Fighting for MacArthur: The Navy and Marine Corps' Desperate Defense of the Philippines

by John Gordon

As the only single-volume work to offer a full account of Navy and Marine Corps actions in the Philippines during World War II, this book provides a unique source of information on the early part of the war. It is filled with never-before-published details about the fighting, based on a rich collection of American and newly discovered Japanese sources, and includes a revealing discussion of the buildup of tensions between Gen. Douglas MacArthur and the Navy that continued for the remainder of the war. U.S. Army veteran and defense analyst John Gordon describes in considerable detail the unusual missions of the Navy and Marine Corps in the largely Army campaign, where sailors fought as infantrymen alongside their Marine comrades at Bataan and Corregidor, crews of Navy ships manned the Army's heavy coastal artillery weapons, and Navy submarines desperately tried to supply the men with food and ammunition. He also chronicles the last stand of the Navy s colorful China gunboats at Manila Bay.

The book gives the most detailed account ever published of the Japanese bombing of the Cavite Navy Yard outside Manila on the third day of the war, which was the worst damage inflicted on a U.S. Navy installation since the British burned the Washington Navy Yard in 1814. It also closely examines the surrender of the 4th Marines at Corregidor, the only time in history that the U.S. Marine Corps lost a regiment in combat. To provide readers with a Japanese perspective of the fighting, Gordon draws on the recently discovered diary of a leader of the Japanese amphibious assault force that fought against the Navy's provisional infantry battalion on southern Bataan, and he also makes full use of the U.S. ship logs and the 4th Marine unit diary that were evacuated from Manila Bay shortly before the U.S. forces surrendered.

Genres: World War II

381 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2011

About the author

Librarian note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name

Please also refer to:
John Gordon: Supernatural Fiction
John Gordon: Golf
John Gordon: Author of "Miss Fit" and more
John Gordon: Children's books illustrator
John Gordon: Psychoanalysis, Interpersonal Dynamics
John Gordon: English professor
John Gordon: Computer programs

Reviews

[Marshall Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Relatively unknown story of the Navy and Marine Corps participation in the 1941 - 1942 campaign in the Philippines.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a detailed account of the Navy and Marine Corps’ role during the Philippines Campaign of 1941-1942. The author adds a wider context to help the reader follow the course of the campaign, but the focus is most certainly on the smaller Navy and Marine forces. It’s very thorough, and easy to read. Given that more attention has always been provided to the Army during this campaign, this book helps fill in the blanks.

[Ross Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author did a great job detailing the relatively small but impactful role of the Navy and Marine Corps in the defense of the Philippines. Well researched and easy to read.

[Charles H Berlemann Jr · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting addition to the history of the Philippine Island Campaign

This is a great book about an force that isn't talked about much in the Philippines. That is the Navy and Marines who bore most of the fighting to try and keep the sea lanes open, be that speed bump and hold the Japanese off until late into 1942. There is talk of how the gunboats fought with the inshore patrol to keep the harbor open so that submarines could bring supplies into Bataan. How as ships were sunk, bases destroyed and the patrol wings lost planes; it was the Sailors and Marines that held important lines during the land battles for Bataan. Later these folks would man guns on Corregidor and get into artillery duels with the Japanese. Finally, the author talks about how more could have bee done, but the MacArthur and his staff stymied plans, gave false information to DC and did blame shifting all around. This is worthwhile book to read since it helps to make you think of the calendar of the war in different light. Consider that it was Navy and Marine troops on Corregidor along with coastal defense forces that held out until May of1942 during what would be the middle of the Battle of Coral Sea. Then its only two more months until the battle for Guadalcanal would start in August of 1942. By which the war would start to turn for the Americans.

[Gary Wallis · Rating 4 out of 5]

You always hear the battles of Bataan and Corregidor from the Army viewpoint but this book is written from the Navy side. It`s an extremely good book explaining how frustrating it was to work with MacArthur to coordinate supplies and men to stop the Japanese invasion. The battle lasted as long as it did because the Navy had planned ahead in moving critical supplies onto Corregidor ahead of time before Bataan collapsed. It also tells the little known stories of the U.S. Navy gunboats that fought to the last ship. Corregidor finally surrendered because the Japanese were able to move long range guns around Corregidor and just pound her into submission. A fine tribute to the brave men and women who fought to the last bullet there.