As we have seen, the days that saw the unstoppable Japanese Empire as it took over the Pacific are
long gone. Now, the Allied forces have set forth to slowly but surely reclaim every piece of land
lost to these ruthless invaders. Yet the fight won’t be easy, as the Japanese are prepared to
resist with the tenacity that they have shown already. Today, we’ll mainly focus on the new
developments transpiring at the Solomons, as the drive on Munda continues while the Japanese
prepare to counterattack against Zanana. At the same time, Colonel Liversedge finally
gets ready to launch his main assault on Bairoko, although his task would not be an easy one. Thus,
join us as we delve into another epic chapter of the New Georgia Campaign.
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In our last episode, General Wing had finally begun his main advance against Munda on July 9,
yet his two infantry regiments would only accomplish little progress due to the difficulty
of the terrain and because of how shaken the 169th Regiment was. The following day, the now far out
ahead 172nd Regiment again managed to move forward a few hundred yards, but the 169th, with its 1st
Battalion leading , would run into a Japanese blocking position after advancing 1500 yards.
Despite General Barker’s artillery support, the Americans would be unable to clear the roadblock;
and during the night, the Japanese would further reinforce this position so that they could
continue to harass the inexperienced 169th. Yet more problems were also emerging for General Wing.
Despite their slow advance, the American forces had outdistanced their overextended supply line
by July 10, thus forcing the infantrymen to carry supplies in and casualties out over a long trail
knee-deep in mud. To solve the immediate supply problem, General Hester decided to swing the
172nd southwest to occupy Laiana Beach, about 500 yards east of the main Japanese line at Ilangana.
The 172nd was also to be supported by the 3rd Battalion, 103rd Regiment and by the 9th Defense
Battalion’s eight M3 Stuart tanks, which were to land at Laiana on July 13. On the morning
of July 11, the 172nd therefore turned south and started moving towards the shore through
knee-deep mud while harassed by Japanese mortars. By midday, the Americans had moved 450 yards when
some Japanese pillboxes forced them to a halt. At the same time, the 169th was directed to
push against the high ground to the north , yet the regiment would make little progress
against the tenacious Japanese defenders and would have to be reorganized as a result.
The following day, as the 172nd resumed its advance towards the beach and as the 169th
attempted to envelop the Japanese left flank , Admiral Merrill was ordered to provide a heavy
naval bombardment in coordination with the Rendova artillery and the AirSols planes. Consequently,
Merrill would take his four light cruisers into the narrow confines of Blanche Channel while two
destroyers went far ahead to a point off the Munda Bar to fire on the Kokenggolo Hill area.
The mission was then flawlessly executed, causing much damage to the Japanese base at Munda.
On the ground, however, the attack bogged down from the start, with the two regiments becoming
entangled as they tried to gain their positions. Despite this, the 1st Battalion, 169th Regiment
managed to gain 300 yards as it ran head on into the Japanese positions. Its 2nd Battalion,
however, would receive enfilading fire from the northernmost ridge and would be unable to advance.
To the south, the 172nd also managed to get within 500 yards of Laiana, but would be
ultimately stopped by machine-gun fire coming from a series of pillboxes , connected by trenches,
extending northwest from Ilangana. On the morning of July 13, a strong artillery and
air barrage would precede the start of another outflanking attack by the 169th Regiment .
Though the attack of the 1st and 2nd Battalions would be contained by the ferocious defenders,
the previously-shaken 3rd Battalion, now under the command of Colonel Frederick Reincke,
would unexpectedly fight its way forward, pillbox by pillbox, for four hours until it secured the
south ridge. Reincke, after whom the troops named the ridge, decided to hold his position; and after
beating up a series of Japanese counterattacks during the night, the Americans would finally
manage to secure their hold over Reincke Hill . At the same time, with Japanese patrols cutting its
line of communication , the hungry 172nd Regiment would desperately continue its advance through
the mangrove swamp. Though slowly and under heavy mortar fire, the Americans would manage to get to
Laiana by late afternoon, successfully securing the beach and organizing defensive positions.
The following morning, Hester would also land the 3rd Battalion, 103rd Regiment and the Marine
tanks at Laiana , further bringing some much needed supplies for the troops at the front.
To the north, however, Reincke’s men would continue to resist the fierce counterattacks of
the Japanese, suffering a total of 101 casualties by the end of the day but successfully repelling
the enemy . The success of the 3rd Battalion would further force the Japanese to evacuate
the north spur, which was then occupied by the 2nd Battalion. By July 15, the supply problem
had thus been sorted , but there were almost 3000 casualties in the 43rd Division already,
half of them to the so-called “war neurosis” , so Hester recognized that he would need
reinforcements to launch a coordinated offensive against Munda. Luckily, he would see the arrival
of the 1st Battalion, 145th Regiment that day, which was immediately sent to reinforce the 169th,
though he would still need to buy some time with harassing fire from artillery and air strikes.
That night, General Griswold would also arrive at New Georgia to assume command of the occupation
force, freeing the overburdened Hester to take command of the 43rd Division’s offensive.
Immediately, Griswold would direct Major-General Robert Beightler to bring the remainder of his
37th Division to New Georgia while General Collins prepared his 161st Regiment to
also move to the island. Additionally, Admiral Turner was finally relieved as
commander of the South Pacific Amphibious Force, as he was ordered to take command
of the Central Pacific offensives, thus getting replaced by Admiral Wilkinson.
July 16 and 17 would see some small attacks supported by tanks against the Ilangana line,
yet a lack of tank-infantry coordination would only allow the 172nd Regiment to extend the
beachhead to Ilangana Point. Nonetheless, the tanks would be able to destroy many pillboxes
before staff officers from Rabaul arrived to instruct the Japanese in anti-tank tactics.
Consequently, by July 18, the defenders would be able to disable two tanks with a mixture of mines,
flame-throwers and Molotov cocktails, therefore forcing Griswold to withdraw his remaining tanks
and to also request the transportation of the 10th Defense Battalion’s tanks.
Meanwhile, on July 16, the 1st Battalion, 169th Regiment advanced to the southwest and proceeded
to occupy Kelley Hill without facing opposition. Soon, however, the Americans would face wave after
wave of Japanese counterattacks to dislodge them; but despite being isolated and lacking supplies,
they would successfully repel the enemy assaults during the night and throughout July 17 .
In the meantime, as we’ll recall, the 1st and 3rd Battalions of Colonel Tomonari’s
elite 13th Regiment had managed to bypass the roadblock set up by Colonel Liversedge’s forces.
By mid-July, General Sasaki was then preparing them to launch a strong counterattack against
the Americans facing the Munda defenses. His plan was for Tomonari to take his forces around
the American right flank towards the east bridge at the headwaters of the Barike River,
and from there to drive through to Zanana Beach and destroy the American forces east of the river.
On July 14, Tomonari then began his march to the upper Barike, yet the Japanese had no maps, were
forced to hack out a trail and appear to have been hit by American air and artillery bombardments.
These factors, coupled with the pressure to live up to the 13th Regiment’s reputation , saw the
attackers suffer enormous losses during the three-day march even before the assault could
be launched. On the night of July 17, however, Tomonari was finally able to send his troops
down the jeep road to hit Hester's headquarters on Zanana beach, which were only defended by
a platoon of the 43rd Reconnaissance Troop and by seventy Fijian commandos . At the same time,
the 229th Regiment launched its own limited offensive , aimed at preventing the troops
at the front from coming to the aid of the Zanana defenders. If well executed,
Sasaki’s plan thus had the potential to destroy the 43rd Division's rear installations, cut the
line of communications from Zanana and surround the American regiments on the front lines.
Tomonari’s attack, however, was very disorganized and chaotic, looking more like a series of raids
instead of an organized assault. The reconnaissance troops therefore managed
to easily repel the Japanese at the engineer and medical bivouacs while the Fijians at the command
post mowed down the screaming and yelling Japanese that rushed from the jungle in all directions.
Yet the close-in, fierce and confused fighting would also see some of the attackers briefly
penetrate the perimeter to destroy valuable communications equipment, though they could not
prevent General Barker’s artillery from laying a tight box barrage around the command post.
So devastating was the artillery fire that the surviving Japanese had no other choice
but to retreat back up the jeep road. Tomonari’s troops would then keep the
road blocked for the next three days, but Sasaki’s counteroffensive had essentially ended in failure.
In response to this new threat, the 148th Regiment would be landed at Zanana on July 18, getting
sent to Reincke Ridge to relieve the spent 169th. With the 13th Regiment blocking its way, the two
forces would skirmish in the next few days until Tomonari’s final retreat to the Yahata Highlands.
On July 21, the 169th would be finally relieved; and the following day, General Beightler would
assume direct command of all 37th Division units in New Georgia . Griswold, reshuffling units for
the offensive, set the boundary between divisions along a line 1300 yards north of Ilangana,
with Hester’s 43rd Division on the south and Beightler’s 37th Division on the north.
Furthermore, Hester's move to Laiana was paying dividends, as it allowed the
Americans to build a road to the Munda Trail, thus improving the dire supply situation.
By 24 July, all units had also moved into position, so Griswold scheduled to start the
offensive the following day. His plan was simple enough. Following a naval bombardment and a heavy
bombing, the American infantry, supported by Marine tanks and Barker’s artillery, would make
a frontal attack on the Japanese line. The 43rd Division on the left would take Lambete Plantation
and the airfield, and the 37th Division on the right would take Bibilo Hill and envelop the
Japanese north of the airfield. Meanwhile, to the north, Colonel Currin’s 4th Raiders had landed at
Enogai on July 18, so Liversedge was finally ready to launch his main assault against Bairoko . In
the days following the fall of Enogai, Liversedge had sent patrols out to cover the Dragons
Peninsula, yet the Americans were too cautious and so they would learn little information.
For the attack on Bairoko, Liversedge planned to take the 1st and 4th Raiders over the
Enogai-Bairoko Trail and attack the Japanese frontally, while sending the 3rd Battalion,
148th Regiment along the Triri-Bairoko Trail to hit their southern flank. Strangely,
he also expected air bombing missions to be carried out against the enemy, but appears to have
requested the important air support too late for it to be carried out. On the morning of July 20,
Liversedge thus cleared Enogai and began his march along the Bairoko-Enogai Trail in column , with
a platoon also moving down the Leland Lagoon sand spit to cover the extreme right flank.
At the same time, the 148th soldiers departed Triri in an arduous march inland.
Shortly after 10:00, Colonel Griffith’s Raiders stumbled upon some Japanese outposts forward of
the main defensive line, which would be quickly reduced by the attackers. The advance would then
continue, facing ever-increasing resistance until the Americans were stopped by machine-gun fire
around noon. Against them, Commander Okumura Saburo had established four successive lines
of mutually supporting log and coral pillboxes on low, parallel ridges running north to south.
This forced Liversedge to commit the 4th Raiders on Griffith’s left, yet progress would nonetheless
remain slow while the number of losses was rising. Additionally, the platoon on the sandspit was
held up by a number of machine-guns and was unable to reach the mainland to make contact
with Liversedge’s main body. By 14:30, one of Griffith’s companies finally managed to break
into the first defense lines. An hour later, however, Okumura began laying down heavy and
accurate mortar fire from the ridges back to Liversedge’s headquarters, pushing back the
Americans, turning the area into a killing field and successfully inflicting heavy casualties.
Unable to move forward, lacking any reserves and without the aid of proper support,
Liversedge’s only hope was for the 148th to break through from the south. But after some 3000 yards
of marching , the 3rd Battalion had swung north only to be stopped by a Japanese blocking position
on high ground. By 16:00, Liversedge learnt of this and consequently decided to withdraw
east to high ground. Starting from the left of the line, the Raiders pulled back company by company,
and although machine-gun and mortar fire still hit them, the withdrawal would be made in good order.
By nightfall, Liversedge’s forces would finally establish defensive positions near the south
shore of Leland Lagoon, having suffered around 200 casualties during the engagement. The following
morning, the withdrawal to Enogai began at last, covered by a strong air strike against Bairoko.
Exhausted and depleted, Liversedge’s forces would then be ordered to sit tight and hold
their positions at Enogai, Triri and Rice Anchorage. At the same time, Sasaki would keep
the 2nd Battalion, 45th Regiment at Bairoko for the duration of the fighting on New Georgia, as
Bairoko was an important storage area with tons of supplies that had been brought in by sea trucks.
In the meantime, after the Battle of Kolombangara, Admiral Samejima had formed the Night Battle Unit
under Admiral Nishimura, in an effort to smash American interference with the transports.
With Rear-Admiral Ijuin Matsuji now commanding the Reinforcement Unit, the Japanese were about
to carry out a supply run on July 17 when a strong American air strike fell upon Buin , successfully
sinking the destroyer Hatsuyuki and inflicting heavy damage on Ijuin’s transports.
On the night of July 19, Nishimura would try once again to bring supplies and reinforcements to New
Georgia, but the Japanese would be intercepted while en route , this time by six TBFs that
managed to sink the destroyer Yugure and that heavily damaged the cruisers Kumano and Chokai.
More strikes were then launched against the Japanese convoy, further sinking the destroyer
Kiyonami and damaging the other vessels. Although 582 men, 102 tons of ammunition and supplies,
and 60 drums of fuel were successfully delivered, the cost had been high for the Japanese, so the
Night Battle Unit plan would soon be abandoned. On July 22, another reinforcement convoy , this
time to Bougainville and under Rear-Admiral Osugi Morikazu, would be intercepted by a huge strike
force . As a result, the seaplane tender Nisshin would be repeatedly hit by American bombs and
torpedoes and would sink some fourteen minutes after the start of the attack. Of the 1263 on
board at the time , only 178 were rescued by the escorting destroyers, their efforts
severely hampered by renewed air attacks. Despite this considerable loss for the Japanese, General
Imamura continued to commit troops for the defense of the Central Solomons, this time assigning the
elite Yano Battalion to reinforce Vila. Departing Rabaul aboard three destroyers on the night of
July 23, the Japanese convoy would avoid the Slot by using Wilson Strait to make port at Ariel.
At the same time, Admiral Merrill was coming up the Slot with a powerful task group to supply
Liversedge at Enogai. Luckily for the Japanese, Merrill failed to intercept the enemy convoy, thus
allowing the Japanese to unload most of the Yano Battalion before retiring the way they had come.
Next week, we’ll head out to New Guinea and the North Pacific, as General Savige’s forces
resume their offensive against Salamaua and as the Japanese carry out a bold evacuation run towards
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