Chapter 52 Formal combat has completely failed

On May 5, 1942, the Dragon Boat Festival in Japan.Honma once again ordered the intensive bombardment of Corregidor Island. Due to the continuous bombardment all day long, the searchlights on the island were destroyed, and even the foxholes on the coast were bombed into a mess. At 9:30 in the evening, the US military stationed on Corregidor Island heard the sound of an engine on the radio, which was the engine used by the landing craft. In Japan, May 5th is not only the Dragon Boat Festival, but also Boys' Day. Every family will hang a large cloth carp in front of their son's house, called "Carp Banner".The carp flag is flying, which is said to hope that the boy will go upstream like a carp and face difficulties positively.

Honma hoped to take advantage of this auspicious day to inspire the morale of the army, but he did not expect that he would actually "go against the current" when he landed - the current at the entrance of Manila Bay was turbulent, and the tide of the strait turned at night, causing the landing craft to deviate from the scheduled beach Nearly 1 kilometer, if the landing force wants to land, they must go against the current. Going against the current is difficult, and it is even more difficult to go to the coast. The coast of Corregidor Island is mostly cliffs, and you have to climb up.Although the Japanese army had already made bamboo ladders, the U.S. military would not allow them to land calmly, and the blocking firepower was very fierce.

The Japanese army is also using artillery to support shooting, but when shooting this kind of shooting in the dark, if there is a slight mistake, it will hit its own people, and the cover is not very effective. After hearing the news that the landing troops were unable to land and had suffered great losses, Honma's face turned ashen, and his whole body was about to die of worry.It was not until late at night that someone reported to him that it was luck among misfortunes that a small Japanese army had successfully landed at some point. This small force is the Sato Genba Regiment of the Fourth Division.They moved secretly, and the defenders didn't pay attention for a while, so they were allowed to climb up. When they were about to repel them, the second echelon of the Japanese landing force happened to surge up again. As a result, Sato's troops were able to drive straight in and attack Corregidor Island. underground tunnel.

Upon hearing the news, Wainwright immediately ordered a counterattack.Sato's troops were less than 1,000 people, and the U.S. military could still mobilize 15,000 people on the island for defense. But at this time, most of the communication lines on the island had been blown up, and it was impossible to gather enough troops. There were troops responsible for blocking the coast until the second day. This morning, I didn't even know that the Japanese army had landed and appeared behind my side! Even a barely organized force needs to go through a large underground tunnel to meet Sato's troops, not to mention that the tunnel is full of refugees and wounded, and the U.S. military can't get through it at all.

It was Wainwright, not Honma, who was in a desperate situation, but Honma himself didn't know it. He only knew that only a small army had successfully landed. When Ben received the information that the US military launched a counterattack, he was even more shocked.The U.S. military has an absolute superiority in numbers. Even if Sato's troops are not crushed to death, they are destined to be driven into the sea to feed fish and shrimp. Thinking of this, Honma's two rows of teeth can't help but fight against each other. The troops in Honma's hands are still very advantageous, but no matter how many troops there are, they can't fly over with wings.The landing craft are almost used up, and there are 21 left, so how many people can they carry?Frustrated, Honma told his staff: "We have failed."

The truth is, not only was he undefeated, but he was pretty close to winning.The U.S. counterattack force was blocked by the large underground tunnel, and in turn was surrounded by Sato's troops. On May 6, 1942, other Japanese troops also successfully landed, and even mountain artillery and tanks were put into the battlefield.The U.S. military lost its last chance to repel the Japanese landing, and the fate of Corregidor Island was hard to change. The US troops guarding the island were forced to withdraw into the large underground tunnel, and the tunnel was overcrowded with wounded for a while.It was all over, everyone was screaming like babies, and one soldier even said he could feel what it was like to have a mouse caught in a mousetrap, just waiting for someone to come and kill it.He reported his home address in the United States and asked: "Please tell my mother about my situation."

Wainwright knew that if he continued to fight, apart from the bloody massacre of the soldiers and civilians in the tunnel, it was impossible for any miracles to happen.So he telegraphed MacArthur, telling his superiors that he would "bow his head in shame with grief, with a broken heart." Wainwright gave the order to the commanders: "Tell the Japs we're going to cease fire immediately." The naval radio station, which had been withdrawn into the large tunnel, kept calling: "General Honma... General Honma..." At the same time, the highest flagpole on Corregidor Island raised a white flag, and soldiers were ordered to destroy arms.

Wainwright took advantage of the landing craft provided by the Japanese army to go to Bataan to negotiate a ceasefire with Honma.What happened to Jin made him clear that even if he surrendered to the Japanese army, things might not go well, and the Japanese would definitely make more excessive and harsher demands. Sure enough, Honma looked like a villain. He said that he would not accept Wainwright's surrender unless Wainwright ordered the U.S. troops on the southern Luzon islands to also raise their hands to surrender. Wainwright cut off his command over Southern Luzon a long time ago, but when Honma heard this, his face immediately darkened, claiming that he had to either surrender or continue fighting, and there was no other way to choose.After saying that, he left with his subordinates.

Wainwright had to return to Corregidor Island, when the Japanese army was approaching the entrance of the large tunnel.The great tunnel was full of wounded and nurses who would have been massacred if his demand for surrender was not accepted, and according to the highest military ethics in the West, a soldier can die heroically or even in humiliation Surrender freely, but innocent and defenseless people must not be allowed to be killed. In the middle of the night, Wainwright had to bow his head again, and according to Honma's request, brought the Southern Luzon U.S. Army back under his command, drafted a document, and signed his name at the end of the document.

On May 8, 1942, Wainwright, himself a prisoner, was taken to Manila.He officially signed the instrument of surrender and read the instrument of surrender drafted by the Japanese to the entire Philippines through radio broadcast. Following the fall of Bataan, MacArthur suffered another psychological blow.He was deeply saddened by this, and bluntly said that Bataan and Corregidor Island were the most tragic events he experienced during World War II and even in his life. Wainwright not only surrendered himself, but also ordered the surrender of the U.S. Army in Southern Luzon, and read the surrender document. This was beyond MacArthur's expectation, and to some extent it greatly exceeded the scope of Wainwright's authority.Perhaps in this case, many people will take advantage of the trend to put all the blame on the poor subordinates, but MacArthur is not such a person.

He is also in great pain, but he will never get worse.In the telegram to Marshall, he also put himself in Wainwright's defense: "I think Wainwright was just a momentary miscalculation. His situation makes him easy to be used by the enemy." American commanders in southern Luzon did not accept Wainwright's order to surrender.After the Japanese army shifted all their military focus to the southern Luzon islands, he lasted for another three days. On May 9, 1942, the Japanese army broke through the right flank of the US Army in Southern Luzon. The commander sent the last telegram to MacArthur: "We can no longer make any resistance." In the Philippines, except for the local guerrillas who are still persisting in the jungle, the regular operations dominated by the US military have completely failed. MacArthur will still come back, but the road back will be longer and more difficult.