1918-1939 1945-1965






World War II : The Philippines



In 1935 the Philippines had been promised independence for 1946, and SELF-GOVERNMENT was introduced, under MANUEL LUIS QUEZON, first president of the COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES. There were large U.S. navy bases on the island.
Hours after the Japanese attack on PEARL HARBOUR, the Japanese invasion of the Philippines began. The Japanese landed to the north and south of Manila, the US-Philippino forces being pinned down on BATAAN PENINSULA, where they found themselves under a constant air and artillery bombardment. US commander DOUGLAS MACARTHUR was ordered to evacuate (with Philippino President Quezon); on leaving, he proclaimed "I shall return". Bataan fell in May, the island of CORREGIDOR in June 1942. The soldiers were interned in P.O.W. camps; many died from harsh treatment, poor sanitary conditions, physical exhaustion or infectious disease.
The Philippino population felt little sympathy for the Japanese who demanded submission, the delivery of raw materials and FORCED LABOUR. Resistance against the Japanese was strong, and partisans controlled large areas in remote regions.
In 1943, the Japanese established a puppet PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC, with President JOSE P. LAUREL. Meanwhile, Manuel Luis Quezon, president of the Philippino government-in-exile died in 1944, shortly before his country was liberated. He was succeeded by his vice president SERGIO OSMENA.
In October 1944, US forces landed on Leyte, in February Manila was liberated. Fighting continued until the Japanese surrendered in Sept. 1945. MacArthur turned over government to President Osmena.



EXTERNAL
FILES 		World War II and Japanese Occupation, in A Centennial History of Philippine Independence, 1898-1998 by Fraser Weir
World War II Pictures, from Chronology of Philippine History
Biography of Manuel Luis Quezon, from infoplease and from Malacanang
Biography of Jose P. Laurel, from Malacanang
Biography of Sergio Osmena, from Malacanang
DOCUMENTS A Chronological Collection of Documents Relating to the U.S. Entry Into WWII., many relating to the Philippines
The Early Philippines Campaign, from World War II Database
REFERENCE Article : Philippine Islands, in : Americana Annual 1943 pp.590-591 (on events of 1942) [G]
Article : Philippine Islands, in : Americana Annual 1944 pp.565-566 (on events of 1943) [G]
Article : Philippines, in : Americana Annual 1945 pp.576-578 (on events of 1944) [G]
Article : Philippines, in : Americana Annual 1946 pp.597-599 (on events of 1945) [G]
Philippines after Quezon, pp.309-326 in : John Gunther, Inside Asia, 1942 War Edition, NY : Harper & Brothers (1938) 1942
Article : Philppines, Commonwealth of the, in : Britannica Book of the Year 1945 pp.543-545 (on events of 1944) [G]
VIDEOS Bataan, 1943, bw; MacArthur, 1977


This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted on January 12th 2001, last revised on October 19th 2006

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