The Pacific War - week by week

After eight months since the outbreak of the Pacific War, after many defeats at the hands of the invaders, and after many bold actions that resulted in the few successes that the Allies enjoyed during the war, the time is finally ripe for the start of the first Allied offensive against the Japanese Empire: the Invasion of the Solomon Islands. Yet this was not only the first Allied offensive of the...

In the last couple of weeks, we have covered both the American and Japanese general plans for the future, delving into the minds of important figures like General MacArthur, Admiral King, General Hyakutake or Admiral Yamamoto. Although the American plans haven’t quite gotten in motion yet, the Japanese had started their Kokoda Track campaign in the last episode; and today, we are going to cover th...

Three weeks ago, we delved for the first time into the American plans for their future offensives, as the Army and Navy factions clashed for control of the operations that were going to unfold in the Pacific. But thanks to the efforts of General Marshall, by early July, the matter of command had been resolved and a compromise between General MacArthur and Admiral King had been reached. Now, we tur...

The Aleutian islands were not the only territories in North America to be attacked by Japan. About a week after the attack on Pearl Harbor, 9 submarines of the Japanese 6th Fleet arrived off the North American Pacific coast. They were tasked with performing reconnaissance and disrupting shipping lanes. Some of these submarines would go a step further and carry out attacks on the mainland of North...

Last month, we covered the start of the violent and unforgiving campaign that took place in the provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangxi as the Japanese invaders hunted down the American pilots that had taken part in the Doolittle Raid. In their ensuing struggle to curb down the Chinese air power in the region, the natives of Zhejiang and Jiangxi suffered the abuse and savagery of the Japanese troops, wh...

After the small break of the last couple of weeks, we return to the main theater of the Pacific War, where the astounding consequences of the Battle of Midway continued to resonate in the minds of the key figures of the war. Yamamoto had been outmaneuvered, outsmarted and he had suffered terrible losses in the battle, from which the IJN may never recover. But worst of all, he had finally surrender...

Douglas MacArthur was one of the US military’s most celebrated and controversial commanders. His  military service career is one of the most extensive and impressive in history, but it did not go unblemished. This episode will look specifically into one of the blemishes, that being Douglas MacArthur’s blunder of the defense of the Philippines at the offset of the Pacific War. If you would like to...

During the attack on Pearl Harbor the Japanese dispatched 5 Type A midget submarines [1] , each carrying two men and two torpedoes [2] . The night before the attack at 6:45am the destroyer USS Ward came across 1 of 5 midget submarines trying to enter the harbor and opened fire on it sinking it, this was the first official shot of the Pacific War. One midget submarine shot a torpedo at Seaplane ten...

Last week, we covered one of the most important battles of the Pacific War, the milestone that stopped the expansion of the Japanese Empire and allowed the Americans to go on the offensive for the first time in the war. But concurrent to the Battle of Midway and the death of the 1st Kido Butai, Admiral Yamamoto had devised a plan to strike Dutch Harbor and invade the first territory in North Ameri...

Almost six months have passed since the devastating surprise attack on Pearl Harbor that gave birth to the Pacific War. In this half-year, the Japanese Empire proved to be the one that was better prepared for war and the one that held military superiority over its foes, as they rapidly steamrolled across the Pacific, capturing key points like Malaya, Burma, the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies a...

Almost six months have passed since the start of the war, and the Japanese behemoth had proved to be almost unstoppable across the Pacific. Last week, we saw them complete their invasion of Burma, another victory in a long string of triumphs; yet we also saw there a huge participation by one of the most forgotten allies of World War Two: Nationalist China. Today, we are going to see war resume in...

In the last couple of weeks, there were quite a handful of very important events that managed to drastically shake the course of the Pacific War, including the Fall of the Philippines and the Battle of the Coral Sea . Today, we are going to see the direct aftermath of these events, as the Japanese recover from their losses in the New Guinea region and the Americans prepare to avenge their Filipino...

Last week, we covered the first carrier battle in history, one of the most important events of the Pacific War which directly tied with the American victory at Midway. Thus, the Battle of the Coral Sea and the downfall of Operation MO were such important events that they warranted their own episode, but in that week, other developments were also unfolding as well. The most important one was the Ba...

After our last episode, all the main players were ready for the first carrier engagement of history, a battle that would plant the seeds for one of the most decisive engagements of the Pacific War. The set is staged for the battle that would change the course of the war, so join us as we turn back to the island of New Guinea to cover the Battle of the Coral Sea and the attempted Japanese invasion...

In the last few weeks, we’ve been covering a wide range of events that were happening in the Pacific War, from Ceylon in the Indian Ocean to the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. But one of the regions that we have neglected during this time is none other than Burma, which saw heavy fighting during these last few weeks as the victorious Japanese advanced towards the Burma Road, the Chinese for...

Last week, the Japanese had scored an amazing victory with the ultimate fall of the Bataan Peninsula. For three months, those Battling Bastards had resisted against the full might of a Japanese army, successfully holding their ground and inflicting heavy casualties on the invaders. But now, with the peninsula firmly under his control, General Homma finally started to look south towards the Manila...

Four months have passed since the start of the Pacific War, and of all the initial objectives of the Japanese Empire, only one remained unachieved. The invaders had up until now conquered the Dutch East Indies, advanced down the Malayan Peninsula to capture Singapore, expanded through a series of islands in the Pacific Ocean, and achieved important air and naval attacks that caused havoc on the Al...

In the last couple of weeks, we’ve been covering some special topics about the Pacific War since there wasn’t much happening during this time. But today, we come back for the main series with an episode looking forward towards the Indian Ocean. After the fall of the Dutch East Indies, Malaya, Singapore, Manila and Rangoon, the Japanese Empire had achieved all of its initial objectives for the star...

This interview featured Brad St Croix a Canadian Military historian who did his PhD dissertation on the Battle of Hong Kong. The podcast explains why the battle occurred, what happened during the battle, dispels many misconceptions and myths about the event and its long lasting effect on Canadian veterans. Brad St Croix also runs the Youtube channel OTD Canadian Military History

This interview is about General William Henry Rupertus, a commander during the Pacific War and author of the Rifleman's creed. Craig is speaking with Amy Rupertus Peacock, granddaughter of General Rupertus and her co-author Don Brown (author of over 15 books, including the Last Fighter Pilot) for their new book "Old Breed General". General Rupertus is one of the longest-serving members of the Unit...

Last week, we witnessed one of the most pivotal moments of the Pacific War: the Fall of Java. The surrender of the Dutch island not only brought the total collapse of the ABDA Command and the Malay Barrier, which had failed in every one of its missions; but also consolidated the position of the Japanese Empire in the Pacific, having achieved supremacy over the two main resource hubs of the East: S...

Twelve weeks ago, the Pacific War started with the critical attack on Pearl Harbor and the start of the Japanese invasions across East Asia. Now, the first phase of their expansion is near its end and the desired prize is within reach of the Japanese Empire. Last week, we covered the start of the First Battle of the Java Sea and the failure of the ABDA Command to stop the invasion of Java from tak...

Two weeks have passed since the fall of Singapore, and the situation looks hopeless for the Allied nations: the Malaya Barrier has been pierced; the island of Java is almost completely open for an attack; Burma is being invaded; and the Filipino defenders have been cornered at the Bataan Peninsula. It seems that the Allied command has failed in its mission to stop the advance of the invaders acros...

Two weeks ago, we covered the fall of the last key cities and airfields in Borneo, the Celebes and the Moluccas. From the airfield of Kendari II alone, the Japanese had already achieved their goal of having the necessary range to successfully conduct air operations over Java; yet to be completely certain that their most important offensive was going to come into fruition, the Japanese commanders h...