Philippine General Tomás Mascardo and his forces surrendered to American forces on the island of Luzon.
Last edition:
Showing posts with label Luzon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Luzon. Show all posts
Friday, May 15, 2026
Tuesday, July 29, 2025
Tuesday, July 29, 1945. The sinking of the USS Indianapolis. The 509th Composite Group receives orders for Operation Silverplate. The last Medal of Honor of World War Two.
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The USS Indianapolis was sunk by the submarine I-58. Secrecy due to its role in delivering the atomic bomb to Tinian would keep its sinking secrete for several days, leading to the greatest mass shark attack in history.
The 509th Composite Group of the United States Air Force received the order that would lead to the dropping of the first atomic bomb.
Melvin Mayfield performed the actions that resulted in his winning the Medal of Honor.
He displayed conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while fighting in the Cordillera Mountains of Luzon, Philippine Islands. When 2 Filipino companies were pinned down under a torrent of enemy fire that converged on them from a circular ridge commanding their position, Cpl. Mayfield, in a gallant single-handed effort to aid them, rushed from shell hole to shell hole until he reached 4 enemy caves atop the barren fire-swept hill. With grenades and his carbine, he assaulted each of the caves while enemy fire pounded about him. However, before he annihilated the last hostile redoubt, a machinegun bullet destroyed his weapon and slashed his left hand. Disregarding his wound, he secured more grenades and dauntlessly charged again into the face of pointblank fire to help destroy a hostile observation post. By his gallant determination and heroic leadership, Cpl. Mayfield inspired the men to eliminate all remaining pockets of resistance in the area and to press the advance against the enemy.
You'll note that this occurred on Luzon, which the US had declared to be secured.
He survived the war and died in 1990 at age 71.
His action was the last action of the war to result in a Medal of Honor.
Henry Ford issued a statement declaring:
the nation and the world are on the threshold of a prosperity and standard of living that never before were considered possible.
I'm not a fan of Ford's, but he was correct, perhaps beyond his wildest imagination.
The British 8th Army, the Desert Rats, was disbanded.
Last edition:
Saturday, July 28, 1945. Taking no notice.
Sunday, July 13, 2025
Friday, July 13, 1945. Japan seeks a way out.
US patrol on Luzon, July 13, 1945.
After a flurry of cables from Japan, Japan's Ambassador to the Soviet Union Naotake Sato met with Molotov in a peace feeler through the still neutral Soviet Union.
The Berlin municipal council confiscated all property held by members of the Nazi Party.
The U.S. took responsibility for the sinking of the Japanese hospital ship Awa Maru on April 1, but cited it as an error, which it was.
Gen. Eisenhower issued a farewell message to the AEF.
World War Two American internment camps were shutting down.
Today in World War II History—July 13, 1940 & 1945: 80 Years Ago—July 13, 1945: US War Relocation Authority announces all but one internment camp for Japanese-Americans (Tule Lake) are to close by December 15.
Ben Chifley was chosen as Australian Prime Minister
.webp)
Last edition:
Saturday, July 12, 2025
Thursday, July 12, 1945. Delivering plutonium.
Sgt. Herbert Lehr delivering the plutonium core for Fat Man in its shock-mounted case to the McDonald Ranch assembly room at approximately 6 P.M., July 12, 1945. Lehr was discharged on February 6, 1946, but returned to Los Alamos to prepare for the Operation Crossroads tests at Bikini Atoll He went on to work as an administrative officer for the Physics Department at Brookhaven National Laboratory under Samuel Goudsmit, and later worked for Boeing as an engineering supervisor for thirty years before retiring in 1987. He passed away on January 13, 2018 at the age of 95 in Seattle, Washington.
Australians landed near Andus on Borneo and took Maradi.
The US dropped napalm on targets on Luzon.
British Field Marshal Montgomery awarded Soviet Marshal Zhukov with the Grand Cross of the Order of Bath, Marshal Rokossovsky with the KCB and Generals Sokolovsky and Malinin with the KBE.
The British King's Company of the Grenadier Guards formed the guard of honor and tanks of the King's 8th Royal Irish Hussars were drawn up on either side.
Concentration camp survivors carried a large cross through Paris in memory of the French victims of the Nazis.
Last edition:
Wednesday, July 11, 1945. Redeploying.
Saturday, June 28, 2025
Thursday, June 28, 1945. Moving in new directions.
Stricken plane landing on aircraft carrier, June 28, 1945.
While 23,000 Japanese troops remained in the field, in isolated areas, MacArthur announced that operations on Luzon were complete.
They weren't, really. The 8th Army and the Filipinos would remain to mop the remainder up.
The Soviet backed Provisional Government of National Unity in Poland, made up of the PPR: 7 ministers, Socialist Party: 6 ministers, People's Party: 3 ministers, PSL: 3 ministers and Democratic Party: 2 ministers, was formed.
The Polish Government in Exile did not recognize it, although several of its members were from the Government in Exile.
The last B-24 to be produced at Ford's Michigan Willow Run plant was completed.
Last edition:
Wednesday, June 27, 1945. Giving Japan a warning.
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
Monday, June 24, 1945. Brandenburg Ballerina.
Junior Sergeant Lydia Spivak (Лидия Спивак), Red Army Traffic Regulator, June 1945. She became locally famous in this role and was tagged the Brandenburg Ballerina or The Mistress of Brandenburg Gate. She would have been 19 or 20 years old at the time and had been in the Red Army since she was 17. She was a Ukrainian, and served in a transportation unit. Like most Red Army soldiers, not that much is known about her in the West and indeed she's often confused with another female Soviet soldier who served in the same role. Having said that, this role did make her into a type of celebrity and she did resurface from time to time, including once in the 1950s when she toured the area in which this video was shot.* She passed away at age 59. This is a truncated interview, and there is more to it. It was impromptu, which is impressive.
US forces took Tuguegarao and Gattaran on Luzon.
Australian forces completed the occupation of the Miro oilfield on Borneo.
The Simla Conference to discuss the future Indian government of India began in Simla, India.
Seán T. O'Kelly became 2nd President of Ireland and Einar Gerhardsen became Prime Minister of Norway.
Footnotes:
*Ms. Spivak by that time was aging rapidly. By the 50s she'd gained a lot of weight and by the time of her sad early death she had aged rapidly by western standards and looked much older than her 59 years. She was undeniably cute and lively in 1945, and in later photographs the liveliness seems undiminished in spite of her aging. She achieved her original goal of becoming a teacher, and in fact became a university professor and married another professor
Spivak is often confused with Maria Limanskaya (Мария Лиманскаяwho) served in the same role in Berlin. She was a Russian and lived to age 100, dying last year, although oddly enough in some ways had a harder post war life, marrying than divorcing her first husband, and raising two children for a time on her own.
Last edition:
Monday, June 23, 2025
Saturday, June 23, 1945. Polish arrangements.
Today in World War II History—June 23, 1940 & 1945: June 23, 1945: In the last airborne assault of the war, paratroopers of the US 11th Airborne Division land near Aparri in northern Luzon.
The US, UK, USSR and China agreed to admit Poland to the United Nations.
In Poland, competing Communist and Non Communist parties agreed to a power sharing arrangement.
Pavot won the Belmont Stakes.
Last edition:
Saturday, June 21, 2025
Thursday, June 21, 1945. Fall of Hill 89.
Today in World War II History—June 21, 1940 & 1945: 80 Years Ago—June 21, 1945: US Rangers link with Filipino guerrillas in Aparri, Luzon. US Tenth Army takes Hill 89, the last Japanese stronghold on Okinawa.
Sarah Sundin's blog.
The USS Barry was sunk off of Okinawa by kamikazes.
The Battle of Tarakan ended in an Allied victory on Borneo.
Twelve Polish Home Army officers were convicted of "underground activities" by the USSR.
Last edition:
Wednesday, June 20, 1945. Japanese surrenders.
Labels: 1940s, 1945, Army, Australian Army, Borneo, Okinawa, Polish Government in Exile, Prisoners of War, United Nations, United States Marine Corps, World War Two
Thursday, June 19, 2025
Tuesday, June 19, 1945. Eisenhower's parade.
The U.S. Army took IIigan in the Philippines.
343 Japanese troops surrendered on Okinawa.
"Pfc. Alden A. Fisher, Morganton, Ga., fires a bazooka. Pfc. William Miller, Oceanside, Long Island, is the loader. They are firing at a Japanese cave on Okinawa. 19 June, 1945. 77th Infantry Division Photographer: LaGrange."
Troops of the British Commonwealth brought the war back to Thailand, invading it from Burma.
King Leopold III of Belgium refused to abdicate.
The United Nations, meeting in San Francisco, denied Francoist Spain admission to the body.
Gen. Eisenhower received a ticker tape parade in New York City which 4,000,000 people turned out to view.
French politician Marcel Déat, in hiding in Italy, was sentenced to death in absentia for collaborating with the enemy. He would not be captured and died in Italy in 1955.
Last edition:
Monday, June 18, 1945. The death of Gen. Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr.
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
Sunday, June 17, 1945. Taking Kuishi Ridge.
The last Japanese defensive line was broken on Kuishi Ridge, Okinawa. The US 7th Division completed the capture of Hills 153 and 115.
"Tec Sgt. Hiroshi Mukaye, Los Angeles, Cal., Japanese Interpreter for the 32nd Infantry Regiment, and S/Sgt. Ralph M. Saito, Ewa, Hawaii, interpreter for the 24th Corps, question this Japanese sailor brought in by the 32nd Infantry Regiment. 17 June. 1945. 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. Photo Source: U.S. National Archives. Digitized by Signal Corps Archive." This photograph is remarkable in that S.Sgt Santo has his rank drawn onto his fatigue cap in the same approximate size that later black subdued rank insignia would have it. He also has his rank printed on the lapels of his fatigue shirt, which would anticipate the practice of the 1960s, although not in that location.
The 37th Infantry Division captured Naguilian on Luzon.
Last edition:
Monday, June 9, 2025
Saturday, June 9, 1945. Parade.
Yugoslavia agreed to evacuate Trieste so that claims to who should administer it could be resolved.
Ultimately the city would go to Italy.
Japanese Prime Minister Kantarō Suzuki told the Diet that Japan would "fight to the last."
"One rifleman reloads, and another fires in the 96th Infantry Division's advance to capture Big Apple Hill, scene of intense fighting on Okinawa 9 June, 1945. 96th Infantry Division." The firing soldier is carrying a M1911 handgun and appears to be carrying a Japanese one in a shoulder holster as well. The other solder is carrying a combat knife on his belt.
Marines surrounded Japanese forces on Okinawa's Oroku peninsula.
The 37th Infantry Division captured Bagabag on Luzon. The 24th Infantry Division took Mandog on Mindanao
A victory parade was held in Los Angeles for George S. Patton and James Doolittle.
Last edition:
Friday, June 8, 1945. Battle of Porton Plantation
Saturday, June 7, 2025
Thursday, June 7, 1945. Returning monarchs.
Today in World War II History—June 7, 1940 & 1945: 80 Years Ago—June 7, 1945: King Haakon VII of Norway and his family return to Oslo on their fifth anniversary of leaving Norway. US Marines cut off Oroku Peninsula on Okinawa. King George VI & Queen Elizabeth visit Guernsey and Jersey in recently liberated Channel Islands. In Honolulu, Hawaii, the USO opens the Rainbow Club, for all races, with staff of all races.
From Sarah Sundin's blog.
The Battle of West Hunan concluded in a Chinese victory.
The 1st Corps took Bambang on Luzon.
"Men of Co. B., 165th Inf. Regt., 27th Inf. Div, burn out the scaffolding to the entrance of a cave with a flamethrower. The cave is located in the center of Kin, Okinawa, where they are searching for stolen American supplies. 7 June, 1945."
Yontan airfield, June 7, 1945.
All German citizens in the zone occupied by the western Allies are order to watch films of Belsen and Buchenwald.
Joseph Stalin instructed the Soviet delegation at San Francisco to drop its request for a Big Five veto over discussion of international disputes in the United Nations.
Winston Churchill refused a demand from the House of Commons to reveal all that was discussed at the Yalta Conference.
Last edition:
Wednesday, June 6, 1945. Hitler's body.
Thursday, June 5, 2025
Tuesday, June 5, 1945. The Berlin Declaration.
The Berlin Declaration was signed by the United States, USSR, Britain and France, confirming the complete legal dissolution of the German state.
Declaration regarding the defeat of Germany and the assumption of supreme authority with respect to Germany by the Governments of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United Kingdom and the Provisional Government of the French Republic.
The German armed forces on land, at sea and in the air have been completely defeated and have surrendered unconditionally and Germany, which bears responsibility for the war, is no longer capable of resisting the will of the victorious Powers. The unconditional surrender of Germany has thereby been effected, and Germany has become subject to such requirements as may now or hereafter be imposed upon her.
There is no central Government or authority in Germany capable of accepting responsibility for the maintenance of order, the administration of the country and compliance with the requirements of the victorious Powers.
It is in these circumstances necessary, without prejudice to any subsequent decisions that may be taken respecting Germany, to make provision for the cessation of any further hostilities on the part of the German armed forces, for the maintenance of order in Germany and for the administration of the country, and to announce the immediate requirements with which Germany must comply.
The Representatives of the Supreme Commands of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United Kingdom and the French Republic, hereinafter called the "Allied Representatives," acting by authority of their respective Governments and in the interests of the United Nations, accordingly make the following Declaration:
The Governments of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the United Kingdom, and the Provisional Government of the French Republic, hereby assume supreme authority with respect to Germany, including all the powers possessed by the German Government, the High Command and any state, municipal, or local government or authority. The assumption, for the purposes stated above, of the said authority and powers does not affect the annexation of Germany.
The Governments of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the United Kingdom, and the Provisional Government of the French Republic, will hereafter determine the boundaries of Germany or any part thereof and the status of Germany or of any area at present being part of German territory.
In virtue of the supreme authority and powers thus assumed by the four Governments, the Allied Representatives announce the following requirements arising from the complete defeat and unconditional surrender of Germany with which Germany must comply:
ARTICLE 1
Germany, and all German military, naval and air authorities and all forces under German control shall immediately cease hostilities in all theatres of war against the forces of the United Nations on land, at sea and in the air.
ARTICLE 2
(a) All armed forces of Germany or under German control, wherever they may be situated, including land, air, anti-aircraft and naval forces, the S.S., S.A. and Gestapo, and all other forces of auxiliary organisations equipped with weapons, shall be completely disarmed, handing over their weapons and equipment to local Allied Commanders or to officers designated by the Allied Representatives
(b) The personnel of the formations and units of all the forces referred to in paragraph (a) above shall, at the discretion of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Allied State concerned, be declared to be prisoners of war, pending further decisions, and shall be subject to such conditions and directions as may be prescribed by the respective Allied Representatives.
(c) All forces referred to in paragraph (a) above, wherever they may be, will remain in their present positions pending instructions from the Allied Representatives.
(d) Evacuation by the said forces of all territories outside the frontiers of Germany as they existed on the 31st December, 1937, will proceed according to instructions to be given by the Allied Representatives.
(e) Detachments of civil police to be armed with small arms only, for the maintenance of order and for guard duties, will be designated by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 3
(a) All aircraft of any kind or nationality in Germany or German-occupied or controlled territories or waters, military, naval or civil, other than aircraft in the service of the Allies, will remain on the ground, on the water or aboard ships pending further instructions.
(b) All German or German-controlled aircraft in or over territories or waters not occupied or controlled by Germany will proceed to Germany or to such other place or places as may be specified by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 4
(a) All German or German-controlled naval vessels, surface and submarine, auxiliary naval craft, and merchant and other shipping, wherever such vessels may be at the time of this Declaration, and all other merchant ships of whatever nationality in German ports, will remain in or proceed immediately to ports and bases as specified by the Allied Representatives. The crews of such vessels will remain on board pending further instructions.
(b) All ships and vessels of the United Nations, whether or not title has been transferred as the result of prize court or other proceedings, which are at the disposal of Germany or under German control at the time of this Declaration, will proceed at the dates and to the ports or bases specified by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 5
(a) All or any of the following articles in the possession of the German armed forces or under German control or at German disposal will be held intact and in good condition at the disposal of the Allied Representatives, for such purposes and at such times and places as they may prescribe:
(i) all arms, ammunition, explosives, military equipment, stores and supplies and other implements of war of all kinds and all other war materials;
(ii) all naval vessels of all classes, both surface and submarine, auxiliary naval craft and all merchant shipping, whether afloat, under repair or construction, built or building;
(iii) all aircraft of all kinds, aviation and anti-aircraft equipment and devices;
(iv) all transportation and communications facilities and equipment, by land, water or air;
(v) all military installations and establishments, including airfields, seaplane bases, ports and naval bases, storage depots, permanent and temporary land and coast fortifications, fortresses and other fortified areas, together with plans and drawings of all such fortifications, installations and establishments;
(vi) all factories, plants, shops, research institutions, laboratories, testing stations, technical data, patents, plans, drawings and inventions, designed or intended to produce or to facilitate the production or use of the articles, materials, and facilities referred to in sub-paragraphs (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) and (v) above or otherwise to further the conduct of war.
(b) At the demand of the Allied Representatives the following will be furnished:
(i) the labour, services and plant required for the maintenance or operation of any of the six categories mentioned in paragraph (a) above; and
(ii) any information or records that may be required by the Allied Representatives in connection with the same.
(c) At the demand of the Allied Representatives all facilities will be provided for the movement of Allied troops and agencies, their equipment and supplies, on the railways, roads and other land communications or by sea, river or air. All means of transportation will be maintained in good order and repair, and the labour, services and plant necessary therefor will be furnished.
ARTICLE 6
(a) The German authorities will release to the Allied Representatives, in accordance with the procedure to be laid down by them, all prisoners of war at present in their power, belonging to the forces of the United Nations, and will furnish full lists of these persons, indicating the places of their detention in Germany or territory occupied by Germany. Pending the release of such prisoners of war, the German authorities and people will protect them in their persons and property and provide them with adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical attention and money in accordance with their rank or official position.
(b) The German authorities and people will in like manner provide for and release all other nationals of the United Nations who are confined, interned or otherwise under restraint, and all other persons who may be confined, interned or otherwise under restraint for political reasons or as a result of any Nazi action, law or regulation which discriminates on the ground of race, colour, creed or political belief.
(c) The German authorities will, at the demand of the Allied Representatives, hand over control of places of detention to such officers as may be designated for the purpose by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 7
The German authorities concerned will furnish to the Allied Representatives:
(a) full information regarding the forces referred to in Article 2 (a), and, in particular, will furnish forthwith all information which the Allied Representatives may require concerning the numbers, locations and dispositions of such forces, whether located inside or outside Germany;
(b) complete and detailed information concerning mines, minefields and other obstacles to movement by land, sea or air, and the safety lanes in connection therewith. All such safety lanes will be kept open and clearly marked; all mines, minefields and other dangerous obstacles will as far as possible be rendered safe, and all aids to navigation will be reinstated. Unarmed German military and civilian personnel with the necessary equipment will be made available and utilized for the above purposes and for the removal of mines, minefields and other obstacles as directed by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 8
There shall be no destruction, removal, concealment, transfer or scuttling of, or damage to, any military, naval, air, shipping, port, industrial and other like property and facilities and all records and archives, wherever they may be situated, except as may be directed by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 9
Pending the institution of control by the Allied Representatives over all means of communication, all radio and telecommunication installations and other forms of wire or wireless communications, whether ashore or afloat, under German control, will cease transmission except as directed by the Allied Representatives.
ARTICLE 10
The forces, ships, aircraft, military equipment, and other property in Germany or in German control or service or at German disposal, of any other country at war with any of the Allies, will be subject to the provisions of this Declaration and of any proclamations, orders, ordinances or instructions issued thereunder.
ARTICLE 11
(a) The principal Nazi leaders as specified by the Allied Representatives, and all persons from time to time named or designated by rank, office or employment by the Allied Representatives as being suspected of having committed, ordered or abetted war crimes or analogous offences, will be apprehended and surrendered to the Allied Representatives.
(b) The same will apply in the case of any national of any of the United Nations who is alleged to have committed an offence against his national law, and who may at any time be named or designated by rank, office or employment by the Allied Representatives.
(c) The German authorities and people will comply with any instructions given by the Allied Representatives for the apprehension and surrender of such persons.
ARTICLE 12
The Allied Representatives will station forces and civil agencies in any or all parts of Germany as they may determine.
ARTICLE 13
(a) In the exercise of the supreme authority with respect to Germany assumed by the Governments of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the United Kingdom, and the Provisional Government of the French Republic, the four Allied Governments will take such steps, including the complete disarmament and demilitarization of Germany, as they deem requisite for future peace and security.
(b) The Allied Representatives will impose on Germany additional political, administrative, economic, financial, military and other requirements arising from the complete defeat of Germany. The Allied Representatives, or persons or agencies duly designated to act on their authority, will issue proclamations, orders, ordinances and instructions for the purpose of laying down such additional requirements, and of giving effect to the other provisions of this Declaration. All German authorities and the German people shall carry out unconditionally the requirements of the Allied Representatives, and shall fully comply with all such proclamations, orders, ordinances and instructions.
ARTICLE 14
This Declaration enters into force and effect at the date and hour set forth below. In the event of failure on the part of the German authorities or people promptly and completely to fulfill their obligations hereby or hereafter imposed, the Allied Representatives will take whatever action may be deemed by them to be appropriate under the circumstances.
ARTICLE 15
This Declaration is drawn up in the English, Russian, French and German languages. The English, Russian and French are the only authentic texts.
BERLIN, GERMANY, June 5, 1945.
Signed at 1800 hours, Berlin time, by
Dwight D. Eisenhower,
General of the Army USA;
Zhukov,
Marshal of the Soviet Union;
B. L. Montgomery,
Field Marshal, Great Britain;
De Lattre de Tassisny,
French Provisional Government.
The U.S. Army Air Force dropped 3,000 tons of incendiary bombs on Kobe, Japan.
The 37th Infantry Division occupied Aritao on Luzon.
More hard fighting on Okinawa occurred and a sudden typhoon damaged 4 battleships, 8 aircraft carriers, 7 cruisers, 14 destroyers, 2 tankers, and and ammunition transport ship, of the US 3rd Fleet.
A Kamikaze attack crippled the USS Mississippi and the heavy cruiser USS Louisville.
Esquire magazines second class mailing privileges were restored by a US appellate court after having been suspended due to the feature of Vargas Girl pinups, which foreshadowed Playboy Playmates. The decision was appealed to the United States Supreme Court which upheld the decision, unfortunately, in 1946.
This demonstrates that the widespread public acceptance of pornography was already occurring in advance of the 1953 introduction of Playboy, so the trend we've discussed here in other threads was already underway with the Courts frustrating efforts to restrict the development. This also, we'd note, runs a bit counter to the heavy attribution we've attached to Hefner's rag, because, as noted, the trend was underway, although Esquire's depictions were illustrations, rather than photographs. To a certain degree, the U.S. Army publication Yank had headed in the same direction, with its centerfolds, although they were always full clothed.
It wasn't a good trend.
Last edition:
Monday, June 4, 1945. Marines land on the Oroku Peninsula on Okinawa.
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