The Battle of Ratsua occurred during the Second World War and involved Australian and Japanese forces. Part of the wider Bougainville Campaign of the Pacific theatre, the battle took place in the northern sector of Bougainville between June and August 1945. The main forces that took part in the fighting were the Australian 23rd Brigade and the Japanese 87th Naval Garrison Force.
The fighting occurred following a failed landing by Australian forces at Porton Plantation in early June, which was part of an attempt to outflank a series of strong points that the Japanese had built across the base of the Bonis Peninsula. After this, the fighting in the northern sector around Ratsua essentially became a containment action for the Australians as they concentrated their efforts and resources upon driving south towards Buin, which was the main centre of Japanese resistance on the island at the time. As a result, the situation around Ratsua remained largely static until the end of hostilities in mid-August 1945.
Background
Strategic situation
Japanese forces had landed on Bougainville in early 1942, capturing it from the small force of Australians garrisoning the island. They had subsequently developed several airbases on the island, using it to conduct operations in the northern Solomon Islands and to attack the Allied lines of communication between the United States, Australia and the Southwest Pacific Area.[1] These bases also helped protect Rabaul, the major Japanese garrison and naval base in Papua New Guinea, and throughout 1943, Allied planners determined that Bougainville was vital for neutralising the Japanese base around Rabaul.[2] US Marines conducted an amphibious landing at Cape Torokina, on the western coast of the island, north of Empress Augusta Bay, in November 1943. After an initial counter-attack, the US Marines had been replaced by a garrison of US Army troops who began consolidating their position around Torokina, establishing a strong perimeter. In March 1944, the Japanese launched a heavy counter-attack, which was turned back with heavy casualties. After this, the situation on Bougainville became largely static, as the Japanese focused primarily on subsistence, and the US forces chose to adopt a mainly defensive posture focused on maintaining the perimeter around Torokina.[3][4]
In late 1944, the Australian Army had assumed responsibility for Allied operations on Bougainville, replacing US troops who were subsequently redeployed to the Philippines. At the time, the Australians believed that there were only 17,500 Japanese on the island,[5] although in reality it was actually more than 40,000.[6] Against this, the Australians deployed Lieutenant General Stanley Savige's II Corps, consisting of the 3rd Division and the 11th Brigade in November 1944. The troops were Militiamen, part of Australia's reserve military, consisting of volunteers and conscripts. Although their ranks included some Second Australian Imperial Force soldiers and officers who were veterans of earlier campaigns in the Middle East and New Guinea, they were largely inexperienced having served primarily in a garrison role in Australia and New Guinea prior to their commitment to Bougainville.[7] In December, after a period of reconnaissance and information gathering, it was decided that the Australians would pursue an aggressive campaign to clear the Japanese from Bougainville.[8]
The campaign subsequently developed into three separate drives by the Australians, who fanned out from the main Allied base at Torokina: in the north, centre and southern parts of the island. The first actions were fought around the seizure of Pearl Ridge in late December 1944 to secure control of the east–west avenues of approach across the island, and to prevent any possible Japanese counter-attacks against Torokina. This was followed by actions in the north, where it was planned that Japanese forces would be forced into the narrow Bonis Peninsula and contained, while the main drive took place in the south, where the main Japanese forces were concentrated, with an initial drive towards Mosigetta, followed by an advance towards Buin on the coast. The drive south subsequently resulted in several actions around Slater's Knoll and around the Hongorai River.[9]
Preliminary moves
In the northern sector of the island, in February 1945, Major General Kesao Kijima—commander of the Japanese 38th Independent Mixed Brigade—[10] had ordered a withdrawal to Numa Numa, following the fighting around Tsimba Ridge.[Note 1] He subsequently left a force of 1,400 sailors drawn from the 87th Naval Garrison Force and 2,000 civilians to hold the Bonis Peninsula. Of these civilians, about 600 were armed, although only half were trained to undertake a combat role. As their supplies dwindled, in May–June the Japanese sailors—under the command of Captain Eikichi Kato, the senior naval officer in Buka—began to raid the Australian supply lines between Ruri Bay and Ratsua as they attempted to hold a position between Porton Plantation and Tarbut.[12]
Location of the battle in north-west Bougainville.
Meanwhile, Australian troops from the 11th Brigade had continued their advance north from Tsimba Ridge in April–May, clearing up to the Soraken Peninsula,[13] which was captured by the middle of the month by the 26th Infantry Battalion. Throughout May, the 26th had also carried out an amphibious landing on Torokori Island. Meanwhile, throughout the same time the 55th/53rd Infantry Battalion had advanced north-east "through mangrove swamps...and rugged foothills"[14] from the Soraken Plantation towards Pora Pora; this was occupied by early May and from there the Australians ranged north to Ruri Bay, establishing a line across the Bonis Peninsula over a distance of 5.0 miles (8km).[15] By the end of May, the Japanese fell back behind a series of fortified positions along the base of the Bonis Peninsula. The 26th Infantry Battalion subsequently replaced the 55th/53rd, but the Australian advance came to a halt.[16][17]
In an effort to break this resistance and allow the northwards advance to continue, the Australians attempted to outflank the Japanese defensive line by launching an amphibious landing at Porton Plantation on 8 June.[Note 2] The plan called for a reinforced company from the 31st/51st Infantry Battalion to land behind the Japanese positions and attack from the west, while the main force consisting of the remainder of the 31st/51st Infantry Battalion and the 26th Infantry Battalion attempted to break through from the south.[18] Due to poor planning, inadequate resources and strong Japanese defence, the landing failed at considerable cost to Australians,[19] and as their efforts turned towards effecting a withdrawal from the beachhead and rescuing the stranded men, the attempt by the main force to break through from Ratsua also failed as tired troops came up against strong Japanese defensive positions.[20]
Battle
Following the failed landing by the Australians at Porton Plantation, the commander of the Australian II Corps, Savige, decided to focus the main effort of the Australian campaign upon driving south towards the Japanese garrison at Buin, where the bulk of the Japanese forces were holding out.[21][Note 3] In order to concentrate enough forces for the next phase of the operation, Savige decided that the 11th Brigade, which had been carrying the advance north, should be relieved so that it could be transferred to the south following a period of rest and reorganisation.[22]
Nevertheless, there was still a need to maintain the pressure upon the Japanese in the north, and so the 23rd Brigade—which had been previously operating in the central sector after being transferred from garrison duty in the Outer Islands—was also given responsibility for the northern sector as well, relieving the 11th Brigade on 20 June. The brigade's commander—Brigadier Arnold Potts—was charged with keeping the Japanese force bottled up on the Bonis Peninsula and to send out patrols towards the Buka Passage.[23] Initially, Potts was only allowed to allocate one of his three battalions—the 27th, under Lieutenant Colonel Alex Pope—for the task, as the other two—Lieutenant Colonel Harry Dunkley's 7th Infantry Battalion and Lieutenant Colonel Lew Loughran's 8th Infantry Battalion—were to remain in the central sector; however, after intelligence reports indicated that the Japanese forces in the northern sector were stronger than the Australians initially thought, he requested permission to transfer the 8th Infantry Battalion, along with a battery of artillery from the 4th Field Regiment that was to be based on the Soraken Peninsula.[23] Due to the requirements of the advance to the south, however, no engineer or armoured support was initially available.[24]
This request was approved, and by 28 June the two battalions and their supporting artillery—approximately 1,600 troops—were assembled, with the 8th on the left, or western side of the peninsula, the 27th on the right, and the artillery based on the Soraken Peninsula.[23] The two battalions sent fighting patrols forward, but because of the dense terrain, the Australian line of communication was quite long and the infantry spread out over a very wide area. With each battalion occupying a 4,000-yard (3,700m) front, which was twice the normal standard, security of their rear areas became difficult as the Japanese took the opportunity to disrupt the Australian logistic efforts, conducting ambushes, cutting communications and planting mines along the tracks.[25] As the ambushes increased and casualties mounted, forward movement came to a halt, and by 21 July, the 27th Infantry Battalion reported having lost 10 men killed and 36 wounded without having gained any ground.[24]
A patrol from the 26th Infantry Battalion receives orders prior to departure
In light of this failure, the Australian brigade commander requested further resources to undertake a full-scale offensive aimed at clearing the Japanese from the peninsula. This request was passed up to corps-level, but it was denied as Savige could not afford to release assets that were being used in the drive south.[24] Under pressure to keep casualties to a minimum following criticism in the Australian media and in Parliament regarding the necessity of the campaign,[22] Potts formulated a plan to withdraw the 27th Infantry Battalion from the right flank around Ruri Bay,[26] and concentrate his forces on the left flank along a 3,000-yard (2,700m) front around the plantation at Buoi, to the north of Ratsua.[24][27] Savige agreed to this on 22 July and the following day the 8th Infantry Battalion launched an attack against a feature known to the Australians as "Como Ridge", which ran roughly northwest to southwest in the centre of the peninsula between Ruri Bay and Buoi Plantation.[28] There it was believed that the Japanese were attempting to set up a forward position. The attack went in after a preliminary attack from the air, with one company attacking with two Matilda tanks from the 2/4th Armoured Regiment in support. Although the airstrike had been largely ineffective and both of the tanks struggled to cross the "swampy ground", the direct fire support provided by the tanks proved decisive and the Australians took the position within 20 minutes, killing 12 Japanese.[24]
On 24 July, the 8th Infantry Battalion launched another attack with two platoons assaulting the Japanese position known as "Base 5". Prior to the assault, over 900 artillery shells and mortar bombs were brought down on the Japanese positions to prepare the position for the attack, but this proved ineffective against well-entrenched positions.[29] The Australians reached their first objective, which was a small ridge in front of the main Japanese position; however, shortly after they began receiving effective fire from concealed positions, which killed two men and wounded another in the forward section, pinning it in place.[29]
Attempts to outflank the bunkers were answered with heavy fire from a Japanese medium machine gun and another man was killed and three more wounded. As the attack began to falter, one of the wounded, 20-year-old PrivateFrank Partridge, who had been injured in the arm and thigh,[30] braved the heavy fire that was being put down towards him and gathered the Bren light machine gun from the gunner who had been killed. After pouring suppressing fire onto the bunker, he discarded the Bren and regathered his rifle, before rushing towards the bunker with a grenade and killing its occupants.[13][29] Partridge's actions reinvigorated the attack and allowed the Australians to temporarily take the second Japanese position. After the wounded were recovered, the Australians withdrew having lost three men killed and five wounded. Against this eight Japanese were confirmed to have been killed.[31] For his actions during the attack on 24 July, Partridge was awarded the Victoria Cross, the British Commonwealth's highest military decoration. He was the last Australian to be awarded the medal during the Second World War, and was also the youngest.[13][32]
Elsewhere, the Australians continued to mount patrols and ambushes. On 29 July, a platoon from the Papuan Infantry Battalion (PIB) clashed with a similar sized force of Japanese around the junction of the Ratsua Road–Umum Track. Two days later, after the PIB had assumed a flank security role on the eastern side of the peninsula, another patrol clashed with a party of Japanese who had been attempting to set up an ambush near Ruri Bay. In the ensuing fight, 14 Japanese were killed; a further 20 were killed in a firefight around the same area on 7 August.[33] Meanwhile, on 2 August, a patrol from the 27th Infantry Battalion was sent out along the Ruri Bay Road in company with two tanks that were to act as their direct fire support. The Japanese were still active in the area, and had mined the road with a 500lb (230kg) bomb that they had rigged to be detonated remotely. The Australian patrol accidentally triggered the device and the resulting explosion killed three men in one of the tanks and wounded eight infantrymen following behind.[24] On 5 August, the Australians reoccupied the position at Base 5 after encountering only slight resistance and subsequently named it "Part Ridge". After exploiting the position, it was discovered that the Japanese had built between 43 and 60 bunkers in the area. The majority of these had been destroyed by artillery, though, and after the area had been thoroughly searched for Japanese stragglers, the Australian patrol was withdrawn from the ridge.[34][35]
Aftermath
Masatane Kanda (left seated) surrenders Japanese forces on Bougainville to Allied commanders on 8 September 1945
The fighting around Base 5 was the final action of the fighting in the northern sector of the island, which essentially ended in stalemate. The Australians, under pressure to limit casualties to their largely inexperienced troops, had pursued a cautious campaign and had been slow to regain the initiative in the area following the defeat at Porton Plantation. In contrast, the Japanese commander—Kato—had been skillful and aggressive.[35] On 11 August, in anticipation of the capitulation of Japan following the dropping of two atomic bombs on Japanese cities, the order to cease offensive combat operations on Bougainville was passed to all Australian units by their commanders.[34]
Three days later, on 15 August, the Japanese Emperor Hirohitopublicly announced Japan's unconditional surrender,[36] effectively bringing about an end to the war. On 18 August, in the southern sector of the island the Japanese commander, General Masatane Kanda, dispatched an envoy across the flood swollen Mivo River to begin negotiations with the Australians for the surrender of the over 23,000 Japanese soldiers left on the island, bringing about an end to the campaign.[13] Throughout the course of the fighting on Bougainville from November 1944 to August 1945, 526 Australians were killed, while a further 1,572 were wounded. Approximately 8,500 Japanese were killed in action and a further 9,800 died from disease during this same period.[34]
Notes
Footnotes
↑ The Japanese name for this feature was "Sun Highland".[11]
Brigadier Arnold William Potts, was an Australian grazier and army officer who served in the First World War and led the 21st Brigade of the Second Australian Imperial Force during its defence of the Kokoda Trail during the Second World War. He had a distinguished career, however, his place in history has largely been unacknowledged due to his dismissal by General Sir Thomas Blamey, at the very point when Potts had fought the Japanese to exhaustion. His fighting withdrawal over the Kokoda Trail has been called "one of the most critical triumphs in Australian military history and one that an apathetic nation has still to honour". Many contemporaries as well as Potts' official biographer regard this sacking as one of the most disgraceful actions of Blamey's military career. Following his dismissal, Potts went on to command the 23rd Brigade during the Bougainville campaign where he earned a reputation for setting high standards. He retired from the military following the end of the war and unsuccessfully pursued a career in politics. He died in 1968, aged 71.
The Bougainville campaign was a series of land and naval battles of the Pacific campaign of World War II between Allied forces and the Empire of Japan, named after the island of Bougainville. It was part of Operation Cartwheel, the Allied grand strategy in the South Pacific. The campaign took place in the Northern Solomons in two phases. The first phase, in which American troops landed and held the perimeter around the beachhead at Torokina, lasted from November 1943 through November 1944.
The New Britain campaign was a World War II campaign fought between Allied and Imperial Japanese forces. The campaign was initiated by the Allies in late 1943 as part of a major offensive which aimed to neutralise the important Japanese base at Rabaul, the capital of New Britain, and was conducted in two phases between December 1943 and the end of the war in August 1945.
II Corps was an Australian Army corps, one of three that were raised by the Army during the Second World War. Formed in mid-1942 as part of defensive measures to protect the eastern coast of Australia from invasion, the corps was initially composed mainly of home defence troops drawn from the Militia. For a brief period in 1942, a US infantry division was also assigned to the corps prior to its dispatch to fight the Japanese in New Guinea.
Lieutenant General Sir Stanley George Savige, was an Australian Army soldier and officer who served in the First World War and Second World War.
The Landings at Cape Torokina, also known as Operation Cherryblossom, took place at the beginning of the Bougainville campaign in World War II. The amphibious landings were carried out by elements of the United States Marine Corps in November 1943 on Bougainville Island in the South Pacific, as part of Allied efforts to advance towards the main Japanese base around Rabaul under Operation Cartwheel. Coming in the wake of Allied successes at Guadalcanal and in the central Solomons, the landings were intended to secure a beachhead with the purpose of establishing several bases from which to project air and naval power closer towards Rabaul, in an effort to neutralize the large Japanese force that had been established there.
The Battle of Slater's Knoll was a battle fought between Australian and Japanese forces on Bougainville Island during the Second World War. Part of the Bougainville campaign, the battle occurred as a force of about 3,300 Japanese from the Japanese 6th Division, including artillery and other supporting elements, launched a counterattack against the main Australian offensive which had been pushing south towards Buin, concentrating their attacks on Slater's Knoll near the Puriata River. The Australian troops belonged to the 7th Brigade, with the 25th Infantry Battalion being the most heavily engaged, although the 9th Infantry Battalion and the 61st Infantry Battalion also took part in the fighting.
The Battle of the Koromokina Lagoon was fought between the United States Marine Corps and Imperial Japanese Army forces on Bougainville Island. It took place on 7–8 November 1943 during the Bougainville campaign.
The 26th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally raised in April 1915 for service in World War I as part of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), it was assigned to the 7th Brigade and consisted of personnel recruited from the states of Queensland and Tasmania. The battalion fought at Gallipoli in the latter stages of that campaign before being withdrawn to Egypt in late 1915. In mid-1916, it was sent to Europe where it served in the trenches of the Western Front in France and Belgium for the rest of the war, fighting in most of the battles that the Australians took part in between 1916 and 1918. At the end of the war, it was disbanded in May 1919 as part of the demobilisation of the AIF.
The 1st New Guinea Infantry Battalion was a battalion of the Australian Army during World War II. One of four infantry battalions raised in New Guinea, 1 NGIB was formed in March 1944. In late 1944, the battalion began deploying company-sized elements in support of combat operations on Bougainville, New Britain and on mainland New Guinea. It later became part of the Pacific Islands Regiment before being disbanded in June 1946.
The 31st Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment was a Reserve infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Although it was officially formed as 31 RQR in 1965 the battalion can trace its lineage back to units formed in 1881 as part of the colonial defence forces of the state of Queensland.
The 31st/51st Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army, which served during World War II. Raised for service as part of the Militia in 1943 through the amalgamation of two previously existing battalions, the 31st/51st Battalion undertook garrison duties in Dutch New Guinea in 1943–44 before taking part in the Bougainville Campaign in 1944–45. Following the end of the war, the battalion served in the Pacific overseeing the transfer of Japanese prisoners of war and re-establishing law and order until mid-1946 when it returned to Australia and was disbanded.
The Battle of Porton Plantation took place near the village of Soraken on Bougainville Island, in the Solomon Islands archipelago during World War II. Involving forces from Australia, New Zealand and Japan, the battle was part of the wider Bougainville campaign, which had begun in late 1943 and lasted until the end of the war in August 1945. The battle formed part of Australian efforts to liberate the northern part of Bougainville.
The Battle of Pearl Ridge was an engagement of the Second World War fought between Australian and Japanese forces on Bougainville Island. Part of the wider Bougainville Campaign, the battle took place in the central sector of the island, shortly after the Australians had taken over responsibility from the Americans. Believing that the ridge was held by less than a company of Japanese, on 30 December the Australian 25th Infantry Battalion launched a four-pronged attacked the ridge. The defending force, however, had been greatly reinforced by elements of the 38th Independent Mixed Brigade and was closer to a battalion in strength. After being held up on the right of their advance, the Australians dug in overnight and repulsed a strong Japanese counterattack before resuming the attack on 31 December. By late in the afternoon, the Japanese had been swept off the ridge. The Australians later established an observation post on the ridge, which had commanding views of the whole island, and throughout the remainder of the campaign used it to control artillery fire as they advanced towards Japanese enclaves in the north and south of the island.
The Battle of Tsimba Ridge was an engagement of the Second World War involving Australian and Japanese forces. Part of the wider Bougainville Campaign of the Pacific theatre, the battle occurred in the northern sector of Bougainville Island between 17 January and 9 February 1945, when the lead battalion of the Australian 11th Brigade—the 31st/51st Infantry Battalion—advanced towards the Genga River as part of a drive north to the Bonis Peninsula.
The Battle of the Hongorai River took place during the Second World War and involved Australian, New Zealand and Japanese forces. Part of the wider Bougainville Campaign of the Pacific theatre, the battle was fought in the southern sector of Bougainville Island. Coming after the Battle of Slater's Knoll in which a strong Japanese counterattack was defeated, the battle occurred in two distinct periods between 17 April and 22 May 1945, as elements of the Australian 15th Brigade advanced south along the Buin Road.
The Battle of Wide Bay–Open Bay was a battle during the New Britain campaign of the Second World War. Following the arrival of the Australians on New Britain in late 1944, replacing the US garrison on the island, they began a limited offensive against the Japanese forces on the island. Pushing east from the positions previously captured by the US troops earlier in the year, after landing at Jacquinot Bay on the southern coast in November, the Australians began advancing across the island towards the Gazelle Peninsula, where they sought to isolate the numerically superior Japanese garrison. This advance was effected along two axes: Cape Hoskins to Open Bay on the northern coast, and Jacquinot Bay to Wide Bay on the southern. Once the Australians had secured a line across the island between Wide Bay and Open Bay in March and April 1945, the fighting on New Britain died down as the Australians sought to contain the larger Japanese garrison while limiting their own casualties. This situation lasted until the end of the war in August 1945.
The 23rd Brigade was a brigade of the Australian Army. It was briefly raised in 1912 as a Militia formation providing training as part of the compulsory training scheme. Later, it was re-formed in July 1940 for service during the Second World War, the brigade was initially a formation of the Second Australian Imperial Force assigned to the 8th Division; however, after its sub units were captured by the Japanese in 1942 it was reformed with Militia battalions and was mainly used in a garrison role around Darwin, in the Northern Territory, until late in the war when it was committed to the fighting against the Japanese on Bougainville. It was disbanded in 1946.
The 15th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Formed in 1914 as part of the all-volunteer Australian Imperial Force from Queensland and Tasmanian recruits, the battalion fought during the Gallipoli Campaign and on the Western Front during the First World War. It was disbanded after the war in 1919, but later re-raised as a part-time Citizens Forces unit based in Queensland in 1921, consisting of a mixture of volunteers and conscripts. Economic pressures and limited manpower resulted in the battalion being amalgamated with other battalions a couple of times during the inter-war years. In mid-1939, as rising tensions in Europe led to an expansion of the Australian military, the battalion was re-formed in its own right. During the Second World War the 15th Battalion was mobilised for wartime service and initially undertook defensive duties in Australia before taking part in the fighting against the Japanese in New Guinea and Bougainville in 1943–1945. The battalion was disbanded in 1946 and never re-raised.
The Bougainville counterattack was an unsuccessful Japanese offensive against the Allied base at Cape Torokina, on Bougainville Island, during the Pacific War of World War II. The Japanese attack began on 8 March 1944 after months of preparation, and was repulsed by United States Army forces in fighting which lasted until 25 March. The attack was hampered by inaccurate intelligence and poor planning and was defeated by the well-prepared Allied defenders, who greatly outnumbered the Japanese force. The Japanese suffered severe casualties, while Allied losses were light.
Edgar, Bill (1999). Warrior of Kokoda: A Biography of Brigadier Arnold Potts. St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN1-86448-908-1.
Grey, Jeffrey (2008). A Military History of Australia (3rded.). Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-0-521-69791-0.
Harries, Meirion; Harries, Susie (1991). Soldiers of the Sun: The Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army. New York: Random House. ISBN0-679-75303-6.
James, Karl (2016). "More Than Mopping Up: Bougainville". In Dean, Peter J. (ed.). Australia 1944–45: Victory in the Pacific. Port Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. pp.232–251. ISBN978-1-107-08346-2.
James, Karl (2012). The Hard Slog: Australians in the Bougainville Campaign, 1944–45. Port Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-1-107-01732-0.
Jones, Barry (2000). "Partridge, Frank John (1924–1964)". In Ritchie, John; Langmore, Dianne (eds.). Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol.15. Carlton, Victoria: Melbourne University Press. pp.572–573. ISBN978-0-522-84236-4.
Keogh, Eustace (1965). The South West Pacific 1941–45. Melbourne, Victoria: Grayflower Productions. OCLC7185705.
Long, Gavin (1963). The Final Campaigns. Australia in the War of 1939–1945, Series 1—Army. Volume VII (1sted.). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian War Memorial. OCLC1297619.
Maitland, Gordon (1999). The Second World War and its Australian Army Battle Honours. East Roseville, New South Wales: Kangaroo Press. ISBN0-86417-975-8.
Odgers, George (1988). Army Australia: An Illustrated History. Frenchs Forest, New South Wales: Child & Associates. ISBN0-86777-061-9.
Shindo, Hiroyuki (2016). "Holding on to the Finish: The Japanese Army in the South and Southwest Pacific, 1944–45". In Dean, Peter J. (ed.). Australia 1944–45: Victory in the Pacific. Port Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. pp.51–76. ISBN978-1-107-08346-2.
Tanaka, Kengoro (1980). Operations of the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces in the Papua New Guinea Theater During World War II. Tokyo: Japan Papua New Guinea Goodwill Society. OCLC9206229.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Australia 
Japan 
Masatane Kanda 
Eikichi Kato 
