military geography of guadalcanal daniel yun, dr. munski ... · 1942 to take the island back. us...
TRANSCRIPT
Military Geography of Guadalcanal
Daniel Yun, Dr. Munski, Daniel SauerweinDepartment of Geography University of North Dakota
Introduction North Dakota’s 164th comes in…. Geography of Guadalcanal
Bibliography Acknowledgements
Although the landings were successful the Japanese counterattack winning successful
naval battles and pressure on the Lunga Perimeter. Due to the Japanese attacks and
U.S casualties/attritions, General Vandergrift ordered more reinforcements. As a
result, the 164th infantry regiment from North Dakota under the Americal Division (1st
American division to be formed outside the United States) was called in on October
13th, 1942. Immediately they faced difficult challenges from disease and the
challenging terrain. In addition they repulse Japanese attacks around the Lunga
perimeter to protect Henderson airfield. Eventually the Japanese were forced to
evacuate out of Guadalcanal due to constant setbacks and on February 9th 1943, the
United States have officially taken the island back from the Japanese. Based on after
action reports 164th infantry regiment heroically performed their duty to defend
Henderson airfield. However the regiment suffered 456 casualties to defend and
secure Guadalcanal. Without their contribution, it can be questioned whether the
United States could have defeated the Japanese at Guadalcanal.
Guadalcanal has a humid equatorial climate with no dry season. This means that it is always wet and
receives huge amounts of rainfall. As a result it is very humid which creates a haven for insects and disease for
the 164th. This presents many logistical and military challenges. For instance moving large amounts of troops
and supplies will be hard if not impossible to coordinate in a highly dense jungle.
The island of Guadalcanal consisted of indigenous Polynesian people who assisted the Americans in
helping to spot the Japanese. Because of their local knowledge, the Americans had more information on the
island than the Japanese.
Another factor that help the Americans win Guadalcanal were man-made fortifications. By constructing
foxholes and barb-wire around strategic points defending Guadalcanal was an easier job. Coastal fortifications
and fortified areas on Henderson Ridge secured the American position on Lunga Point.
Collins, J. 2006. Military Geography for Professionals and the Public. Dulles, VA: Potomac Books
Mueller, J. 2004. Guadalcanal 1942 the marines strike back. Westport, CT: Praeger
Butler, W., and D. Keeney. 1998. This is Guadalcanal. New York, NY: William Morrow Publishing
Toll, I. 2015. The Conquering Tide. New York, NY: W.W Norton
I would like to thank Chester Fritz Special
Collections, Dr. Munski, and Daniel Sauerwein for
helping me with this project.
The United States starts planning where to start the first
offensive of the Japanese invasion. After months of planning,
the military staff eyes on Guadalcanal. Guadalcanal is a
remote island part of the Solomon Island Chain in the
Southwest Pacific. Guadalcanal is geographically important
because it can be used as a launch point for Japanese
invasions on Australia and threatens communication/supply
routes between the United States and Australia. Finally what
convinced the United States to invade the island was when
aerial reconnaissance spotted the Japanese constructing an
airfield. Thus Operation Watchtower took place on August 7th
1942 to take the island back.
US 105M on shore point toward Point Cruz (Photo #OGL
1278-164-66 courtesy of Special Collections
Japanese Zero shot down off of Guadalcanal (Photo #OGL
1278-164-63 courtesy of Special Collections
Military Campaign Map of Guadalcanal (Courtesy of West Point Atlas)
U.S supply ship torpedoed off of Lunga Point, Guadalcanal.
(Photo #OGL 1278-164-65 courtesy of Special Collections)
Polynesian people of Guadalcanal coming back from their
hunt. (Photo #OGL 1278-164-67 courtesy of Special
Collections)