Glorious Mission 1937

Chapter 610: Asia—Only China is resisting

Today, the whole world is finally in complete chaos. In Europe, Japan’s allies are showing their bravery to the Soviets. The German Army has finally launched the deadliest attack on Moscow, which their Head of State has long admired.In Africa, Rommel used his wisdom to drive the British to Egypt, and the British once again saw the power of the German army.

In Asia, Japan, a former second-rate country, seems to have taken a big pill and rampaged throughout East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is even more trembling, without the slightest fighting spirit, and it seems that only the Chinese are still resisting in the whole of Asia.

For the war with Japan, the Americans are quite confident, especially the top government leaders headed by Roosevelt.After the Pearl Harbor incident, a wave of national excitement swept across the United States. Then, President Roosevelt walked into the House of Representatives with the support of his son, Navy Captain James, and stood in front of the podium with a steel frame on his legs. The meeting delivered a historic speech: "Yesterday—a day forever in infamy—the United States was deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Imperial Japanese Empire."

With a heavy heart, he recounted the previous day's "unprovoked dastardly sneak attack," before warning: "It cannot be denied that our people, our territory, our interests, are in grave danger." During the 10-minute speech, Congress was asked to declare war on Japan.He predicted with confidence: "With the infinite determination of our people, we will surely win the final victory."

The president's final prayer, "God bless us," erupted in cheers and stomping in the packed House, surely the least evocative of the many demands his nine-year administration has made to Congress. A claim in dispute.

The United States finally joined the war, but the victory that Roosevelt expected did not come, but bad news came one after another.The British, French, Thais, and Dutch were all beaten by the Japanese. French Indochina became Japan's back garden, and Bangkok became Japan's military warehouse.Kuala Lumpur became a strategic location for the Japanese Navy.In the end, the Japanese navy and army entered the Philippines, which the Americans regarded as imprisoned.

Before officially attacking the Philippines, the No.11 Air Force of the Japanese Navy bombed the Philippines frantically. Thousands of aircraft fleets flew to the Philippines to deal a devastating blow to the US sea and air forces in the Western Pacific.The large fleet flew south after taking off from the airport in Formosa.Then bombed the US-Philippine army on Luzon Island.

Although the American radar detected the Japanese aircraft early.However, the P-48 fighter jets equipped by the US military are far from the opponents of the Japanese navy and air force in terms of quantity and quality.The loss was enormous.

Subsequently, the Japanese navy and army landed in the Philippines, just after midnight on August 8. Seventy-two Japanese troop carriers broke down near the gently sloping beaches of Lingayen Bay.The troop carriers, escorted by battleships and cruisers, carried General Honma's No. 25 Army, which had embarked at the ports of Formosa and the Pescadors.

MacArthur, the commander-in-chief of the US military, correctly estimated the location of the Japanese army's main attack, but he wrongly estimated the time of the Japanese army's attack.He had less than forty-eight hours left when the Submarine reported that the large Japanese fleet was only fifty miles from the northern tip of Luzon.Hours later, another message came: A small invasion force of five troop carriers was landing at Davao on the southern tip of Mindanao.Neither of these Japanese operations was seriously intercepted by the submarines of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet, nor by the B-48 bombers ordered to attack the Japanese before withdrawing to their new bases in Australia.

In the early morning of the 26th, when the sky was still dark, the No. 40 Eighth Division of the Japanese Army began to land on three beachheads under the cover of heavy artillery fire from a large number of warships.The rough seas were a greater threat than the three divisions of the Filipino infantry and the Filipino regular cavalry.Only Rosario's troops put up a determined resistance, delaying the enemy's attack for several hours; on other landing beaches, defenders dropped their old Enfield rifles and fled for their lives as the Japanese charged their positions.

Throughout the day on the 27th, Japanese tanks, soldiers, and equipment were shuttled ashore by barges one after another, encountering almost no resistance except for the occasional burst of shooting.By afternoon General Honma's vanguard was deep into the hinterland to join forces that had landed a week earlier.

On the 28th, the US Congress announced the restoration of MacArthur's four-star general rank, but MacArthur has realized that neither the submarines of the US Asian Fleet nor the lack of training of the Philippine army can save the Philippines.But he remains reluctant to pursue the only remaining military option -- "Operation Orange," which calls for the withdrawal of U.S. forces to Bataan.

On the 29th, the U.S.-Philippines army experienced a whole day of disastrous defeats on the two fronts of Luzon Island. General MacArthur then ignored his self-esteem and faced the only military option.On the battlefield, the lack of training of the Filipino army's combat effectiveness was extremely poor, and it could not stop the attack of the battle-hardened Japanese army coming south from China.MacArthur's 8000 troops in northern Luzon outnumbered the enemy two to one. However, when he inspected the front line of Lingayen in a Packard jeep on the 26th, what he saw was how easily the Japanese army As he pushed the front toward Manila, what little illusion he had about the combat effectiveness of the Philippine Army was shattered.

MacArthur's deputy, Major General Jonathan Wainwright, even called the U.S.-Philippines army a "group of mobs", but MacArthur is trying to use this group of mobs to prop up the collapsing front, which is simply unimaginable.

The Americans suddenly discovered at this time that almost none of the US-Filipino troops in the Philippines, whether they are Americans or those native Filipinos, is fully mobile, and all the troops lack training and equipment.None of the divisions or units assembled for drills or training, their staffs were inadequate and lacked trained personnel; most Filipino soldiers did not even have basic infantry equipment like steel helmets, entrenching tools, and blankets.

On the night of September 9, Wainwright begged MacArthur to allow him to bring the only American division into the field in order to stop the enemy's attack and give the Allies enough time to implement the operation plan to retreat to Bataan.MacArthur inspected the battlefield during the day and heard the news that the Japanese army was landing at Ramon Bay, only 2 miles southeast of Manila, and finally realized that the danger was extreme.Just today, the remaining 16 troops of the No.7000 Division of the Japanese Army landed and advanced in depth. The Filipino Division [-] that broke up on the hill actually did not resist.

The landing of the second force of Japanese commander Masaharu Homma's pincer attack on Manila made MacArthur more aware of the military disaster he faced.After a week of frustration, MacArthur radioed his commanders that night: "Execute Operation Orange."

But his decision was too late. The remaining 4 U.S.-Philippine troops had to deal with attacks from both sides when the withdrawal was delayed. At the same time, they had to collect food and ammunition scattered everywhere. This was a necessity for continuing to fight. MacArthur announced at the same time The capital of the Philippines is an open city.However, the Japanese ignored MacArthur's words and dispatched planes to bomb the Martian Building, where the US military headquarters is located.

After the withdrawal order was issued, the remaining patrol boats of the US Asian Fleet retreated to the bays on the west coast of Luzon Island to take shelter, and the submarines had retreated to the ports of Borneo and Java.Ammunition and supplies from the bombed naval port of Cavite, unable to reach the fortified island of Corregidor, were blown up with dynamite.The only four fighters on Luzon flew away after General Brereton boarded the last American transport.

A few hours later, MacArthur himself was the last to board the steamer Don Esteban and cross the thirty-mile-wide strait to Corregidor, the tadpole-shaped island that guards Manila Bay. portal.Philippine President Manuel Quezon and his senior government officials were also crowded on the boat with the rest of MacArthur's staff and family members.

Due to the total collapse of the US-Philippine army, the Japanese 14th Army captured Manila very smoothly and controlled the entire Philippines with incredible speed.

The Americans lost the Philippines, and the British also lost Malaysia. Now there is only one Singapore and the Dutch East Indies in the entire South Pacific that are still under the control of the Allied Forces, but no one knows that this is only temporary. With the ambitions of the Japanese army, it will definitely not just stop at the current results. It is completely predictable to attack Singapore and the Dutch East Indies.

At this time, everyone discovered that in the whole of Asia, only the Chinese were still resisting, and it seemed that they were no longer weaker than the Japanese army in some battlefields.Under such circumstances, the Battle of Changsha attracted the attention of the international community. The leaders of the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union called Chongqing within two days, hoping that Chongqing would let go of all concerns and concentrate on fighting the Japanese. The lack of weapons and equipment was something else. , no matter what is lacking, they will support China.

Of course, Lao Jiang was also happy, and hurriedly called the Ninth Theater, to win this battle at all costs, and absolutely not let the Japanese capture Changsha. (To be continued..)