, six battalions were ordered to mount another attack. On the same day, Colonel Nakaguma received orders from General Hyakutake to act as well. Nakaguma led his 4th Infantry Regiment in preparation to cross the river, but Colonel Edson's troops outflanked them and pushed the Japanese back to the western bank. The next day, Japanese troops attacked again in heavy rain, engaging in fierce hand-to-hand combat, and again failed to break through. On 9 Oct, Colonel Whaling's Marines secured the bridge they were not able to secure at the end of the previous month. With American control of the bridge, Americans under the command of Whaling, Puller, and Lieutenant Colonel Hanneken poured across the other side of the river. They found no Japanese troops, however. Undetected, the Japanese had already moved further west into two ravines that offered defensive superiority against targets coming from the shore, but not from their southern inland approaches. Marine artillery showered destruction upon the Japanese crowded in the ravine, and any Japanese who attempted to flee were gunned down my well-placed machine guns. It was later realized that 690 of Nakaguma's men were killed in the ravines.

ww2dbaseDuring the actions at Matanikau River, the American Marines lost more than 120 lives. More than 220 were wounded.

ww2dbaseBattle of Cape Esperance

11-12 Oct 1942

ww2dbaseSailing with a line ahead formation, Rear Admiral Norman Scott's destroyers patrolled the waters off Cape Esperance the night of 11 Oct 1942. Around 2220, 14 miles off of the cape, cruiser Salt Lake City's reconnaissance aircraft burned from an accidental ignition of flares. At that time, Rear Admiral Aritomo Goto's ships, sailing in a T-shaped formation, was only 50 miles northwest of Scott's force. However, focused so much on night time navigation and their primary mission of bombarding Henderson Field, Goto's lookouts did not think much of the distant fire. In fact, after a short while, the lookouts assumed the fire was a signal from Japanese troops on the beach; they answered with blinker, and naturally received no replies. The American ships were too busy navigating at night as well to notice the faint blinker light from Goto's ships.

ww2dbaseAt 2250, American cruiser San Francisco's aircraft detected unknown ships six miles south of Savo Island. Scott was cautious with the news, avoiding the chance of friendly fire. What the aircraft found, however, was indeed Japanese ships, but they were not Goto's. The ships detected belonged to another group under the command of Rear Admiral Takaji Joshima. Joshima had under his command seaplane carriers Chitose and Nissin and six destroyers. They were carrying 728 Army men, field guns and other artillery pieces, and miscellaneous supplies on a run to supply Guadalcanal. After their delivery, they were to reinforce Goto's group in bombardment of Henderson Field.

ww2dbaseAt 2332 Scott committed a potentially major mistake. He feared that his current course would lead him to a disadvantageous position when engaging Joshima's group, he ordered his ships to conduct a column-left maneuver that for at least 10 minutes would render his ships in disarray. What Scott did not know was Goto's proximity. Even though cruiser Helena, equipped with the new SG radar, detected possible contacts, she did not report this to Scott right away. At 2338, Scott finally received Helena's report, along with possible contacts reported by other ships, and became somewhat suspicious of another enemy group; even at this point, he did not order San Francisco to turn on her own radar for fear that additional working radars would decrease their stealth. The American ships finally completed their maneuvers at 2345; at this time, they were between 4,000 and 5,000 yards away from Goto's ships. Helena's crew was sure that their findings were indeed Japanese ships and her skipper Captain Hoover requested permission to fire by issuing the radio message "Interrogatory Roger". On the flag bridge of cruiser San Francisco, Hoover's request was misinterpreted as an acknowledgment of a previous radio message, and sent back an affirmative "Roger" to indicate receipt. An identical exchange again took place as Hoover confirmed what he believed was an order to commence firing. At 2346, Helena opened fire to Scott's surprise and an even more surprised Goto who sailed in the dark without radar. The other American ships followed Helena and fired their primary and secondary guns. Goto's ships returned fire quickly despite of the surprise. The honor of the first hit was given to the Japanese, who landed a hit on cruiser Salt Lake that killed several men.

ww2dbaseOn the flag bridge of San Francisco, Scott, who never ordered to fire, was not convinced that the targets were indeed Japanese. He ordered a cease fire only a minute after Helena's first salvo. The blunder was repeated on the other side. Goto also feared of friendly fire, and was further convinced when he noticed some American ships stopped firing only after a minute (only some ships complied with Scott's cease fire order). Goto ordered a column movement to starboard as he attempted to identify the ships on the other side. Around this time, American destroyer Duncan was hit by a combination of friendly and hostile gunfire and flashed its identity several times to notify the American ships, which further persuaded Scott that he was indeed firing on American ships. Also around this time, Goto was mortally wounded as a shell exploded on cruiser Aoba's bridge. By pure luck, Scott's line was "crossing the T", enabling his guns to fire in succession against the Japanese line without offering the Japanese an opportunity to bring all their guns to battle, but even at this time Scott was furiously repeating his cease fire order that not every ship followed. At 2351, Scott was finally convinced that the ships were Japanese, and ordered a resume firing. The Japanese were now under the command of Captain Kikunori Kijima, who ordered the Japanese line to turn and fire back. Cruiser Furutaka maneuvered herself between Aoba and the American forces, sacrificing herself to protect Goto's flagship in her escape. Japanese destroyer Fubuki, sailing in the van, was sunk by gunfire during the escape. At midnight, Scott ordered cease fire to regroup his ships, but many American skippers ignored the order and continued to engage the fleeing Japanese ships. The American ships broke off the pursuit at 0100 on 12 Oct.

ww2dbaseDespite the victory, Scott's force did not sail away from the battle unscathed. Duncan, which was fired upon by both friendly and hostile ships, eventually sank. Cruiser Boise's forward 6-inch ready ammunition would be detonated by a pair of 8-inch hits from Furutaka, killing everyone inside turrets number 1 and number 2, disabling her, though the magazine crew kept minimum amount ammunition exposed and probably saved the ships from worse fate; perfectly-timed flooding also prevented further explosions aboard Boise. San Francisco suffered light damage. Destroyer Farenholt was damaged by Japanese gunfire. On the Japanese side, Furutaka sank 22 miles northwest of Savo Island. Aoba was burning from 40 enemy hits. Worst of all, Goto was dying. Kijima steamed his ships at full speed, fearing an American air attack at dawn.

ww2dbaseWhile the battle ensued, Joshima's ships reached Guadalcanal and reinforced the troops there, achieving the primary objective of the overall mission despite the losses of Goto's group. As a result, although Scott achieved a tactical victory in battle, the Japanese actually earned a strategic victory for delivery critically needed troops, weapons, and supplies to Guadalcanal. For the first time in the Guadalcanal campaign, the Japanese troops on the ground gained access to field artillery.

ww2dbaseFor the losses, Captain Kijima was relieved by the orders of Admiral Mikawa. Scott, on the contrary, became a hero of the theater despite repeated blunders that all could have turned the tides of the battle for the worse.

ww2dbase"The Bombardment"

14 Oct 1942

ww2dbaseIn the few days after the Battle of Cape Esperance, destroyers, bombers, and battleships bombarded Henderson Field. The greatest bombardment the American Marines endured was what later came to be known as "the Bombardment" on the night of 14 Oct 1942. The bombardment group centered around battleships Kongo and Haruna under the command of Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita rained fire and destruction on Henderson Field for 80 minutes completely uncontested. In the morning, the Marines crawled out of their foxholes to find holes spotting the airfield, and 48 out of 90 aircraft destroyed or seriously damaged. 41 of their comrades were killed in the Bombardment. This bombardment was so damaging that a colonel sent out the message "[W]e don't know whether we'll be able to hold the field or not."

ww2dbaseAttacks on Transports

15-16 Oct 1942

ww2dbaseJoshima's successful delivery of supplies and weapons to Guadalcanal on the night of 11 Oct was not the only logistical defeat for the Americans. The Japanese were also keen on attacking any American attempts to supply their own Marines on the island. One such example was the attack on a transport group consisted of cargo ships Alchiba and Bellatrix, motor boat tender Jamestown, tugboat Vireo, and destroyers Meredith and Nicholas. The two destroyers were each towing a barge carrying 2,000 barrels of gasoline and 500 quarter-ton bombs. This transport group was spotted by a Japanese search plane on 75 miles off of Guadalcanal. At 1050, two aircraft attacked unsuccessfully, and Japanese surface vessels followed. As the slow Vireo was about to be scuttled, 27 aircraft from carrier Zuikaku attacked and sank the American destroyer Meredith within minutes with great loss of life (and the survivors had to fight sharks for the next three days before being rescued). Bellatrix sustained minor damage and escaped back to Espiritu Santo with Alchiba, Jamestown, and Nicholas, abandoning their mission to supply Guadalcanal.

ww2dbaseAnother example came the next day. After successfully supplying Guadalcanal with fuel, Destroyer seaplane tender McFarland and destroyer minesweepers Southard and Hovey were on their return trip while carrying 160 wounded and psychologically damaged patients. They were attacked by dive bombers, with McFarland quickly losing rudder control. To make matters worse, the "war neurotics", as historian Samuel Eliot Morison described them, disrupted the defense efforts with their demoralized psychotic behavior. She eventually escaped to Tulagi with only 27 deaths. Even though she was able to deliver valuable fuel to Guadalcanal, she was damaged so extensively that she would not be able to make another delivery attempt again for the remainder of the campaign.

ww2dbaseThe Second Battle for Henderson Field

15-26 Oct 1942

ww2dbaseOn 15 Oct 1942, General Hyakutake made another bid for Henderson Field by committing a two-prong attack against American fronts. Major General Tadashi Sumiyoshi led the northern prong against the American front near the mouth of the Matanikau River, while Lieutenant General Masai Maruyama led the southern prong against the Ridge. Sumiyoshi attacked the Marines' defensive at the Matanikau River on 20 Oct with light tanks, but Colonel McKelvy's men held their ground. Despite a surprise flanking move by Colonel Oka, the Marines did not lose an inch of ground. This battle also saw an exchange of shells between a Japanese shore battery and the destroyer Nicholas, with Nicholas emerging victorious after unloading 181 rounds into the Japanese battery to silence it. The northern prong was more or less defeated on 25 Oct.

ww2dbaseMaruyama divided the southern attack into two prongs of its own. The western prong was led by Major General Yumio Nasu and the eastern Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi. Nasu reached the American lines at the Ridge first on 24 Oct, overrunning the first knoll with ease in heavy rain, but American Marines and Army soldiers held on to the subsequent lines. By daylight, the Japanese troops discovered Nasu had been killed some time overnight in combat, but another senior officer took over and little initiative was lost. The attack was renewed after nightfall with Kawaguchi's men who had finally arrived during the day. The second attack, equal in savageness compared to the previous night, was also halted by the American defenders. After the battle, Americans counted 941 Japanese dead at the Ridge.

ww2dbaseThe First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal

13 Nov 1942

ww2dbaseRear Admiral Daniel Callaghan was responsible for patrolling Ironbottom Sound on the night of 13 Nov, a mission he knew was going to be extremely difficult. American intelligence had flooded Admiral Richmond Turner with what he concluded to be a Japanese fleet of two battleships, two or four heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and ten to twelve destroyers heading for the area. Turner needed a force to slow or halt this hostile force so that he could withdraw the transports currently unloading supplies on the coast of Guadalcanal. At the dusk of 12 Nov 1942, the transport fleet consisted of four transports, two cargo vessels, three destroyers, and two minesweepers left Guadalcanal, leaving Callahan on his own. Callahan had at his disposal five cruisers and eight destroyers.

ww2dbaseDuring the night of 12 Nov, Vice Admiral Hiroaki Abe approached Ironbottom Sound. American cruiser Helena detected two faint contacts on her radar, and they were quickly determined to be reflecting a group of ships screening another 5,000 yards behind it. At 0141 in the early hours of 13 Nov, destroyer Cushing at the head of Callahan's column spotted Japanese destroyers Marusame and Yudachi at a very close distance of 3,000 yards. While the Americans were confused by the sudden appearance of the enemy at a close range, the Japanese were outright surprised for they had not been expecting an American force that night. Luckily for the Americans, the Japanese fleet was in a slight disadvantage for their formation had been placed in disarray when sailing through rain squalls. It was not until 0145 when Callahan finally gave the official order to commence firing, and by then the American column were already heading into the center of the Japanese formation. The delay in Callahan's order might have been caused by his distrust of Helena's radar report, opting to make visual confirmation instead. At 0150, Japanese search lights were switched on, and quickly found the cruiser Atlanta. Atlanta fired her 5-inch guns at the directions of the search lights to extinguish them, but the Japanese gunners had already trained their guns on the American cruiser. A shell exploded near the bridge, killing Rear Admiral Norman Scott of recent Cape Esperance fame. After one or two torpedo hits, Atlanta was dead in the water within minutes of the start of battle.

ww2dbaseFrom this point on, the ships were so entangled that historian Samuel Eliot Morison called the ensuing action a "general melee". Destroyer Cushing at the head of the column then made a torpedo run, firing a spread of six torpedoes intended for battleship Hiei, but none scored. The torpedo run drew much attention on Cushing, and she was promptly targeted by enemy gunfire and was sunk after being hit by 10 14-inch shells. Destroyer Laffey, immediately following Cushing, also received a punishment during its assault on Hiei. Laffey also launched her torpedoes at Hiei, but Laffey's suffered a different failure: Laffey had fired them too close to the ship, so even if they had hit, the torpedoes bounced off the sides of Hiei harmlessly for not having enough time to arm themselves. Laffey was hit by two salvos from battleship Kirishima and a torpedo from Teruzuki before she was abandoned. Laffey's crew did kill Chief of Staff Masakane Suzuki by machine gun fire, however.

ww2dbaseNext on deck was destroyer Sterett, but she was disabled before accomplishing much. Her captain, Commander Jesse Coward, managed to fire four torpedoes, but they missed as well. While Sterett made her charge, destroyer O'Bannon followed with her guns firing then launched two torpedoes. Again they either missed or failed to explode. O'Bannon did not receive much of a punishment as she was too close for Hiei's guns to hit.

ww2dbaseAlthough Abe's fleet had done a remarkable job thus far, all the Japanese admiral could see was the confusion aboard Hiei, which had been the target of most American guns. With the American ships sailing into the heart of his formation, Abe had no choice but to order a change of course to break things apart. Hiei turned north away from battle, and Kirishima followed suit. On the American side, the relative closeness of ships also discomforted Callahan who feared friendly fire. Callahan called for a cease fire momentarily to regroup and identify the location of all friendly ships before resuming the battle.

ww2dbaseA new round of attack was led by San Francisco, sailing toward the fleeing Hiei. Hiei fired high explosive shells originally intended for Guadalcanal bombardment at the cruiser, killing Callahan. However, much to the comfort of those who survived the salvos, the high explosive shells did not cause structural damage to the American cruiser. Lieutenant Commander Bruce McCandless took over command and ordered the ship to continue fighting. Cruiser Portland followed San Francisco into battle, but was hit by a torpedo in the propeller early on in the attack, locking her in a clockwise loop, though she continued to fire upon Hiei. Cruiser Helena followed Portland into the battle, and she was followed closely by Juneau. Helena fired upon destroyer Akatsuki, which was busy attacking the disabled San Francisco to notice the cruiser approaching. Akatsuki took heavy damages before other destroyers drove Helena away from the close confrontation. Juneau did little as she was hit by a torpedo very quickly and became disabled. Undaunted by the lack of visible success thus far, four destroyers continued the attack run. Aaron Ward was hit by 9 shells, while Barton was hit by two torpedoes and was sunk. Monssen, mistaken Japanese starburst shells for American signals, turned on her recognition lights, and attracted 47 shells to hit her before she sank. Destroyer Fletcher escaped from the confrontation, seeing the fate of her three attack-run mates.

ww2dbaseWhile dealing a great deal of damage to American ships, the Japanese ships took their share of damage as well. The Yudachi was heavily damaged, the Akatsuki was sunk, the Amatsukaze lost all its weapons, while the Hiei took over 85 hits and rendered rudderless. Ikazuchi and Murasame, two destroyers, saw heavy damage as well.

ww2dbaseAfter the point-blank brawl of a battle was over, four people aboard the San Francisco would be awarded the Medal of Honor, the most a ship received in a single day in the entire war. "So ended the wildest, most desperate sea fight since Jutland," said Morison. Although both sides dealt heavy damage on the other, the Americans were generally credited with a strategic victory as they were able to prevent Abe's ships from bombarding Henderson Field.

ww2dbaseSome action continued after day break. Portland, though sailing in circles, fired six salvos on destroyer Yudachi, sinking her with 36 hits. Rudderless Hiei fired four salvos at the immobile destroyer Aaron Ward, straddling her but did not hit; Aaron Ward was towed out of range by a tug boat while Marine Corps aircraft kept Hiei busy. As tug boat Bobolink made off with men evacuated from the heavily damaged cruiser Atlanta, her machine gunner fired at any floating survivors who looked Japanese; the gunner finally stopped at the insistence of Captain Samuel Jenkins of Atlanta. Atlanta was scuttled that afternoon, followed by the sinking of damaged destroyers Cushing and Monssen. As the American survivors sailed away, Japanese submarine I-26 sank cruiser Juneau with two torpedo hits. That afternoon, after being overwhelmed by many aircraft, Hiei sank stern first five miles off of Savo Island.

ww2dbaseAs a small gesture of retaliation, Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa sent Rear Admiral Shoji Nishimura to bombard Henderson Field with two cruisers with 1,000 high-capacity 8-inch shells on the night of 13 Nov. The bombardment lasted 37 minutes. Fortunately for the Americans, only 1 dive bombers and 17 fighters were damaged, with 32 other fighters damaged. "Nishimura's bombardment was a poor show compared with what Abe's big boys might have staged the previous night, if let alone", said Morison.

ww2dbaseAir Attacks on Japanese Shipping

14 November 1942

ww2dbase14 Nov 1942, the Americans struck back decisively from the air. Aircraft from Henderson Field, consisted of both Navy and Marine Corps aircraft, found heavy cruiser Kinugasa and light cruiser Isuzu and attacked, leaving them burning vigorously. Meanwhile, scout planes reported the arrival of a heavily escorted convoy; that was Rear Admiral Raizo Tanaka's Reinforcement Group of heavily laden transports, steaming straight down the Slot. Aircraft from carrier Enterprise, 200 miles south of Guadalcanal, attacked the transports at about 0830 while fending off escorting Zero fighters with various degrees of success. At 0950, ten fighters and 17 dive bombers, also from Enterprise, found Kinugasa and her fleet mates. Kinugasa sank two hours later, while cruisers Chokai, Maya, Isuzu, and destroyer Michishio suffered damage. Subsequently, the aircraft on Guadalcanal concentrated entirely on the transports. 7 torpedo and 18 dive bombers, escorted by 12 fighters, made contact with Tanaka's convoy at 1150, damaging several transports. The next attack came at 1245 with 17 dive bombers with some fighter escort, sinking at least one transport. At 1430, 15 Flying Fortresses dropped 15 tons of bombs over the convoy, scoring one hit. Tanaka chose to steam forward despite of the heavy air attacks, knowing that there was no turning back.

ww2dbase"The 14th of November offered a striking illustration of what happens to lightly protected ships that venture under enemy-controlled skies", said Morison. At the cost of merely five aircraft, the Americans had sunk one heavy cruiser, seven transports, damaged many other ships, and most important of all killed many enemy soldiers destined for Guadalcanal. If any leader on either side doubted the importance of Henderson Field as a base of air operations before this day, their doubts were certainly diminished by the end of the day's engagements.

ww2dbaseThe Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal

14-15 November 1942

ww2dbaseAt 1000 on 14 Nov 1942, Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo's force consisted of battleship Kirishima, heavy cruisers Atago and Takao, two light cruisers, and a destroyer squadron left Java for Ironbottom Sound. This force was attacked en route by American submarine Trout. The submarine caused no damage, but she was able to relay the important finding back to the American fleet. On the opposing side, Admiral William Halsey detached battleship USS Washington, battleship USS South Dakota, and four destroyers from USS Enterprise's support group to form Task Force 64 under the command of Rear Admiral Willis Lee. Kondo, who had intercepted Trout's message, intended to brush off any defenders the Americans could summon, and proceed to bombard Henderson Field.

ww2dbaseKondo's force detected Lee's task force at about 2210 hours, reporting "two enemy cruisers and four destroyers". Kondo was ready. He immediately ordered a complex maneuver that broke his forces into four groups, and the dispersion of forces worked well. The Japanese ships knew exactly where the American ships gathered, while the Americans had to deal with a dispersed force; some of the Japanese destroyers came from the direction of Savo Island, which further frustrated American radar operators. The battle began at 2317 when Lee's battleships fired her 16-inch guns at Rear Admiral Shintaro Hashimoto's light cruiser Sendai, while the destroyers immediately locked in a gun battle against each other. At 2333, South Dakota ran into electrical problems which put her (and her radar) out of commission for a long critical moment. Around this time, all four American destroyers were all out of commission; three of them were sunk, and worst of all none of them had fired their torpedoes. To add insult to injury, as destroyer Walke was sinking, her depth charges exploded almost directly underneath the ship's floating survivors.

ww2dbaseSeeing his destroyer screen wiped out so quickly, Lee ordered a course change to port. His intention was for South Dakota to go around the sinking destroyers while at the same time be able to expose all of the battleship's guns at Sendai. At 2348, South Dakota turned starboard (north) again. Rear Admiral Kimura, hidden in the dark from the currently radar-less South Dakota, charged up and fired a stunning spread of 34 torpedoes at 2355 at the American battleship. Fortunately for South Dakota, they all missed the single target, but her position still invited gunfire. Her superstructure was bombarded mercilessly by Kirishima, Atago, and Takao. This was when the second American battleship, Washington, entered combat. Previously sitting timid due to a fear of hitting South Dakota, Washington opened fire at midnight at Kirishima. The Japanese forces decided to ignore Washington and focus on sinking South Dakota instead, but that proved to be fatal. Washington fired 75 16-inch shells at Kirishima, scoring 9; there were 40 hits by the smaller 5-inch shells, too. Kirishima quickly became a burning wreck by 0012. South Dakota, by this point, fared only a little better; almost everything on the topside was destroyed, leaving her without any capability for communications. Lee, with his flag bridge aboard Washington, only hoped that the lack of communications from South Dakota only meant she was retiring from battle, not sinking.

ww2dbaseLee turned his course slightly to continue a passive pursuit against the Japanese ships that were falling back. During this pursuit, Washington sank destroyer Ayanami. At 0033, Lee broke off the pursuit as Tanaka's surviving ships (from the air strikes during the previous day) attacked the American battleship with torpedoes unsuccessfully. Eventually, Tanaka was able to deliver 2,000 men, 260 cases of ammunition, and 1,500 bags of rice, but that was after he had already lost 7 transports in the previous day.

ww2dbaseAlthough the Japanese forces had proven their effectiveness in night naval battles, the series of battles at Guadalcanal would also mark the point where the Japanese fleet would be on a constant retreat until the end of the war. For the Americans, the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal affirmed the importance of radar. A counter-example was also observed: the first phase of battle was lit by moonlight, and second phase lit by star shells. Second phase did not see better hit rates than the first despite of much better visibility.

ww2dbaseAmerican Command Structure Changes

26 Nov, 9 Dec 1942

ww2dbaseOn 26 Nov, two major command changes were done on the American side. The aggressive Halsey was promoted to the rank of Admiral to give him more authority over his peers. On the ground, Vandegrift was relieved by US Army Major General Alexander Patch on 9 Dec to signify the transition of Guadalcanal from the Marines to the Army. On that same day, the 5th and 11th Regiments of the 1st Marine Division left the island as their posts were taken up by Army reinforcements.

ww2dbaseBattle of Tassafaronga

30 Nov 1942

ww2dbaseThe Japanese made the decision to abandon Guadalcanal, but there were still many men on Guadalcanal that needed to be supplied, therefore the Tokyo Express still needed to remain in operation, though the frequency had been dramatically cut down. Tanaka made another attempt on the night of 30 Nov 1942, leading eight destroyers down the slot. Six of his eight destroyers were heavily loaded with supply drums, and worse yet, they were equipped with less torpedoes than usual because of the extra cargo. Only Tanaka's flagship Naganami and Takanami were fully combat ready. Tanaka set a roundabout course to avoid American detection, cutting hard only at the last moment to enter Indispensable Strait.

ww2dbaseThe American Task Force 67 led by Rear Admiral Carleton Wright's four heavy cruisers, one light cruiser, and six destroyers. Even though his reconnaissance aircraft had came in range of the Japanese ships (as reported by the Japanese), the aircraft either did not see the hostile fleet or did not report the information to Wright in time. Nevertheless, Wright was ready for action: that morning, an Australian coast watcher had noticed many destroyers were missing from the port at Buin, and reported the findings to Allied command. Wright was fully expecting these missing destroyers to arrive during his watch that night. He waited east of Lengo Channel on Halsey's orders.

ww2dbaseAt 2306, Wright's radar detected the first Japanese destroyer, but Wright delayed the order to launch torpedoes until 2320 because he thought the range was still too far at 2306. Within the minute, Fletcher launched ten torpedoes, Perkins eight, and Drayton two. The torpedoes were followed up by gunfire first from the cruisers then by the destroyers. Taken by surprise, Tanaka's forces still performed superbly to recover from the situation from their rigorous night attack training and sound discipline. According to pre-battle orders given by Takana, the destroyers charged forward at 24 knots and launched their torpedoes and reverted back to escape the battle; Tanaka gave the order to avoid gunfire so that his small force could remain concealed by the darkness. The Japanese ships used that very principle against the Americans, using the American gun flashes as the targets to aim their torpedoes. Equipped with radar, Takanami, the leading destroyer, was quickly picked out by the American guns and entered a vicious cycle. Being attacked by American guns, she had no choice but to fire back. However, the gun flashes from Takanami gave the Americans better aim. Then, as she was hit by more and more American shells, the fires get further out of control and became a beacon for more American gunfire. Finally, after receiving over 70 hits, she was disabled. The initial success of the Americans soon took a turn for the worse, however, as the Japanese torpedoes arrived. At 2327, two torpedoes struck American flagship Minneapolis, disabling her. Next astern, New Orleans made a tight turn to avoid ramming the disabled Minneapolis, but that did not succeed in avoiding the Japanese torpedoes that swam for her; she was struck and lost the entire forward section of the ship. New Orleans' damage control parties managed to repair the ship enough to allow her to sail to Tulagi Harbor near daybreak on 1 Dec. Cruiser Pensacola was also struck by two torpedoes, causing heavy damage. Northampton was also damaged during battle and eventually sank.

ww2dbaseDuring the battle, Japanese sailors busied themselves dumping the supply drums over the sides of the destroyers. It was not certain how many drums actually floated their ways to the Japanese troops on Guadalcanal. Nevertheless, Tanaka had accomplished his primary objective, and his ships were now, with the exception of the disabled Takanami, heading for home.

ww2dbaseThe Battle of Tassafaronga was an ambush set up by the Americans that ended up in much humiliation. In this battle, both sides were fairly imaginative in their battle reports files to their respective admirals. Tanaka reported that he had sunk an American battleship and a cruiser were sunk, while hitting three destroyers. Wright exaggerated his report, too, telling Halsey that he had sunk four Japanese destroyers. The scale of this near total American defeat would not be revealed until much later. Although by this time the Americans had learned a great deal in regards to night surface engagements, they had not come to realize their incorrect practice of keeping destroyers tightly in the cruiser group, instead of sending them in advance on mobile torpedo runs.

ww2dbaseConclusion at Guadalcanal

ww2dbaseAfter losing stronghold at Mount Austen in Dec 1942 and several more in the Mantanikau River region in Jan 1943 to General Patch, General Hitoshi Imamura gathered two more divisions at Rabaul, the next major American objective up the slot after Guadalcanal, on 1 Feb 1943. Despite Tokyo had already ordered on 4 Jan 1943 that Guadalcanal was to be evacuated within a month, Imamura still had to rouse the Guadalcanal troops, who were in the dark, that they "must by the most furious, swift and positive action deal the enemy annihilating blows to foil his plans completely. It is necessary to arouse the officers and men to a fighting rage." The troops on the island did not share his enthusiasm, however. By this time, of the 30,000 Japanese troops deployed to this island, one third was lost in action and another third to disease or starvation. With Americans controlling the skies, very few Tokyo Express destroyer supply runs were made, and the submarines that replaced the destroyers simply could not bring in enough supplies. Some Japanese soldiers turned to atrocities (even before this time) to release their frustrations. Below is an excerpt from the diary of an unknown Japanese officer:

"29 September: Discovered the captain and two prisoners who escaped last night in the jungle and let the guard company guard them. To prevent escaping a second time, pistols were fired at their feet, but it was difficult to hit them.... The two prisoners were dissected while still alive by medical officer Yamaji and their livers were taken out, and for the first time I saw the internal organs of a human being. It was very informative."

ww2dbaseDuring the campaign, Japanese Army officers came to a much greater understanding of their American foes, especially the contrast in medical facilities between the two sides. The Japanese Army did not pay much attention to medical treatment of its men, unlike their Navy peers. A diary found of a Japanese officer noted the following observations of the Americans:

"Characteristics of American troops:



They possess strong national unity.

They like novelty and adventure.

They excel in the technical field.

They are boastful but are inclined to carry out their boasts.

They are optimistic and lack patience.

American troops are very good fighters when possessing superior firepower."

ww2dbaseOther items in his list include Americans' poor hand-to-hand fighting skills but good marksmanship and poor scouting but excellent communications. He thought that the Americans relied too heavily on firepower, and vulnerable to surprise attacks to the rear. Americans were good in planned attacks, but poor in defense as they are "easily distracted and slow in attack". "American troops are simple-minded and easy to deceive", this anonymous officer said. Another officer's logs commented that "American soldiers are generally weaker than Chinese, but Australians are the strongest".

ww2dbaseOne of the most decisive items that contributed to IGHQ's decision to pull out of Guadalcanal was the loss of shipping during the later months of 1942. The Americans had control of the skies, and the resulting loss of huge tonnage in shipping frustrated both Army and Navy commands. Operation KE was drawn by the Army and Navy jointly to withdraw from Guadalcanal, but northern Solomons, Rabaul, and northwestern New Guinea were to be held (and in some cases, such as Rabaul on 1 Feb, reinforced). Some Japanese officers expressed that this withdrawal from southern Solomons was "an unprecedented event in the annals of the Japanese Army". On their way out of the region, however, the Japanese were able to make some positives out of the situation, sinking the cruiser Chicago during a night torpedo attack by a dozen "Bettys".

ww2dbaseWhen General Patch and his men reached the western tip of Guadalcanal, he, as was Halsey, was surprised that the Japanese had already left. Only abandoned barges floated aimlessly. The Americans were treated with one of the most stunningly successful mass evacuation in all of the war. Operation KE, the Japanese operation to evacuate Guadalcanal, sent large numbers of destroyers down the slot, which the Americans could only interpret as a large reinforcement. On 4 Feb, 22 destroyers commenced a run down the slot to evacuate more men; on detection of this large task force, Halsey moved even the old battleships from Fiji to brace against the apparent invasion. General Patch's men moved west with a confused caution, but eventually they realized the Japanese were already gone. On 9 Feb, at 1625, Patch radioed Halsey "Total and complete defeat of Japanese forces on Guadalcanal".

ww2dbaseThe fight for this small corner of the south Pacific had cost the Allied navies 24 destroyers and larger warships totaling 126,240 tons, which included two fleet carriers and six heavy cruisers. The Japanese lost two battleships among a total of 24, totaling 134,839 tons. While naval losses were relatively even in terms of tonnage, on the ground Japan lost a great deal more men compared to their American opponents. Japanese lost 25,000 men in action or to starvation and disease out of 60,000 deployed; meanwhile, the Americans had only lost 1,600. Far greater numbers were lost on the seas, but neither side ever counted how many sailors and naval officers were lost during the campaign. Before this campaign, Guadalcanal was an out-of-way tropical jungle island that hardly any had heard of. After, the battles on and near Guadalcanal would come to be known as among the bloodiest in the war across Pacific. "For us who were there," said Morison, "... Guadalcanal is not a name but an emotion, recalling desperate fights in the air, furious night naval battles, frantic work at supply or construction, savage fighting in the sodden jungle, nights broken by screaming bombs and deafening explosions of naval shells."

ww2dbaseSources: Goodbye Darkness, Naval Historical Center, Nihon Kaigun, Operational Experiences of Fast Battleships, the Pacific Campaign, Pacific Wreck Database, The Struggle for Guadalcanal, Total War.

Last Major Update: Mar 2006

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