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Guadalcanal, a 2510 square-mile island in the Solomon Island chain,
consists largely of jungle.
A Spanish expedition discovered the island in 1568, but it formed part of
the British Empire when the Japanese occupied it early in World War II.
United States of America forces chose Guadalcanal for their first major
large-scale invasion of a Japanese-held island. Guadalcanal became a major
turning-point in the war.
The invasion of Guadalcanal, Operation Watchtower, by sixteen thousand
United States troops began on 7 August 1942 and was the first American
offensive of the war. Additional amphibious attacks simultaneously assaulted
the islands of Florida, Tulagi, Gavutu and Tanambogo.
Initially, only unarmed Japanese construction and support personnel
occupied Guadalcanal itself, allowing the Americans to come ashore almost
unhindered. But Japanese reinforcements arrived on the island from Rabaul to
destroy the Americans (Operation Ka-Go).
These convoys and the land battle on Guadalcanal became magnets for naval
activity on both sides. This resulted in seven naval battles:
- Savo Island on 9 August
- Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August
- Battle of Cape Esperance on 11 & 12 October
- Battle of Santa Cruz Island on 26 & 27 October
- First Battle of Guadalcanal on 11 & 12 November
- Second Battle of Guadalcanal on 14 November & 15 November
- Battle of Tassafaronga on 30 November
These naval battles did not produce a victor, but the Japanese were
unable to replace their losses.
The land battle hinged around the airfield which the Americans named
Henderson Field, a muddy airstrip hanging onto the edge of the island, and
considered "an unsinkable aircraft carrier". The Japanese suffered 24,000
casualties, the Americans 6,000.
Extreme desperation characterized the ground fighting; only three of the
defenders surrendered. American authorities declared Guadalcanal secure on 9
February, 1943, after more than six months of combat.
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