Shortland Islands

Last updated
Map Showing the Shortland Archipelago; the southern end of Bougainville Island can be seen at the top Balalae loc.jpg
Map Showing the Shortland Archipelago; the southern end of Bougainville Island can be seen at the top

The Shortland Islands is an archipelago of Western Province, Solomon Islands, at 6°55′S155°53′E / 6.92°S 155.88°E / -6.92; 155.88 . The island group lies in the extreme north-west of the country's territory, close to the south-east edge of Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea. [1]

Contents

The largest island in the archipelago is Shortland Island (originally called Alu). [2] With smaller offshore islands such as Gharomai (to the southwest), Balalae (to the northeast) and Magusaiai, Faisi, Pirumeri and Poporang (all to the southeast), it forms the Inner Shortlands Ward of the Western Province. The remaining islands comprise the Outer Shortlands Ward and consist of two groups; the Treasury Islands to the southwest of Shortland Island consists mainly of Mono Island and the smaller Stirling Island; the other group, which lies to the northeast of Shortland Island, consists of Fauro Island and smaller islands grouped around it - including Masamasa and Piru Islands to the east, Rohae Island to the south, Mania Island to the southwest, Asie Island to the west, Ovau Island to the northwest and Oema Island to the north.

Early European involvement

The island group, and the largest island, were named by Royal Navy officer John Shortland in 1788. Shortland was the naval commander of a 1777–79 voyage by the First Fleet to establish a penal colony at Botany Bay, Australia. [3]

Germany later claimed the islands and owned them as part of the North Solomon Islands Protectorate until 1900.

World War II

On March 30, 1942, Japanese war ships entered Shortland Harbor and landed two special naval landing force platoons and met no resistance. One platoon remained in the area to begin establishing Shortland Harbor Seaplane Base. They established the base, seaplane moorings and fortifications in Tuha Channel and the adjoining land on the southeastern portion of Shortland Island, on Faisi and on the northern portion of Poporang. [4]

On the night of 29–30 June 1943, USS Montpelier (CL-57) and three other cruisers bombarded Poporang Island in preparation for the invasion of New Georgia. The Allies considered invading the seaplane base in August 1943, but chose instead to bypass the Shortlands for Bougainville and the Treasury Islands, leaving the Shortlands under Japanese control until the war's end. On 1 November 1943, Montpelier shelled the Japanese defenses on Poporang and Balalae.

On 8 January 1944, an Allied force of two light cruisers and five destroyers bombarded the installations on Faisi, Poporang, and Shortland Island. [5] In March 1944, planes from the USAAF's 70th Fighter Squadron used reconnaissance photographs taken by the 17th Reconnaissance Squadron to strike the seaplane base, claiming eight float planes and an IJN destroyer. [6] On 20 May 1944, Montpelier received light damage from return fire when she and two other light cruisers, along with eight destroyers, bombarded shore installations on Shortland, Poporang, and Magusaiai Islands. [5] On 1 October 1944, the US Navy's Special Air Task Force (SATFOR) [7] launched four TDR drones on antiaircraft gun positions on Poporang and Balalae. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Empress Augusta Bay</span> 1943 battle of World War II

The Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, on 1–2 November 1943 – also known as the Battle of Gazelle Bay, Operation Cherry Blossom, and in Japanese sources as the Sea Battle off Bougainville Island (ブーゲンビル島沖海戦) – was a naval battle fought at night in Empress Augusta Bay near Bougainville Island. The naval battle was a result of Allied landings at Cape Torokina with the bay in the first action in the Bougainville campaign of World War II and may also be considered as part of the Solomons and New Guinea campaigns. The battle was significant as part of a broader Allied strategy—known as Operation Cartwheel—aimed at isolating and surrounding the major Japanese base at Rabaul. The intention was to establish a beachhead on Bougainville, within which an airfield would be built.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Kula Gulf</span> Naval battle of the Pacific Theater of World War II

The Battle of Kula Gulf took place in the early hours of 6 July 1943 during World War II. The battle involved United States and Japanese ships off the eastern coast of Kolombangara in the Solomon Islands. It took place during the early stages of the New Georgia campaign when a Japanese force landing reinforcements at Vila was intercepted by a force of US Navy cruisers and destroyers. One US light cruiser was sunk during the engagement while two Japanese destroyers were sunk and two more were damaged. The Japanese withdrew after the engagement, having landed 1,600 troops.

USS <i>Montpelier</i> (CL-57) Light cruiser of the United States Navy

USS Montpelier (CL-57) was one of 27 United States Navy Cleveland-class light cruisers completed during or shortly after World War II. She was the second US Navy ship to be named for the city of Montpelier, Vermont. Montpelier was commissioned in September 1942 and saw service in several campaigns in the Pacific. Like almost all her sister ships, she was decommissioned shortly after the end of the war, and never saw active service again. Montpelier was scrapped in the early 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Blackett Strait</span> Naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II

The Battle of Blackett Strait was a naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on 6 March 1943 in the Blackett Strait, between Kolombangara and Arundel Island in the Solomon Islands. The battle was a chance encounter between two Japanese destroyers that had been undertaking a resupply run to Vila and a U.S. Navy force of three light cruisers and three destroyers that had been tasked with bombarding the Japanese shore facilities around Vila. The two forces clashed as the Japanese destroyers were withdrawing through the Kula Gulf. In the short battle that followed the two Japanese destroyers were sunk, after which the U.S. ships completed their bombardment of Vila before returning to their base.

USS <i>Stanly</i> Fletcher-class destroyer

USS Stanly (DD-478) was a Fletcher-class destroyer in service with the United States Navy from 1942 to 1947. She was scrapped in 1972.

USS <i>Converse</i> (DD-509) Fletcher-class destroyer

USS Converse (DD-509), a Fletcher-class destroyer, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for George A. Converse (1844–1909).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bougainville campaign</span> World War II land battle in the Pacific between Allied and Japanese forces

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.

USS <i>Trever</i> Clemson-class destroyer

USS Trever (DD-339/DMS-16/AG-110) was a Clemson-class destroyer of the United States Navy in commission from 1922 to 1923 and from 1930 to 1945. Converted to a destroyer minesweeper in 1940, she served in the Pacific throughout World War II, including during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Guadalcanal campaign, and the New Georgia campaign.

USS <i>Dyson</i> United States Navy Fletcher-class destroyer

USS Dyson (DD-572) was a Fletcher-class destroyer of the United States Navy. She was named for Rear Admiral Charles W. Dyson (1861–1930).

USS <i>Woodworth</i> Benson-class destroyer

USS Woodworth (DD-460) was a Benson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for Commander Selim E. Woodworth.

Japanese cruiser <i>Sendai</i>

Sendai was a Sendai-class light cruiser in the Imperial Japanese Navy. She was named after the Sendai River in southern Kyūshū. Sendai was the lead ship of the three vessels completed in her class of light cruisers, and like other vessels of her class, she was intended for use as the flagship of a destroyer flotilla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shortland Island</span> Island of the Solomon Islands

Shortland Island is the largest island of the Shortland Islands archipelago, in the Western Province of Solomon Islands, at 7°3′S155°45′E.

Japanese aircraft carrier <i>Chitose</i> Aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy

Chitose (千歳) was a warship of the Imperial Japanese Navy that served from 1938 to 1944, seeing service as a seaplane carrier and later as a light aircraft carrier during World War II. In her initial guise as a seaplane carrier, she first saw service during the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1938, and subsequently played a key role in the Imperial Japanese Navy's development of a network of seaplane bases on the islands of the Pacific Ocean. After the outbreak of World War II in the Pacific, she took part in the Philippines campaign, the Dutch East Indies campaign, the Battle of Midway, and the Guadalcanal campaign, during which she was damaged in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons and also saw service related to the Battle of Cape Esperance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sentarō Ōmori</span> Japanese admiral (1892–1974)

Sentarō Ōmori, was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.

Balalae Airport is a small civil airport on Balalae island operated by Solomon Airlines. It is located in the northwest of the Solomon Islands, part of the Shortland Island Group and south of Bougainville Island. It serves the nearby Shortland Islands and Fauro Island. It's a 1.75 km long sandy coral airstrip only 5 feet above sea level with a small customs area. It was built by prisoners of war, mostly British captured during the siege of Singapore, under the command of the Japanese during their occupation of the Solomons to protect the stronghold of Rabaul. In about June 1943, all Allied prisoners remaining on the island were killed and buried in mass graves. 436 bodies of unidentified soldiers were exhumed post-war. During 1943, Admiral Yamamoto planned to arrive on the airport from Rabaul to increase morale after the defeat at the Battle of Guadalcanal. He was shot down while passing Bougainville Island during Operation Vengeance, during the Guadalcanal campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landings at Cape Torokina</span> 1943 landing on the Solomon Islands

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 5th Fleet was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy, active during the early portions of the Second Sino-Japanese War, and again in World War II, primarily in the Aleutian campaign, during which it was augmented and designated the Northern Area Force.

Faisi is a small island in the Western Province of Solomon Islands. The island is a part of the Shortland Islands archipelago.

This is a list of Imperial Japanese Navy bases and facilities

Ro-100 was an Imperial Japanese Navy Ro-100-class submarine. Completed and commissioned in September 1942, she served in World War II, operating in the Solomon Islands, Rabaul, and New Guinea areas. She sank in November 1943 when she struck a mine during her seventh war patrol.

References

  1. ↑ "Shortland Islands". Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia 1893-1978. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  2. ↑ Ray, Sidney Herbert (1926). Comparative Study of the Melanesian Island Languages. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. p. 584. ISBN   978-1-107-68202-3 . Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  3. ↑ McMartin, Arthur (1967). "Shortland, John (1739 - 1803)". Australian Dictionary of Biography . Vol. 2. Melbourne: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. pp. 442–443. ISBN   978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN   1833-7538. OCLC   70677943 . Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  4. ↑ "Map of target area including Faisi Island and Shortland Island". United States Army Air Force, 13th AF . Pacific Wrecks. 1943-04-11. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  5. 1 2 3 Cressman, Robert (2000). "Chapter VI: 1944". The official chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN   978-1-55750-149-3. OCLC   41977179 . Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  6. ↑ Rohfleisch, Kramer J. (1950). "Chapter 7: The Central Solomons". In Craven, Wesley Frank; Cate, James Lea (eds.). Vol. IV, The Pacific: Guadalcanal to Saipan, August 1942 to July 1944. The Army Air Forces in World War II. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 211–212. OCLC   769332570 . Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  7. ↑ Fitzpatrick, Connor (2016-10-20). "WWII Naval Drone Training". Military History of the Upper Great Lakes. Michigan Technological University . Retrieved 2020-03-28.
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.