“The Allied victory, severe devastation of Manila, which historians compare to Warsaw or Berlin,were crucial steps towards freeing the Philippines from Japanese occupation.”
ON JAN. 9, Friday, not many will appreciate the significance of the now nearly forgotten date when Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s US Sixth Army landed at Lingayen Gulf 81 years ago.
The date marked a major turning point in liberating the Philippines, under Japanese rule for roughly three-and-a-half years, from the start of the invasion in Dec. 1941 until the formal end of the occupation with Japan’s surrender in Aug./Sept. 1945, though liberation efforts began in late 1944.
The actual period of occupation is generally considered from early 1942 (after the fall of Bataan and Corregidor) to mid-1945, with significant guerrilla resistance ongoing throughout.
The Lingayen Gulf landing established a crucial beachhead, which geared up the intense campaign to reclaim the islands from Japanese forces, culminating in the bloody Battle for Manila.
That landing initiated the decisive drive south to Manila, unleashing fierce urban fighting but ultimately breaking Japanese control and restoring sovereignty.
Historical documents show the US Sixth Army, under Lt. Gen. Walter Krueger, executed a massive landing on the shores of Pangasinan, overwhelming the surprised Japanese defenses. This began the largest ground operation in the Pacific theater, aiming to dismantle the Japanese forces entrenched in the Philippines.
The campaign aimed to end the Japanese occupation and restore the Philippines to its people, fulfilling MacArthur’s promise to return.
MacArthur said, “I shall return” in March 1942 at a train station in Terowie, Australia, after being ordered to evacuate the Philippines, promising to come back for the liberation of the islands, a vow he kept when he waded ashore at Leyte on Oct. 20, 1944, declaring, “I have returned.”
He had been ordered by President Roosevelt to leave the Philippines as Japanese forces advanced to organize the American offensive.
Some historians suggest MacArthur’s statement “I shall return” was a mix of disappointment and resolve, made to reporters after a difficult journey, becoming a powerful symbol of American commitment to the Philippines.
He fulfilled his promise by landing with US troops on Leyte, many of whom were Filipinos who had enlisted with the US Army, including some from Illinois and California, announcing his return to the Filipino people via radio broadcast.
His actual words upon landing were: “People of the Philippines, I have returned! By the grace of Almighty God, our forces stand again on Philippine soil—soil consecrated in the blood of our two peoples.”
The Lingayen operation – some say the actual point of landing in Luzon was in Dagupan – cut off vital Japanese resources from the south and threatened the Japanese home islands, severely weakening their overall war effort.
In essence, Jan. 9, 1945 was the day the tide decisively turned for the Philippines, initiating the final, costly push to end the Japanese occupation.
Around 68,000 US soldiers landed with Krueger’s 6th Army on Jan 9, with over 200,000 troops arriving in the following days to establish a major beachhead for the Battle of Luzon, according to some historical papers.
The eventual Battle of Manila (Feb-Mar 1945) was a fierce urban fight where US forces, aided by Filipino guerrillas, liberated the Philippine capital from Japanese occupation, resulting in immense civilian casualties and turning Manila into one of World War II’s most destroyed cities, marking a major Allied victory to end the Japanese grip on the Philippines.
Elsewhere in northern Philippines, particularly in Ilocos Norte, guerrillas and bolomen battled against remnants of the Japanese invaders who were forced north with Allied bombs dispersing them from their strongholds.
In the Battle of Manila that ensued after the landing in Lingayen Gulf, US forces (Army, Marines) and Filipino resistance against the. Imperial Japanese Army marched south to recapture the strategically important capital from the Japanese.
Japanese forces, under Admiral Sanji Iwabuchi, refused to surrender and carried out massacres, turning the city into a deadly trap, leading to dreadful civilian deaths.
The Allied victory, severe devastation of Manila, which historians compare to Warsaw or Berlin, were crucial steps towards freeing the Philippines from Japanese occupation.
