| 20 October 1944 U.S. Forces Land on Leyte Island |
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| After securing New Zealand, MacArthur’s next
target was the Philippine Islands, from which U.S. forces—as well as MacArthur himself—had
been driven two and a half years earlier. The Philippines were to serve as a staging area for what
was anticipated as the final battle in the Pacific—an invasion of Japan.
MacArthur’s plan was to bypass the southern islands in the chain and land his troops on Leyte, followed by an invasion of the main island of Luzon. Air attacks on the Philippines began on October 12, and the invasion force sailed from Hollandia two days later. The first landings on Leyte took place on the 20th, and included MacArthur himself, dramatically illustrating that he had fulfilled the promise he had made in 1942, “I shall return.” The Japanese garrison on Leyte was made up almost entirely of inexperienced draftees; nevertheless they put up a much tougher fight than MacArthur had expected, and the island was not cleared of enemy troops until late December. History: Campaign Maps: Personal Accounts: Photographs: |
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