Contains 90 photos and 18 maps and charts. “In the grand strategy of the Pacific War, the Central Solomons operation constituted only a short step in the overall advance on Japan. But in the neutralization of Rabaul, Japan’s key holding in her "Southeastern Area," this campaign played a vital role. By early 1943 the Central Solomons area might be described as an amphibious no man’s land lying between Rabaul and the new Allied citadel of Guadalcanal, across which the two antagonists exchanged air and naval blows. The Japanese, by increasing the strength of their garrisons in New Georgia, had already begun their effort to control this strategic area. The Allied campaign that followed was designed to drive them out and establish a forward base from which Rabaul could be brought under constant assault. It is a source of extreme pride to me that those Marines who participated in the Central Solomons operations acquitted themselves with such distinction. Despite the most adverse weather, terrain and climate, the enemy was driven out and the mission finally accomplished. Growing out of this campaign was an extremely significant sense of mutual admiration between the Army, Navy and Marine troops involved.-LEMUEL C. SHEPHERD, JR. GENERAL, U. S. MARINE CORPS COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS”

From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, and more recently from the jungles of Vietnam to the killing fields of Iraq, America's "soldiers of the sea" have fought their country's battles with famed valor, skill, and perseverance in the face of long odds. But where did the U.S. Marines earn their reputation as being the "first to fight?" It was on the South Pacific Island of Guadalcanal. There, on August 7, 1942, the 1st Marine Division stormed ashore to begin one of the most difficult and brutal campaigns of military history, and an unbroken string of victories staged across the Pacific.

Contains 51 photos and 28 maps and charts. The fight to remove the barriers protecting the main base of the Japanese in New Guinea at Rabaul, was characterized by brutal jungle fighting attritional warfare of the worst sort and required every bit of toughness from the Marines that landed there. “BOUGAINVILLE AND THE NORTHERN SOLOMONS is a narrative not only of Marines against the Japanese, but of Marines against the jungle. In all the past history of the Corps, whether it be Nicaragua, Haiti, or Guadalcanal, it is improbable that Marine units ever faced and defeated such an implacable combination of terrain and hostile opposition. In this struggle, as always, superior training, discipline, determination and unquestioning will to win on the part of individual Marines were the crucial factors. Indeed, those same factors may be said to constitute common denominators of victory under any circumstances, whether jungle or atoll, on the ground or in the air. -C. B. CATES, GENERAL, U. S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS”

This book tells the story of the Marines spearheading the thrust through the Japanese outer ring of defences and recounts the brutal and important island-hopping Pacific campaign at its most gripping following the bloodbath at Tarawa. Contains 97 photos and 16 maps and charts. “As 1943 drew to a close, Marines had retaken Tarawa and portions of the Solomons from the Japanese invader, but the formidable enemy bases studding the vast Pacific, bases which had been built during the preceding 25 years, were as yet untouched by our amphibious forces. In early 1944 the first penetration of this prewar enemy territory was accomplished with the assault and occupation of Kwajalein and Majuro Atolls in the Marshall Islands. These were quickly followed by the seizure of Eniwetok Atoll. The major role in these over-all operations was undertaken by Marine units working in close coordination with elements of the Army, Navy, and Coast Guard. That they acquitted themselves with distinction is reflected in the rapidity with which they accomplished their missions. Operations in the Marshall Islands clearly indicated that Japanese bases in the Central Pacific could be by-passed. The way was now open for the neutralization of Truk and the assault on the Marianas, the next great step in the drive toward Japan.”-LEMUEL C. SHEPHERD, JR., GENERAL, U. S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS

In the island battles of World War II, the United States Marine Corps came into its own. From a force previously numbering 55,000, the ranks of the Marines swelled to 480,000. With Pacific theater command essentially divided geographically between General Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, these forces found themselves under the command of the Army or Navy depending on their particular location. On land and at sea, the contribution which the six Marine divisions made to the Allied victory in the Pacific cannot be ignored. Concentrating on the infantry units, this volume provides a brief history of each of the six Marine divisions which took part in the Pacific conflict. Beginning with a chronology of the war in the Pacific, it succinctly describes each campaign through the eyes of a specified division, focusing on the division's exact movements and actions. Some battles and operations are covered from different perspectives because of the presence of multiple divisions. An initial section contains brief biographical sketches of key players in the Pacific arena. Extensive maps and photographs are also included.

As the might of the U.S. forces drove the Japanese back toward the Home Islands the Marines embarked on another tough campaign in the jungles of New Britain and the centre for Japanese forces at Rabaul. Contains 114 photos and 20 maps and charts. “Aside from my own participation, I have always felt a keen interest in the New Britain operation. Here, apparently, military teamwork came near to perfection. Here it would seem that all arms co-operated so smoothly as to make the result easy. The truth is that nothing was easy on New Britain. Jungle, swamp and mountain combined with atrocious weather to multiply problems of time and space. Then, too, the Japanese held an inestimable advantage in their familiarity with the terrain-an advantage which they exploited with no little skill. It took maneuver on our part to cope with this phalanx of difficulties, and before the fighting ended it had sprawled over more territory than any other Marine campaign of the war. There is no such thing as a "light" casualty list, and more than 300 Marines paid with their lives in New Britain’s fetid jungle. But viewed in the light of numbers engaged, ground gained, and enemy losses, it was not a costly victory. On the contrary, the fighting that ranged from Cape Gloucester to Talasea ranks as one of the most economical operations in the entire Pacific.”-LEMUEL C. SHEPHERD, JR., GENERAL, U. S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS

Contains 58 photos and 10 maps and charts. “The return of Allied forces to the Philippines in the fall of 1944 further throttled Japan’s already tenuous pipe line to the rich resources of Malaya and the Netherlands Indies, and with it the last vestige of her ability to meet the logistical requirements of a continuing war. The Battle for Leyte Gulf marked the end of Japan as a naval power, forcing her to adopt the desperation kamikaze tactic against the United States Fleets. The Philippine victories were primarily Army and Navy operations. Marines, comprising only a fraction of the total forces engaged, played a secondary but significant role in the overall victory. The campaign was important to the Corps in that the Marine aviators, who had battled two years for air control over the Solomons, moved into a new role, their first opportunity to test on a large scale the fundamental Marine doctrine of close air support for ground troops in conventional land operations. This test they passed with credit, and Marine flyers contributed materially to the Philippine victory. Lessons learned and techniques perfected in those campaigns form an important chapter in our present-day close air support doctrines.”-C. B. CATES, GENERAL, U.S. MARINE CORPS, COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS