The Battle for Manila

by Richard M. Connaughton, John Pimlott, Duncan Anderson

Using newly discovered archival material and personal interviews with eyewitnesses, relates the events surrounding the destruction of Manila during World War II

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Japan

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Michael Gerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1995, when I was 12 years old, my mother brought me to an exhibit in the Old Walled city of Intramuros in Manila. The exhibit was about the 50th Commemoration of the Liberation of Manila. I had heard of the event and the city's devastation from stories from my grandfather, but I had never appreciated the extent of the horror and the destruction until I saw the exhibit and read newspaper articles about it. And this book.

This book is a painful one to read. The depravity of the defeated Japanese who engaged in an orgy of killing and raping Filipino and foreign civilians is an abomination that Japan can never hope to hide, despite the stupid efforts of Japanese dumbbells to revise history. These Japanese are probably the descendants of their defeated fathers and grandfathers who were responsible for these atrocities, including those who were justly hanged for their crimes.

However, it must also be emphasized that Manila was destroyed primarily due to the indiscriminate use of artillery by the US forces. And that was just one of the crimes of the US.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I found it to be quite an education and a shocker. With both my grandfathers having fought the Japanese in the Philippines while serving in the USAFFE (United States Armed Forces in the Far East) and having heard some of their stories, I have always been curious to know more about what took place there during the war. The account of the battle for Manila is a story that I'm surprised is not studied or talked about more. It was a battle that epitomized the horror of modern urban warfare. Just look at the "butcher's bill": 16,000 Japanese, 1,000 Americans and 100,000 Filipino and foreign civilians dead. Simply mind-boggling is the only way I can express the horror of such carnage. I spent some late nights reading this book and lying awake thinking of the atrocities committed by the Japanese and the unecessary blunders made by one particular American general who favored the use of overwhelming artillery firepower without proper regard for the reasonable safety of civilians. My heart ached at reading of the destruction of a charming city with marvelous churches and monasteries, centuries old buildings displaying a unique mixture of the Orient and Western Christian civilization. Perhaps most heart-rending was to read of the desctruction of the social fabric of the city, especially of the old and aristocratic families. If you want to get a feeling of what a chastisement war really is, read this book about the annihilation of the "Pearl of the Orient," one of the most devastated Allied capital of World War II, Manila.

[John Falch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the few books on the Battle of Manila in 1945. It was a valuable tool while I was writing my novel (The Yellow Bar) about the same period. It is chock full of interesting detail, but most importantly, "The Battle for Manila" had all the facts and figures of the actual battle plans and armies. It is NOT an easy read, more for history buffs, and people like me, who needed the facts straight. It should be recommended reading for all Filipino High School students.

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thinking the Pacific War, most will think about the bloody island-hopping campaign, the battles between aircraft carriers and the steamy jungles. Not street-to-street fighting. Manila however was. Here the US Army, and not the Marines, fought a hard and bitter battle in a city.

After a month, the city of Manila was as gutted as Warsaw was. The civilians inside the city suffered enormously during the battle. It was hell on earth...

This book is an important one since it covers this largely ignored and forgotten battle. It does so in detail, although I would have liked to see more small scale action descriptions myself. But the overall view you get by reading this book is that this battle should see more coverage and above all respect. The book starts with the Japanese invasion and ends with the liberation of it. It tells you how life used to be before the war, how it was during the years of occupation, and how the liberation was welcomed.

What does make the greatest impact is the way the Japanese treated the people inside the city. The attrocities committed won't leave you untouched. Most striking is the randomness with which this was performed. Men, women, children were murdered. Nationality did not always matter. Even German citizens, so Allied to Japan, and neutrals suffered the same fate.
And then the Americans came, not fully prepared for what they were facing. And so the people inside the city suffered again, from US artillery fire. The Japanese were dug in well, turning buildings into fortresses, and prepared to give their lives for Japan. Question is if there would have been other options available to spare the 'hostages' encircled by friend and foe.

An important book about an important battle that needs to be brought out more.

[Rami Yoakum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad book about one of the less well-known parts of WWII in the Pacific.

[Jtomassetti · Rating 3 out of 5]

THE BATTLE FOR MANILA covers World War II in the capital of the Philippines. The book is a well-document history of the atrocities committed by the Japanese and Americans as they wages a battle for the control of Manila toward the end of World War II.

Over 100,000 Filipino civilians died during the battle. That is more people than killed in Hiroshima. also many of these people were tortured, raped and burned purposely by the Japanese troops.

Because it closely follows documented facts the writing is a little stilted. However, the book is very readable. I recommend this book as a reminder to everyone regarding the hell of this war. For those who live in or have visited Manila, the book is especially significant because of all of the easily recognizable locations.

Beware that some of the incidents documented in this book are very graphic. The book could be improved by locating the maps in the appropriate sections of the book and by locating the picture captions on the same pages as the photos.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very comprehensive and even-handed description and thought-provoking analysis.