Key WW2 Pacific Battles - Sacrifice and Commemoration

WW2 Pacific battles are some of the most iconic and hard-fought of the Second World War. We take a look at some of the most significant Far East battles here.

War in the Pacific in WW2

Image: Australian soldiers on patrol in New Guinea during the Pacific War (AWM 027081)

The Pacific was a deadly place to be in World War Two.

The war in the Far East saw naval, aerial, and land battles erupt across the tiny atolls, heavily defended fortress islands, and the wide, shimmering oceans and seas throughout the region.

Beginning with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1941 and ending with the atomic obliteration of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, the war in the Pacific was long and costly.

The battles fought by Allied forces in the Pacific have become iconic. From Iwo Jima to Guadalcanal, the Kokoda Trail, and the New Guinea Campaign, the battle honours of the Pacific War are worn proudly by military units to this day.

Pacific War battles such as the fall of Singapore and Hong Kong and the invasion of the Dutch East Indies saw Imperial Japan carve out an empire stretching from Korea to the Solomon Islands.

The Imperial Japanese also claimed Burma (present-day Myanmar), resulting in millions of British, Indian, and West and East African personnel clashing with Japanese armies in the brutal Burma Campaign, which ran alongside the Pacific War.

Elsewhere, Japan had been fighting a cruel, bloody war in mainland China since 1937.

With Imperial Japan conquering territory in Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand faced the threat of invasion. ANZACs would subsequently fight in campaigns close to home, aiming to protect their homes from Japanese attack.

The war in the Pacific was characterised by clashes on islands great and small, decisive aerial combat, and battles above and below the high seas.

The nature of WW2 Pacific battles meant military planners had to think carefully about the makeup of their forces. This was a very different war compared to the European theatre.

Image: Six aircraft carriers of the British Pacific Fleet lying patiently at anchor (IWM (MH 5309))

With thousands of miles of open ocean to cross, navies and air forces shouldered the burdens of combat and transport. Aircraft carriers, bristling with fighter and bomber planes, were the prime weapons of the Pacific.

Acting as floating aircraft bases, they could support naval fleets, amphibious invasions, and all the major operations required in the Pacific.

Following the intense military losses incurred at the start of the war and suffering from low morale, the Allies in the Pacific regrouped. With the Battle of Midway in June 1942, the tide turned against Imperial Japan in the Pacific.

As tactics changed, the violence seemed to intensify. Japanese forces holding out often fought to the last bullet and man rather than surrender. Rooting them out of their island hideaways and forts was a long, costly business.

With campaigns like New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, US and ANZAC troops began to push the Japanese out of the South Pacific and up the seaboard. Allied forces clashed with fanatical enemy troops in trying conditions. In dense jungle terrain, malaria-ridden swamps, rugged mountain highlands, and baking coral beaches, they fought hard.

As the Allies neared Japan, desperation grew among its defenders. It was around this time that kamikaze pilots began flying suicide missions into enemy naval vessels, shocking even the most battle-hardened Allied servicemen.

Seemingly invincible in early 1942, the Japanese forces had been crushed on air, land, and sea by August 1945.

Numerous factors led to their defeat, including wide-scale military defeats across the Pacific, starving civilians at home, and the devastating atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

By August 1945, Imperial Japan, once ruler of East Asia, had been forced back to Okinawa, close to the home islands. In Burma, the British and Indian Armies inflicted crushing defeats on the Japanese forces there, helping bring the war in the Far East to a close.

The war was over by 15 August 1945 with the surrender of Imperial Japan. This is the day when VJ Day, aka Victory over Japan Day, is celebrated in the UK and New Zealand.

Victory in the Pacific Day, as it is known in Australia, is celebrated on 14 August, as this is the day when, in 1945, the Japanese surrender was first announced in the Canberra Times.

It’s estimated that over four million Allied and Chinese military personnel perished in the Pacific War alongside more than 2.5 million Japanese servicemen. Civilian deaths are several times higher, with China estimated to have lost 15 million at the low end alone.

What army units fought in the Pacific in WWII?

The key Allied power in the WW2 battles of the Pacific was the United States. It supplied by far the largest number of troops, ships, aircraft, and materiel to the Allied Pacific war effort.

By contrast, the forces of the British Empire, including the Indian Army, predominantly fought in Burma in the Far East, although the British presence in the Pacific ramped up once the war against Nazi Germany was won in May 1945.

As such, the Commonwealth nation with the largest presence in Pacific WW2 battles and campaigns is Australia.

Who won the Pacific War?

The Pacific War was won by the Allies.

The armed forces of Imperial Japan were soundly defeated in the Pacific War. However, unlike in Europe, the issue of liberation in the Far East is tricky.

For the local populations, many of whom saw their nations under foreign rule at the time of the Second World War, this was a clash of conquerors and occupiers.

While the war in Europe against the Nazis was clearly about wresting control of the continent back towards self-determination and crushing fascism, war aims in the Pacific were different.

That said, for Australian and New Zealand troops, the fight was more personal. The threat of invasion was very real for the ANZACs, with the war right on their doorstep. Fortunately, no Japanese invasion of either Australia or New Zealand occurred in the Second World War. 

Why was the Pacific War so brutal?

The war against Japan was a brutal, bitterly-contested affair, even compared with the fighting to crush the Nazis and Fascist Italians in Europe.

There are several reasons why the Pacific War was brutal:

• Contemporary Japanese culture – Up to the early part of the 20th century, Japanese culture was dominated by the military and its “bushido” warrior code. Honour and duty were emphasised above all else. Surrender was considered shameful. Servicemen were expected to fight to the death. As such, Japanese forces would rather die to the last man than give an inch. Allied forces were often left with no recourse but to utterly destroy their opponents in the field.
• Geography – The geography and conditions of the Pacific theatre were harsh, characterised by tropical climates, high humidity, and soaring temperatures. Diseases like malaria and dysentery were rife. Fighting in such conditions took a huge psychological and physical toll on the combatants.
• Treatment of Prisoners of War – Japanese treatment of captured prisoners of war was notoriously unforgiving. Staved, beaten, and worked to death, prisoners of the Japanese suffered greatly at the hands of their captors. Once word of prisoners’ treatment escaped, Allied soldiers were determined to mete out revenge where possible and refused to be taken alive themselves, resulting in more brutal fighting.
• Racial prejudice – On both sides, propaganda and the overall experience of war led to racial prejudice and dehumanisation of the enemy, enhancing the violence.

Which battle was the turning point in the Pacific in WW2?

Image: Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Hiryū billows smoke as she sinks at the Battle of Midway ( US Navy Archive (NH 73065)

For many, the turning point of the War in the Pacific was the Battle of Midway.

Midway was fought between the US and Imperial Japanese Navies in June 1942. Despite being a naval battle, it was Midway was mostly contested by aircraft launched from the two adversaries’ aircraft carriers.

American aircraft spotted and engaged the Japanese carrier fleet. Attacking from the skies, the American pilots wreaked havoc on the Japanese ships, aircraft carriers, and fighter planes. They destroyed Japan’s first-line carrier strength and hundreds of its top near-irreplaceable naval pilots. 

The Battle of Guadalcanal is also considered one of the key land battles of the Pacific. Australian, Tongan, and New Zealand forces assisted in the latter stages of the campaign, which essentially halted Japanese expansion in Asia.

Which event marked the end of WWII in the Pacific?

At its most basic, the event that marked the end of WWII in the Pacific was the surrender of Japan on 15 August 1945, i.e., VJ Day.

It could be argued that the defining event of the end of the Pacific War was the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The world-changing, destructive power of atomic weaponry ushered in a new age when first used in August 1945. Certainly, their use accelerated the end of the Second World War.

However, the last battle in the Pacific in WW2 was the Battle of Okinawa.

Located between Taiwan and the Japanese home islands, Okinawa was the last major location targeted by US land forces in the Pacific in the Second World War.

Predominantly led by the Americans, supported by the British Pacific Fleet, Okinawa was a titanic clash. Both sides suffered huge losses, with some 180,000–200,000 casualties taken. On the Japanese side, the majority fought to the death, rather than surrender.

At Okinawa, the Commonwealth presence was restricted to the British Pacific Fleet. British in name, it actually included vessels from the Royal Australian, Royal Canadian, and Royal New Zealand Navies. Additionally, pilots from across the British Empire flew with the Royal Navy Air Service during the battle.

The breath-taking violence of Okinawa presaged the brutality of an invasion of mainland Japan. Thankfully, no invasion took place.

What were the major battles in the Pacific during WWII?

WW2 Battles in the Pacific were among the toughest of the entire Second World War. Let’s look at some of the most significant.

The Battle of Singapore WW2

Image: British troops on their way to surrender at Singapore in early 1942 (IWM (HU 2781))

The Fall of Singapore was one of the earliest and most embarrassing episodes for the British Empire in the Second World War in the Pacific.

On 8 December 1941, Japanese forces invaded Malaya (present-day Malaysia) and southern Thailand, intending to capture the British-held port city of Singapore.

Commonwealth forces, including British, Indian, and Australian servicemen, were ill-equipped to deal with the Japanese onslaught. In roughly a week, the city had capitulated, giving Japan a staging point for further conquests.

As many as 80,000 Commonwealth servicemen were taken as prisoners of war following the Fall of Singapore and subjected to awful treatment for the duration of their captivity.

Losing Singapore was a major blow to the British Empire’s prestige and had long-reaching effects towards the end of British colonial rule in Asia.

The Battle of Hong Kong WW2

Shortly after Singapore, the Japanese put another major British colonial possession in their sights: Hong Kong.

Even after the defenders were reinforced by units from Canada and India, little could be done to stem the tide. As at Singapore, Hong Kong’s defenders were underequipped and unprepared to deal with the Japanese invasion force.

On Christmas Day 1945, Governor Young and Major-General Maltby surrendered Hong Kong to the Imperial Japanese. Another key British Asian possession had been lost.

The Battle of Slim River

Image: Although some Japanese tanks were destroyed, Slim River was a defeat for the British Army (IWM MH 31389))

Another key battle in the disastrous early phases of the Commonwealth’s war in the Far East was the Battle of Slim River.

Slim River was a tactically important waterway stretching along the western Malayan coast. Here, British and Indian troops under Acting Major-General Archibald Paris guarded important rail and road crossings en route to Trolak to try and slow the Japanese advance.

Deploying tanks, the Japanese swept through roadblocks set up by the defending Commonwealth troops. The Indian and Gurkha regiments manning the defences fought valiantly, but a lack of communication with artillery support and no anti-tank weapons forced their retreat.

Forced off both bridges by the Japanese armour, the British and Indian troops fell back. The Japanese attack stopped after three tanks advancing over the road bridge were hit by British artillery.

Still, the defeat at Slim River opened the way to Kuala Lumpur, leaving the great Malaysian city to be captured almost without a fight. Over 3,200 Commonwealth troops and their valuable equipment were lost too.

Battles in Japan WW2

The Japanese home islands weren’t invaded during the Second World War. Instead, they were subject to lengthy, devastating aerial bombing campaigns, conducted predominantly by the US Army Air Force.

Declaring war on Japan on 8 December 1941, the day after the infamous Pearl Harbor attacks, the United States began its offensive Second World War Pacific campaigns in August 1942 with the attack on Guadalcanal.

What followed was a lengthy, brutal campaign which destroyed or reduced Imperial Japan’s presence in the Pacific. Simultaneously, British and Indian armies clashed with Japan in Burma (present-day Myanmar), while a titanic struggle played out in mainland China.

Let’s look at some more significant battles of the war against Japan.

Battle of Midway WW2

Image: US Navy aircraft dominate the skies over the Battle of Midway (US National Archives)

As touched on above, the Battle of Midway is probably the decisive battle of the entire Pacific War.

Midway essentially shifted the balance of power and momentum in favour of the United States and its allies.

Japan was forced into a defensive posture after Midway. This allowed the US to go on the offensive, effectively picking when and where to fight.

In time, the US and allies from Australia, New Zealand, and Britain, to name some, would engage, destroy, and push back Japanese forces across the Pacific.

Battle of New Guinea WW2

Image: Aussies on patrol in northern New Guinea (IWM (AUS 1614))

Australia played a leading role in the New Guinea Campaign.

The invasion of New Guinea (modern-day Papua New Guinea) brought the Pacific War almost all the way to Australia’s doorstep. 

In early 1942, Japanese forces captured the city of Rabaul on New Guinea’s northern coast. If they were able to conquer New Guinea entirely, then Australia risked isolation and potential invasion.
 
Over the next year, Rabaul was transformed into an important naval port and airfield by the Japanese.

The next Japanese target was the colonial capital Port Moresby. To attack Port Moresby, an amphibious task force was launched by the Imperial Japanese.

In the Battle of the Coral Sea in early May 1942, Allied navies secured a crucial victory in cutting off Japanese invasion forces from reaching Port Moresby by sea, despite losing more ships.

At this time, a terrific air war erupted over Port Moresby. Pilots of the Royal Australian Air Force, alongside anti-air gunners on the ground, did their best to defend the strategically vital port.

With the failure of the naval invasion of Port Moresby, the Japanese instead switched to a ground-based assault, focusing on high ground around the port.

In July 1942, the Japanese captured the village of Buna, connected to the Kokoda Track. This track through dense hilly jungle was one of the main routes an infantry force could use to hit Port Moresby.

From July to September 1942, lightly equipped Australian militia and army units, aided by local Papuans, fought a series of defensive actions along the mountain pass, holding the Japanese up at key intervals.

Battling both the Japanese and the terrain, the Aussies and their local allies suffered severe physical and psychological hardship: they faced rough, mountain terrain, thick jungle, lack of supplies, and sickness.

Image: Native Papuans carry a wounded Australian soldier through the dense New Guinean jungle (AWM 013641)

Despite this, the Australians on the Kokoda Trail mounted a fighting retreat until regular units of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) relieved them. Starting in September, the Aussies mounted a major counteroffensive, resulting in the recapture of Kokoda village in November 1942.

Kokoda has entered Australian folklore in the same way as the Great War battles at Gallipoli. It showed the resilience of the Australian soldier, as well as the Aussies’ ability to operate independently, furthering their independence from Great Britain.

Between 1943 and 1944, the Allies went on the offensive in New Guinea. As with most of the New Guinea fighting, combat once more boiled down to offensives in difficult terrain, featuring amphibious landings, jungle warfare, and close-quarters combat.

The major Australian-led offensives of this phase of the New Guinea campaign include the Huon Peninsula Campaign. Fought between 22 September 1943 – 1 March 1944, the Huon Campaign saw Aussies fighting at Lae, Finschhafen, Sattelberg, and Shaggy Ridge.

By March, the Australians had cleared the Huon Peninsula for 1,400 killed, missing or wounded. Their Japanese adversaries lost more than 5,500 men.

Australian forces took over much of the campaign’s final phase after the US’s focus shifted northward.

They were instrumental in clearing remaining Japanese strongholds in places like the Finisterre Ranges, and Aitape–Wewak.

Australia’s role in the New Guinea Campaign was vital to the Allied war effort in the Pacific. Australian troops were among the first to resist and later to defeat Japanese ground forces in jungle warfare. Their efforts helped safeguard Australia and contributed significantly to the Allied victory over Japan.

The Battle of Iwo Jima WW2

Image: "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima" by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal (Wikimedia Commons)

The Battle of Iwo Jima is possibly the most famous Japanese WW2 Pacific battle.

It gave us one of the most iconic images of the war: American service lifting the Stars and Stripes triumphantly atop one of Iwo Jima’s ashen volcanic hills, symbolising American might and valour.

Iwo Jima was a deadly, trying, and devastating island campaign. Imperial Japanese forces tucked themselves away into a warren of hardpoints, bunkers, and tunnels with carefully prepared kill zones and firing lines.

American infantry had to contend with a concealed, motivated enemy fighting in inhospitable terrain. A volcanic island, Iwo Jima is black, dusty, and lacks nearly any vegetation or fresh water. Once combat began, with bombs blasting, bodies scattering the black sands, and blood seeping into the ground, it must have resembled something close to hell.

Iwo Jima was controversial. It had cost the lives of over 6,000 US servicemen. According to US Chief of Naval Operations William V. Pratt, the island was useless as a staging area or a navy base. Was the cost of the battle worth it? The debate continues to this day.

Out of the Japanese garrison of 20,000 men, only around 216 were taken prisoner following Iwo Jima.

The Battle of Tarawa WW2

The Battle of Tarawa, fought between 20-23 November 1943 on the island of Betio in the Central Pacific, is a significant World War Two battle against Japan.

Fought over 76-hours, US forces sought to dislodge Japanese forces at Tarawa as part of its island-hopping campaign strategy. Capturing this location would secure airfields in the Gilbert Islands.

The Americans expected an easy victory. Instead, it was another tough slog. Strong resistance took a toll on the invaders, resulting in over 3,300 US dead, wounded or missing. For their part, the dogged Japanese defenders were effectively wiped out.

Tarawa heightened the need for tighter logistics and better planning in amphibious tactics and landings. The US would heed the lessons of Tarawa well in its Pacific Campaign. 

The Battle of Saipan WW2

On July 9, 1944, the American flag was raised in triumph over another conquered Pacific island. Saipan in the Mariana Islands was in US hands, but victory had come at a high price. Of the over 71,000 troops that went ashore, more than 3,000 were dead, and a further 10,000 were wounded.

Once again, the Japanese had endured a crushing defeat. The initial garrison on Saipan held 30,000 soldiers. Only 921 were taken prisoner.

The victory at Saipan gave the US one of its most crucial Pacific airbases to date. From Saipan, long-range bombers were within range of Tokyo. Soon, US warplanes would be wreaking havoc over Japan’s home islands.

Saipan also triggered a highly consequential naval engagement: the Battle of the Philippine Sea.

Image: Imperial Japanese Navy vessels under attack in the Battle of the Philippine Sea (US Navy Archive)

Warships and carrier-born planes of the US Fifth Carrier fleet engaged the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Mobile Fleet.

Japanese commanders hoped for a decisive victory; they got one, but not in their favour.

The two fleets clashed off the western coast of the Mariana Islands in what is considered the last carrier-vs-carrier engagement of the Pacific War.

The Philippine Sea was a crushing victory for the US. Its ships and carrier-born aircraft smashed their opponents. US Navy pilots later called the battle “The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot” as the aerial battle was so one-sided.

Japanese losses were huge, including 3 aircraft carriers, 13 submarines, 5 destroyers and nearly 600 aircraft.

The Battle OF Okinawa WW2

Image: Marines at Okinawa caught up in the "Typhoon of Steel" (US National Archive)

The Battle of Okinawa is the last major battle of the Pacific War. It was fought by the United States and the Imperial Japanese with naval and air support from the British Empire.

Okinawa lies around 350 miles south of Japan. Its capture was necessary for building a staging point for the invasion of Japan proper.

Starting with a massive amphibious invasion on April 1, over 600,000 Allied soldiers clashed with determined, near-fanatical Japanese opposition in a tough, bloody slogging match to capture the island.

Over 12,000 Americans and 100,000 Japanese soldiers died in the fighting dubbed the “Typhoon of Steel” for its costliness and brutality. What’s more, over 100,000 civilians were killed in the Battle of Okinawa; either caught up in combat or forced to commit suicide by Japanese military leaders, a prelude to the potential invasion of Japan.

The legacy of Pacific Battles in WWII

World War Two Pacific battles have left a lasting legacy in terms of ending the Second World War in Asia.

Coupled with British-Indian exploits in Burma, the Allied effort in the Pacific crushed the Imperial Japanese on air, land, and sea. Japan was soundly defeated in China too.

The Pacific War saw a shift in the region’s balance of power. British and colonial influence waned in favour of American dominance. For Australia, the Pacific War also saw the nation move away from the UK, furthering it along the road to independence.

After the Second World War, colonial power was reduced in Asia, decade by decade, with nations gaining independence and self-determination.

Pacific War casualties by country

Japan suffered the highest number of casualties in the Pacific War, with total and civilian deaths estimated as high as 3.1 million.

Of the Allies, the United States took the highest number of combat-related deaths in the WW2 Pacific Campaign, with over 111,000 killed. More than 250,000 were wounded.

The Commonwealth force that suffered the highest number of war dead in the Pacific was Australia. Involved in some of the fiercest fighting of the Pacific Theatre, Australia lost over 9,470 men in action. A further 21,000 were taken as prisoners of war, of whom approximately 14,000 survived.

How many British soldiers died in the Pacific during WW2?

Including the early battles in Japan’s conquest of the Pacific, Britain lost approximately 5,600 war dead in the Pacific during ground operations. More than 1,100 were killed in air and naval engagements.

Indian Army Pacific combat dead is forecast at over 6,800 killed.

Together, the British and Indian Army’s focus in the Far East jointly fell on Burma (present-day Myanmar), hence why comparatively few soldiers from these forces died in the Pacific.

Remembering the fallen on VJ Day

Victory in Japan Day commemorates the day Imperial Japan surrendered, effectively marking the end of the fighting of the Second World War.

Today, Commonwealth War Graves commemorates the Commonwealth’s fallen of the Pacific Theatre at cemeteries and memorials across Asia.

These VJ Day memorial sites act as permanent points of commemoration for those who fought and fell in the Pacific. 

About the author

Alec Malloy is a CWGC Digital Content Executive. Alec has worked at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission for over three years, where he has written extensively about the World Wars, including major battles, casualty stories, and the Commission's work commemorating 1.7 million war dead worldwide.