Sun Tzu, possibly the greatest military strategist of all time, once said: “Throw your soldiers into
positions whence there is no escape, and they will prefer death to flight. If they will face death,
there is nothing they may not achieve.” This was as true in 500 BC as it was
in the Second World War. In this video, we outline five battles where soldiers,
facing impossible odds, fought so well they saved themselves from total annihilation.
In October 1944, during the overarching Battle of Leyte Gulf,
a tiny outgunned and outclassed US naval force made such a ferocious last stand that the
horrified Japanese were forced to retreat. We’re talking, of course, about the Battle off Samar.
As part of the counterattack to the Allied landings in the Philippines, the Japanese
main fleet split into two forces, Force A and B, to encircle and destroy the American fleet. Force
A came from the north, and its commander, Admiral Kurita, cleverly used a small decoy flotilla to
take the bulk of the US forces on a wild goose chase. This left the transport ships, packed with
soldiers and equipment for the Philippines Campaign, totally defenceless — almost.
Kurita’s fleet comprised four battleships, six heavy cruisers,
two light cruisers, and 11 destroyers. Protecting the transports were the dregs of the US fleet:
six escort carriers, three destroyers, and four destroyer escorts.
It should have been a turkey shoot for the Japanese, but they got one hell of a surprise.
Rear Admiral Sprague, the US commander, knew his meagre force was all that stood between the
soldiers on the transports and a watery grave, so he went all out. He ordered every available
plane to attack the Japanese ships with whatever weapons they had. Some had bombs and torpedoes,
but most had only their machine guns. Some planes even went in unarmed, buzzing the ships to cause
maximum chaos! On the surface, the destroyers made a desperate charge. Earnest Evans, captain
of the lead destroyer USS Johnston, declared to his crew: “This will be a fight against
overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can.”
Not long after, Evans was killed, but his heroic charge convinced the Japanese
that a larger fleet was near, and they retreated. In the two-and-a-half-hour battle,
1,583 Americans were killed, five ships were sunk, and all others were damaged.
They’d paid a heavy price, but the transports were safe, thanks to a furious American defence.
Four months earlier and half a world away, another outnumbered unit also put up such a
furious defence that their enemy was forced to pull back. During the Battle of Villers-Bocage,
just six German Tigers, led by the propaganda hero Michael Wittman, forced the entire
British 22nd Armoured Brigade, along with its attached infantry and artillery, to retreat.
Nine days after the D-Day landings, Allied units were pushing the Germans inland.
Hard fighting by British and American infantry had opened a gap in the German lines — and the Allies
were quick to exploit it. The first battalion of the British Rifle Brigade took the lead,
and behind them were 60 tanks of the 22nd Armoured Division.
Their objective was to seize Point 213, a low ridge overlooking the town of Villers-Bocage.
The German commander, Obergruppenführer Dietrich,
knew his position was weak. His units were all engaged and he had no reserves left,
except for one unit: the 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion. Though a battalion in name,
the 101st was seriously depleted. From a starting strength of 60 Tiger Is,
air attacks and frequent mechanical breakdowns had cut its numbers down to 17. The second company,
commanded by Wittman, only had six serviceable Tigers on the morning of June 13th 1944.
This was the morning of the Allied attack. Advancing through the village without issue,
the British officers halted on Point 213 to plan their next move. By sheer chance,
Wittman’s Tigers were camouflaged within shouting distance, where the unit had camped for the night.
Sensing his chance, Wittman fired up his engine and drove straight into the column. His first
target was a Sherman firefly, one of the only tanks with a gun capable of penetrating his
armour. After knocking it out, Wittman began destroying as many vehicles as he could.
Caught by surprise and probably assuming more Tigers were on the way,
the British beat a hasty retreat. The rest of Wittman’s company circled back to Villers-Bocage,
where they obliterated the rest of the Allied armour. By the end of the day, Allied losses
totalled 12 tanks, six half-tracks, six Bren carriers, and two anti-tank guns. Six German tank
crews had put an entire armoured division on the defensive and come out of the battle unscathed.
Far from the warmth of the French countryside,
a crack unit of aviators was fighting a desperate defence in the skies over Leningrad.
Far from the warmth of the French countryside, a crack unit of aviators was fighting a desperate
defence in the skies over Leningrad. “[T]here can be no interest in the continued existence
of this large urban centre. [The] problem of … feeding the population ... should not be solved.”
Between the people of Leningrad and a cold death stood three Soviet armies. Roughly
equal to the Germans in terms of soldiers and artillery, the Soviets lacked tanks, aircraft,
and experienced commanders. One thing they did have was the 31st Dive Bomber Aviation Regiment.
Equipped with the wildly successful Petlyakov Pe-2 twin-engine bombers, the 31st quickly transitioned
from dive-bombing to every other conceivable aerial operation, such as recon, escort, and night
fighting. The frigid Soviet winter froze fuel lines and instruments, but the infantry needed
air cover, so the mechanics of the 31st worked day and night keeping the aircraft serviceable.
It’s estimated that the unit flew around 10,000 sorties throughout the strategic offensive at
Tikhvin. They were constantly harried by the Luftwaffe but gave as good as they got.
Keeping the Luftwaffe on the back foot, the 31st freed up Soviet ground forces
to manoeuvre against the Germans, eventually halting the advance. Stalin was so impressed
with the 31st’s bravery and sacrifice that he upgraded the unit to “Guards” status,
the first air unit to receive such an honour. By the end of the war, the now-renamed 4th
Guards Dive Bomber Aviation Regiment had produced five Heroes of the Soviet Union.
In the Pacific, another aerial unit distinguished itself with
sheer courage, and its actions likely saved thousands of Japanese lives.
The stage for this engagement was the battle for Guadalcanal in January 1943. Japanese
forces had occupied the island since May 1942, but by January, the situation was looking dire.
The decisive naval campaign around Guadalcanal had forced most of Japan’s heavy ships to retreat to
safer waters. On Guadalcanal, the Americans had captured the critical Henderson Field airbase,
and their planes dominated the skies. Having lost a substantial number of planes already,
this made the situation even worse for the Japanese Navy.
But at least they had food to eat, which was one thing the Japanese Army on Guadalcanal was
sorely lacking. An effective American blockade was slowly starving the Japanese Army to death,
causing 50 men to die of starvation-related disease each day. Eventually, the order came
to evacuate, but for that to be possible, the Japanese Navy had to take back the initiative.
This impossible job was given to three squadrons: the Japanese Navy’s 701st, 705th,
and 751st Air Groups. Kitted out with torpedos and Mitsubishi G4M and G3M twin-engine bombers,
the three squadrons were ordered to launch an attack so devastating that
Allied forces wouldn’t dare return to the area, allowing for a peaceful evacuation.
At sunset on January 29th, United States Navy Task Force 18 was underway near Rennell Island. TF 18
was formidable, comprising three heavy cruisers, three light cruisers, two escort carriers,
and eight destroyers. Once their fighters landed for the night, the 701st and 705th, who had been
stalking the fleet, attacked. Two Japanese torpedoes hit heavy cruiser USS Chicago and
stopped her dead in the water, but the AA-gunners took their toll, destroying four bombers.
The next day, the 751st closed in to finish the job. Flying low and in formation,
the torpedo bombers scored four more hits on Chicago, rapidly causing her to sink. The
second wave targeted the destroyer USS La Valette, crippling her with a torpedo to the engine room.
The bombers returned to base with 12 fewer planes but had inflicted a serious loss on the Americans.
Admiral Nimitz was reportedly so angry that he threatened to shoot
anyone who mentioned Chicago’s loss. TF 18 was given a good thrashing, and it would be many
weeks before they dared return to Rennell Island. In the meantime, the Japanese could
evacuate their starving troops — troops who had three squadrons to thank for their deliverance.
THOSE were four stories from the Second World War where units were saved from
total annihilation. But what do YOU think? Had YOU heard of any of these battles before?
Did YOU know the evacuation of Guadalcanal was only made possible by the sacrifice of
three bomber squadrons? And lastly, how do you think Captain Evans put his trousers on,
with those massive brass balls of his? Let us know in the comments!