United States Army in WWII - the Pacific - Victory in Papua: [Illustrated Edition]

Front Cover
Pickle Partners Publishing, Aug 15, 2014 - History - 446 pages
[Includes 23 maps and 95 illustrations]
This is a companion volume to the one on Guadalcanal in the series on the war in the Pacific. Both record the operations designed to halt the advance of the enemy toward the vital transpacific line of communications with Australia and secure Australia as a base. Success in Papua and Guadalcanal, achieved in February 1943, put the Allied forces in a position to neutralize Rabaul and, this accomplished, to advance to the Philippines.
The present volume concentrates on the action of one United States Army division. In telling the story of a comparatively limited number of troops, the author has been able to present the combat experience of small units in sharper focus than has been possible in most of the other full-scale campaign volumes.
The campaign abounds in lessons.
The strategic significance of the Papuan Campaign can be briefly stated. In addition to blunting the Japanese thrust toward Australia and the transpacific line of communications, it put General MacArthur’s forces in a favorable position to take the offensive. But this little known campaign is significant for still another reason. It was the battle test of a large hitherto-inexperienced U. S. Army force and its commanders under the conditions which were to attend much of the ground fighting in the Pacific. Costly in casualties and suffering, it taught lessons that the Army had to learn if it was to cope with the Japanese under conditions of tropical warfare.
 

Contents

CHAPTER IX
xcviii
The 16th Brigade Moves on Sanananda 171
xcviii
8Establishing Roadblock
xcviii
The First Two Weeks at Buna 189
xcviii
I Corps Reaches the Front 219
xcviii
The Fighting West of the Girua 237
xcviii
The Second Two Weeks 258
xcviii
Warren Force Takes the Initiative 284
xcviii

2Bulolo Valley Area
lxxxiv
Providence Forestalled 59
lxxxviii
3The Pacific Areas 1 August 1942
xciv
Kokoda Thrust 70
xcviii
4KokodaTempletons Crossing Area
xcviii
The Japanese Offensive Collapses 87
xcviii
5Japanese Attack at Milne Bay 2631 August 1942
xcviii
The Advance on the Beachhead 117
xcviii
6Plan of 1 October 1942
xcviii
The Allies Close In 143
xcviii
7Plan of Attack 16 November 1942
xcviii
Urbana Force Closes on the Mission 305
xcviii
The Fall of Buna 327
xcviii
Clearing the Track Junction 352
xcviii
The Final Offensive 375
xcviii
The Victory 394
lx
REQUEST FROM THE PUBLISHER 405
lxxix
Published Materials 411
xcii
November 1942
xcvi
IVAllied Advance Across Owen Stanley Range
26
September15 November 1942
37

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