fbpx
Wikipedia

Douglas MacArthur's escape from the Philippines

March 20, 2023

On 11 March 1942, during World War II, General Douglas MacArthur and members of his family and staff left the Philippine island of Corregidor and his forces, which were surrounded by the Japanese. They traveled in PT boats through stormy seas patrolled by Japanese warships and reached Mindanao two days later. From there, MacArthur and his party flew to Australia in a pair of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses, ultimately arriving in Melbourne by train on 21 March. In Australia, he made a speech in which he declared, "I came through and I shall return".

PT-32, one of the four PT-20 class motor torpedo boats involved

MacArthur was a well-known and experienced officer with a distinguished record in World War I, who had retired from the United States Army in 1937 and had become a defense advisor to the Philippine government. He was recalled to active duty with the United States Army in July 1941, a few months before the outbreak of the Pacific War between the United States and the Empire of Japan, to become commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE), uniting the Philippine and United States Armies under one command.

By March 1942, the Japanese invasion of the Philippines had compelled MacArthur to withdraw his forces on Luzon to Bataan, while his headquarters and his family moved to Corregidor. The doomed defense of Bataan captured the imagination of the American public. At a time when the news from all fronts was uniformly bad, MacArthur became a living symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese.

Fearing that Corregidor would soon fall, and MacArthur would be taken prisoner, President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to go to Australia. A submarine was made available, but MacArthur elected to break through the Japanese blockade in PT boats under the command of Lieutenant (junior grade) John D. Bulkeley. The staff MacArthur brought with him became known as the "Bataan Gang". They would become the nucleus of his General Headquarters (GHQ) Southwest Pacific Area (SWPA).

Background

Douglas MacArthur was a well-known and experienced officer. The son of Lieutenant General Arthur MacArthur Jr., who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his services in the American Civil War, MacArthur graduated at the top of the United States Military Academy class of 1903.[1] He was an aide-de-camp to his father from 1905 to 1906, and to President Theodore Roosevelt from 1906 to 1907.[2] During World War I he commanded the 84th Brigade of the 42nd (Rainbow) Division in the fighting on the Western Front. After the war he served as Superintendent of the United States Military Academy, and as Chief of Staff of the United States Army. He retired from the United States Army in 1937, and became a field marshal in the Philippine Army.[1]

MacArthur's job was to advise the Philippine government on defense matters, and prepare the Philippine defense forces when the Philippines became fully independent, which was to be in 1946.[3] The Philippine Army, almost entirely manned and officered by Filipinos with only a small number of American advisors, was raised by conscription, with two classes of 20,000 men being trained each year, starting in 1937. In addition, there was a regular U.S. Army garrison of about 10,000, half of whom were Filipinos serving in the U.S. Army known as Philippine Scouts.[4] When MacArthur was recalled from retirement in July 1941 to become commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) at the age of 61, he united the Philippine and United States Armies under one command.[1]

 
MacArthur became a symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese

In getting the Philippine Army ready for war, MacArthur faced an enormous task.[5] On a visit to the United States in 1937, MacArthur lobbied the Navy Department for the development of PT boats—small, fast boats armed with torpedoes—for which he believed that the geography of the Philippines, with its shallow waters and many coves, was ideally suited.[6][7] The nascent Philippine Navy acquired three, known as "Q" boats, after President Manuel L. Quezon.[8] In August 1941, the U.S. Navy created Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three, under the command of Lieutenant (junior grade) John D. Bulkeley. It was a half-strength squadron, with only six PT boats instead of the normal twelve, numbered 31 to 35 and 41.[7] It arrived at Manila in September 1941.[9] It was understood that a fleet consisting of more than PT boats would be required for a successful defense of the Philippines.[4]

As early as 1907, U.S. naval and military planners had concluded that it would be impractical to repel an invasion of the Philippines. The best that could be hoped for was that the garrison could hold out on the Bataan peninsula until help arrived. In the 1920s it was estimated that they could do so for about 60 days. By the 1930s, the planners had become decidedly pessimistic in view of the increased capability of aircraft, and by 1936 they were agreed that the Philippines should be written off.[10] But in July 1941, this decision was abruptly reversed, and it became the policy of the U.S. government to defend and hold the Philippines. This was based, at least in part, in the belief that Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers could deter or defeat an invading force.[11]

Soon after the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in 1941, MacArthur, in accordance with the pre-war plan, declared Manila an open city, and ordered his forces on Luzon to withdraw to Bataan. The Philippine government, the high commissioner's office and MacArthur's USAFFE headquarters moved to Corregidor Island.[12] Although the dependents of U.S. military personnel had been sent back to the United States, MacArthur was, until his recall from retirement, a Philippine government employee, so his family had remained in the Philippines.[13] MacArthur's wife, Jean MacArthur, and young son, Arthur MacArthur IV, went with him to Corregidor.[14] Arthur celebrated his fourth birthday on Corregidor, on 21 February 1942.[15] When an aide asked about Arthur's possible fate, MacArthur replied: "He is a soldier's son."[16]

Most of the United States Asiatic Fleet retired to the south of the Philippines. A small force was left behind under the command of Rear Admiral Francis W. Rockwell consisting of the submarine tender USS Canopus, the submarine rescue ship Pigeon, gunboats Oahu, Luzon and Mindanao, minesweepers Finch, Tanager and Quail, five tugboats, three small patrol boats, and the PT boats of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three.[17] The loss of Manila and the U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay meant that fuel and spare parts became scarce. The PT boats relied on Canopus and the floating dry dock USS Dewey for assistance with maintenance. Despite this, Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three continued to patrol. On 17 December, PT-32, PT-34 and PT-35 rescued 296 survivors from SS Corregidor, which had been carrying refugees to Australia when it struck a mine and sank in Manila Bay. A week later, PT-33 ran aground while patrolling south of Manila Bay, and was set on fire to prevent her being salvaged by the Japanese. PT-31 met a similar fate a month later, after its engines failed and it drifted onto a reef.[17] The PT boats attacked enemy barges off Luzon on the night of 23 January 1942, a small Japanese warship on 1 February, and a small vessel, probably a fishing trawler, on 17 February.[18]

Decision

Washington

In a message to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Washington, D.C., on 11 February, MacArthur announced that he and his family intended to "share the fate of the garrison".[19] This meant surrender at best; MacArthur knew that death from artillery fire or an air raid was also likely.[20] Three days later, the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, George C. Marshall, urged MacArthur to send his family away, but MacArthur ignored this part of the message. Singapore, once considered impregnable, fell on 15 February, and in Washington, the possibility that Corregidor would also fall and MacArthur would be taken prisoner was considered. MacArthur was America's most experienced general, but would be of little use in a prisoner of war camp.[21] Moreover, he had become a living symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese. The brave but doomed defense of Bataan had captured the imagination of the American public,[22] who saw MacArthur as the only Allied general who knew how to fight the Japanese.[16] Walter R. Borneman noted that:

in a fragile period of the American psyche when the general American public, still stunned by the shock of Pearl Harbor and uncertain what lay ahead in Europe, desperately needed a hero, they wholeheartedly embraced Douglas MacArthur—good press copy that he was. There simply were no other choices that came close to matching his mystique, not to mention his evocative lone-wolf stand—something that always resonated with Americans.[23]

 
The Chief of Staff of the United States Army, George C. Marshall (left) confers with the Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson, in January 1942

Secretary of State Cordell Hull raised the possibility of MacArthur's evacuation.[21] Brigadier General Dwight Eisenhower wrote in his diary:

I cannot help thinking that we are disturbed by editorials and reacting to "public opinion" rather than to military logic. "Pa" Watson is certain we must get MacArthur out, as being worth "five Army corps".[24]

Roosevelt considered sending MacArthur to Mindanao to coordinate the defense of the Philippines from there, but another consideration arose. The fall of Singapore sealed the fate of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA), of which MacArthur's command was nominally a part. Discussions were held with the British about future command arrangements. A broad agreement was reached that the United States would assume responsibility for the Southwest Pacific. A senior American officer was required, and MacArthur was the obvious choice.[25] On 23 February, MacArthur received a message that had been drafted by Roosevelt, Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson and Marshall.[26] It read:

The President directs that you make arrangements to leave and proceed to Mindanao. You are directed to make this change as quickly as possible … From Mindanao you will proceed to Australia where you will assume command of all United States troops … Instructions will be given from here at your request for the movement of submarine or plane or both to enable you to carry out the foregoing instructions. You are authorized to take your chief of staff [Major] General [Richard K.] Sutherland.[27]

Corregidor

MacArthur responded with a request that he might select the time of his departure. "Unless the right moment is chosen for this delicate operation", he wrote, "a sudden collapse might occur."[24] "With regard to the actual movement", he went on, "I deem it advisable to go to Mindanao by combined use of surface craft and submarine, and thence by air, further movement by submarine being too time consuming."[24] Marshall replied that Roosevelt would allow him to choose the time and method of his departure.[26] ABDA was dissolved on 27 February, and MacArthur nominally came under Dutch command, but was ordered to continue communicating directly with the War Department.[25]

MacArthur inspected the PT boat squadron on 1 March. With air cover provided by his four remaining Curtiss P-40 Warhawks, MacArthur and his wife Jean took a half-hour ride on PT-41. Although the sea was tranquil, Jean still felt queasy.[26] Ostensibly, the purpose of MacArthur's visit was presenting Bulkeley with the Distinguished Service Cross for sinking an "unidentified 5,000-ton enemy ship with torpedoes without serious damage to his ship or casualty to his crew",[28] but afterwards MacArthur took Bulkeley aside and asked him if it would be possible to make the 600-mile (970-kilometer) journey through uncharted waters at night in PT boats.[29] Bulkeley told him that it would be "a piece of cake."[30]

When some days passed without any further word on the matter, follow-up messages were sent on 6 and 9 March.[26] By 10 March, MacArthur had decided that the Bataan front was not in danger of imminent collapse,[31] and replied that he planned to depart on 15 March,[26] when the submarine USS Permit was scheduled to arrive at Corregidor. Radio broadcasts in the United States calling for MacArthur to be placed in charge in Australia had been picked up by MacArthur's headquarters in Corregidor, and it had to be assumed that the Japanese had heard them too. There were ominous signs: Japanese surface patrols had been stepped up in the Subic Bay area, and there were reports of Japanese destroyers heading north from the southern Philippines.[32] MacArthur therefore elected not to wait for the Permit, but to leave as soon as possible, by PT boat on the night of 11 March.[26] Major General Jonathan M. Wainwright was left in command on Bataan and Corregidor. "When I get back", MacArthur told him, "if you're still on Bataan, I'll make you a lieutenant general." Wainwright replied: "I'll be on Bataan if I'm still alive."[33]

Of the decision to depart by PT boat rather than wait for the submarine, Lieutenant Robert B. Kelly, executive officer of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three, and commander of PT-34,[34] later recalled:

Having served with Lieutenant Bulkeley as his second in command on this and a prior assignment, I was privy to much of what transpired during his conferences with General MacArthur during the decision making process. MacArthur's decision to use the PT boats for the evacuation of his party dramatically emphasized to the American public the overwhelming odds against which the United States was fighting in the Philippines. It evened an old score with the United States Navy. And since he had a tendency towards claustrophobia and did not relish making the trip on a submerged submarine with a commander whom he did not personally know, it provided an acceptable alternative which he elected to exercise.[35]

Escape

Preparations

 
Lieutenant J. D. Bulkeley, commander of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three

Bulkeley and his crews overhauled the PT boats for the voyage. All of the engines had performed hard war service, and had been operated for double the recommended mileage without overhaul. As a result, they were reduced to operating at half speed. Since there were no replacement parts, the gaskets, which normally would have been discarded, had to be carefully cleaned and replaced. Each PT boat would carry twenty 55-gallon drums of additional fuel on the deck. This reduced the top speed of the boats to about 30 knots (56 kilometers per hour; 35 miles per hour).[36] To make room for the passengers, Bulkeley had to leave 32 of his men behind, who would be sent to fight as infantry on Bataan.[37]

Sutherland, who was MacArthur's chief of staff, drew up the passenger lists.[38] Rockwell and his chief of staff, Captain Herbert J. Ray, were ordered to accompany MacArthur.[32] They were already under orders to return by submarine, but this was switched to accompanying MacArthur when his date of departure was brought forward.[37] A United States Army Air Corps officer, Brigadier General Harold H. George, was included at the request of the United States Army Air Forces.[38]

MacArthur was accompanied by his family: his wife Jean, four-year-old son Arthur,[39] and Arthur's Cantonese amah, Ah Cheu. MacArthur later defended his decision to take her instead of an American nurse.[33] "Few people outside the Orient", he wrote, "know how completely a member of the family an amah can become, and Ah Cheu had been with us since Arthur's birth. Because of her relationship to my family, her death would have been certain had she been left behind."[40]

In case a doctor was needed, Major Charles H. Morhouse was summoned from Bataan to accompany the party. The remaining thirteen were members of MacArthur's staff, who were loyal and experienced; some had been with MacArthur for years. Creating a new staff in Australia would have taken time, while taking his existing one would enable him to commence work soon after arrival in Australia. They would be more valuable there than in the Philippines, where they would have been taken prisoner. Sutherland included two of his own men: his assistant, Lieutenant Colonel Francis H. Wilson, and his stenographer, Master Sergeant Paul P. Rogers. Promoted from private that day, Rogers was the only enlisted man on the list, which he typed. A number of men gave him letters to post.[38]

Because there was no food for the passengers on the PT boats, Jean and MacArthur's aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Colonel Sidney L. Huff, packed tins of food into four duffel bags, one for each boat.[33] Huff removed the four-star rank number plates from MacArthur's car so they could be used in Australia, and took a mattress for the MacArthurs to lie on. Stories later circulated that it was full of cash or gold. Other stories had it that furniture from MacArthur's residence in the Manila Hotel had been loaded on board the PT boats, even, in one version of the story, the piano.[40] In fact, each passenger was limited to one piece of luggage weighing 35 pounds (16 kilograms) or less. Jean took a small suitcase with some clothes.[41] It sported a label from the Hotel New Grand in Yokohama, where she stayed during her honeymoon.[42] Ah Cheu wrapped her possessions in a handkerchief. MacArthur took nothing.[41]

PT boats and passengers[43]
Boat Skipper Other officers Passengers
PT-32 Lieutenant (junior grade) Vince Schumacher Ensign Cone Johnson Brigadier General Spencer B. Akin, Brigadier General Hugh J. Casey, Brigadier General William F. Marquat, Brigadier General Harold H. George, Lieutenant Colonel Joe R. Sherr, Major Curtis L. Lambert
PT-34 Lieutenant Robert B. Kelly Ensign Iliff D. Richardson Rear Admiral Francis W. Rockwell, Brigadier General Richard J. Marshall, Colonel Charles P. Stivers, Captain Joseph McMicking
PT-35 Ensign Anthony B. Akers Lieutenant (junior grade) Henry Brantingham, Ensign Bond Murray Colonel Charles A. Willoughby, Lieutenant Colonel LeGrande A. Diller, Lieutenant Colonel Francis H. Wilson, Master Sergeant Paul P. Rogers
PT-41 Lieutenant John Bulkeley Ensign George Cox General Douglas MacArthur, Jean MacArthur, Arthur MacArthur IV, Ah Cheu, Major General Richard K. Sutherland, Captain Herbert J. Ray, Lieutenant Colonel Sidney L. Huff, Major Charles H. Morhouse

PT boat voyage

Only PT-41, which carried MacArthur and his family, departed from Corregidor's North Dock. The passengers of the remaining boats were taken to Bataan in launches and boarded their PT boats there.[44] While his family boarded, MacArthur spoke to Major General George F. Moore, the commander of the Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays. "George", he told him, "keep the flag flying. I'm coming back."[45]

PT-41 departed at 19:45 on 11 March and joined the other three 15 minutes later.[45] A navy minelayer led the PT boats through the protective minefield in single file.[46] The boats then assumed a diamond formation, with PT-41 in the lead and PT-34 bringing up the rear.[47] If attacked by the Japanese, PT-41 was to flee while the other three boats engaged the enemy.[48] The seas were moderate, but most of the passengers quickly became seasick.[49] MacArthur later recalled:

The weather deteriorated steadily, and towering waves buffeted our tiny, war-weary, blacked-out vessels. The spray drove against our skin like stinging pellets of birdshot. We would fall into a trough, then climb up the steep water peak, only to slide down the other side. The boat would toss crazily back and forth, seeming to hang free in space as though about to breach, and would then break away and go forward with a rush. I recall describing the experience afterward as what it must be like to take a trip in a concrete mixer.[50]

 
Lieutenant John D. Bulkeley (left) at the helm of a PT boat

During the night, the four boats became separated. Bulkeley spent time looking for the other three boats, but was unable to find them in the darkness. At dawn he gave up, and headed for one of the alternative hiding places.[51] Kelly's PT-34 was the first to reach the rendezvous point, a cove on Tagauayan Island, two hours late at 09:30. There was no sign of the other boats, and Rockwell, in the same boat with Kelly, was far from convinced that Kelly had found the correct island. Some repairs were made, and the boat was refueled by hand pumps from the drums. Two men were posted atop the island's tallest hill to watch out for the Japanese and the other boats.[52]

PT-32, which had only two good engines, had straggled behind the others. Around dawn, Schumacher spotted what appeared to be a Japanese destroyer heading towards him. He jettisoned his fuel drums so he could increase speed and run from it.[53] He ordered his crew to man the .50-caliber machine guns and get ready to launch torpedoes. Akin prepared to toss a barracks bag filled with code books overboard. However, as the light improved, and the vessel drew closer, another look through the binoculars revealed that it was not a Japanese destroyer at all, but PT-41, carrying an angry Bulkeley. Schumacher was ordered to recover the drums he had jettisoned, but this proved to be a time-consuming task, and a dangerous one in broad daylight, and it had to be abandoned after only a few drums were recovered. Bulkeley had his gunners sink the rest. The two boats then hid for the day in a nearby cove.[54]

In the afternoon, PT-41 and PT-32 made their way to Tagauayan, where they found PT-34. There was a discussion about whether to proceed to Mindanao, or wait for Permit. Bulkeley warned that the seas might even be higher. But, since there was no assurance that the submarine would make it, MacArthur decided to continue, departing in daylight at 18:00 so as to be sure to meet their air transport there. Since PT-32 had no fuel to make Mindanao, its passengers were divided between PT-41 and PT-34.[55] Soon after they had departed, PT-35 belatedly arrived at the rendezvous point. Akers found the crew of PT-32 there, and discovered that the other two boats had been and gone. He therefore set out for Cagayan de Oro as well.[56]

 
Route of MacArthur's escape by PT boat (red) and B-17 (blue)

At 19:00, about an hour after they had left Tagauayan, PT-34 and PT-41 spotted a Japanese cruiser. Bulkeley made a sharp turn due west, and headed at top speed, about 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph), into the setting sun. Whether because of the high waves, the glare of the sun, or simple inattentiveness, the cruiser did not spot them.[57][53] After midnight, the weather began to worsen, with heavy swells and sporadic squalls. Kelly later recalled:

Big foaming waves fifteen or twenty feet high thundering over the cockpit, drenching everybody. Our binoculars were full of water and our eyes so continuously drenched with stinging salt that we couldn't see, in addition to which it was pitch-black. We were making good speed through strange waters with islands all around us. We could see the outlines of the big ones—Negros and Mindanao—very dimly against the horizon through the storm. But there were dozens of small ones and probably hundreds of reefs.

You had to keep one hand in front of your eyes to avoid the slapping force of the water and yet you needed both to hold on.

The Admiral was pretty wrought up. "I've sailed every type of ship in the Navy except one of these MTBs", he shouted at me above the wind, "and this is the worst bridge I've ever been on. I wouldn't do duty on one of these for anything in the world—you can have them."[58]

By dawn, the winds and swells had subsided, but the delay caused by the bad weather had slowed the two boats, and they now had to travel across the Mindanao Sea in daylight. Cagayan was sighted shortly after 06:30 on 13 March. Although PT-34 had led all the way from Tagauayan, Kelly now let Bulkeley take the lead, as he had the channel charts. PT-41 therefore pulled up at the wharf first, with MacArthur on the bow. They were met by Colonel William Morse, an officer on the staff of the Brigadier General William F. Sharp, the commander of U.S. forces on Mindanao. MacArthur told Bulkeley "I'm giving every officer and man here the Silver Star for gallantry. You've taken me out of the jaws of death, and I won't forget it."[59]

A few hours later, PT-35 reached Cagayan. Willoughby later recalled:

We were behind schedule and reached the north coast of Mindanao in broad daylight. It was a clear, dazzling day. Fortunately, no Japanese planes cut across the blue sky, though the enemy was known to make regular mail flights from Mindanao to Luzon. We were pretty conspicuous as the hours dragged on.[60]

USS Permit, under the command of Lieutenant Wreford G. Chapple, reached Tagauayan on 13 March, and found PT-32. With two of his three engines out of action, Schumacher felt that his boat was no longer seaworthy. He had Chapple destroy the boat with Permit's deck gun. Chapple then took the fifteen PT-32 crewmen back to Corregidor. There, eight of the crew were disembarked, while Chapple embarked forty more passengers, thirty-six of them codebreakers. Nonetheless, Chapple was ordered to conduct a regular war patrol, which he did. He finally reached Australia on 7 April.[61] Unaware of this, Bulkeley attempted to locate PT-32.[62] Over the next few days he flew over the area as a passenger in various aircraft, including a P-35 and a P-40, in the hope of finding it.[63]

Aircraft

The commander of U.S. Army Forces in Australia, Lieutenant General George H. Brett, received a radiogram from General Marshall in Washington, D.C., alerting him that MacArthur would be requesting bombers to transport his party from Mindanao to Australia. A subsequent message from MacArthur requested his "most experienced pilots, and the best available planes in top condition",[64] but the only long-range aircraft that Brett had were Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 19th Bombardment Group which had seen hard service in the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies campaigns.[64] He therefore approached Vice Admiral Herbert F. Leary, the commander of naval forces in the Anzac Area, to ask for a loan of some of twelve newly arrived Navy B-17s. Leary, who had a reputation for refusing requests unless he could see how the Navy would benefit, turned Brett down.[65]

 
Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses

Brett therefore sent four of the 19th Bombardment Group's old planes. Two were forced to turn back with engine trouble. One of the others accidentally dumped 300 US gallons (1,100 litres; 250 imperial gallons) of its fuel. The pilot flew on, and nearly made it to Del Monte Field, but, just a few miles from his destination, the fuel tanks ran dry and the engines stopped. The B-17 crash landed in the sea. Two of the crew were killed, but the rest made it to shore, and thence to Del Monte Field. Only one B-17, piloted by Lieutenant Harl Pease, reached Del Monte, and this B-17 was in poor condition, with no brakes and a faulty supercharger. Sharp ordered it back to Australia before MacArthur arrived. Despite the lack of brakes, Pease made the return trip, carrying sixteen passengers.[56][65]

Thus, with the arrival of PT-35, all of MacArthur's group had reached Mindanao safely, but there were no aircraft at Del Monte Field to meet them. They were taken to the Del Monte Plantation, where they were lodged in the guest houses, and had breakfast in the clubhouse. MacArthur sent a couple of sharp messages to Brett in Melbourne and Marshall in Washington. On their second day there, a Filipino woman arrived who wanted to speak to MacArthur. Her son was fighting on Luzon, and she had walked 25 miles (40 kilometers) in the hope that the general would have some news about him. He did not, but the fact that she was aware of MacArthur's presence was disturbing to the party, as the Japanese were only 30 miles (48 km) away, at Davao on the south coast of Mindanao.[66][67]

 
MacArthur evacuation memorial at the site of the Del Monte Field, Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, Philippines

Brett went back to Leary, expecting to be turned down again, but this time, Leary gave Brett the aircraft he wanted. "Perhaps", Brett speculated, "Leary had heard from Washington".[65] The newly formed 40th Reconnaissance Squadron manned the bombers.[68] One B-17 turned back, but two made it to Del Monte Field on 16 March, landing in the dark on a runway lit by flares.[69] Lieutenant Frank P. Bostrom, the pilot of the first plane, calculated that everyone could be carried in just two planes if they left most of their baggage behind. They divided into two groups and the two bombers took off at 01:30 on 17 March. MacArthur rode in the radio operator's seat, which did not need to be manned as the aircraft were travelling under radio silence.[70] For most of the passengers, the trip was dark and cold, with only a blanket between them and the metal skin of the aircraft.[71]

As the two planes approached Darwin, word was received that a Japanese air raid was in progress there. The two B-17s therefore flew on to Batchelor Airfield, where they touched down at 09:30. MacArthur awarded Silver Stars to the crews of the two bombers.[70] Brett's chief of staff, Brigadier General Ralph Royce, was on hand to greet them, and Brett had sent two Australian National Airways DC-3s to bring them to Melbourne.[65] However, Jean now refused to fly any further, so MacArthur asked for a motorcade to take them to the nearest railway station, which was at Alice Springs, 1,000 miles (1,600 km) away. Sutherland had received word of an incoming Japanese air raid, and asked Morhouse to intervene. Morhouse told MacArthur that Arthur, who had suffered badly from seasickness and airsickness, was on an intravenous feed, and could not guarantee that he would survive the trip across the desert. MacArthur then agreed to take the planes to Alice Springs. Sutherland had Huff hurry everyone onto the aircraft, which took off as the air raid siren sounded.[72]

At Alice Springs, the party split up. MacArthur, his family, Sutherland, Morhouse and Huff took a special train that Brett had borrowed from the Australians, while the rest of the staff flew down to Melbourne via Adelaide in the DC-3s.[73] His speech, in which he said, "I came through and I shall return", was first made at Terowie railway station in South Australia, on 20 March, where he changed trains.[74][75] On 21 March, MacArthur's journey was completed when his train rolled into Melbourne's Spencer Street station, where he was greeted by the Australian Minister for the Army, Frank Forde.[76]

Aftermath

 
Bulkeley (right) receives the Medal of Honor from President Franklin D. Roosevelt (left). Admiral William D. Leahy looks on.

Roosevelt issued a public statement on 17 March:

I know that every man and woman in the United States admires with me General MacArthur's determination to fight to the finish with his men in the Philippines. But I also know that every man and woman is in agreement that all important decisions must be made with a view toward the successful termination of the war. Knowing this, I am sure that every American, if faced individually with the question as to where General MacArthur could best serve his country, could come to only one answer.[77]

On Bataan, the reaction to MacArthur's escape was mixed, with many American and Filipino troops feeling bitter and betrayed.[78] When Wainwright broke the news to his generals "they were all at first depressed by the news... But I soon saw that they understood just as I understood."[79] Some people with family members in the Philippines were dismayed. One wrote to Roosevelt that "Nothing you could have done would have broken their morale and that of their parents at home so thoroughly".[80] Wainwright held out on Corregidor until 6 May.[81] To Joseph Goebbels, MacArthur was a "fleeing general", while Benito Mussolini labeled him a coward.[82] Marshall decided that the best way to counter this was to award MacArthur the Medal of Honor.[83]

In April 1942, Bulkeley led his squadron in an attack on the Japanese cruiser Kuma. The PT boats scored a hit on the cruiser, but the torpedo was a dud, and failed to explode. No damage resulted.[84] With the loss of Cebu City, there were no more torpedoes, so the active careers of the remaining boats of Bulkeley's squadron came to an end. MacArthur gave PT boat officers a high priority to be flown out from Mindanao. Bulkeley was flown out on MacArthur's orders on 13 April.[85] Knox, Kelly and Akers were evacuated on 23 April, and Brantingham also made one of the last flights out from Mindanao. Sharp surrendered on Mindanao on 10 May.[86][87]

MacArthur subsequently nominated Bulkeley for the Medal of Honor. The Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, Admiral Ernest King was not going to let MacArthur award the Medal of Honor to a naval officer, so he wrote a citation for Bulkeley on behalf of the Navy.[88] Roosevelt presented it to Bulkeley in a ceremony in the Oval Office on 4 August 1942.[89] Bulkeley contributed to a book about his PT squadron's exploits, entitled They Were Expendable. Parts were serialized in Reader's Digest and Life magazines and it became a bestseller in 1942.[90] In 1944, it was adapted as a movie of the same name, with Robert Montgomery playing a character based on Bulkeley, John Wayne one based on Kelly, and Donna Reed in the role of an Army nurse with whom Kelly had a brief liaison.[91] Postwar analysis found that most of the book's claims were exaggerated.[92]

The staff that MacArthur brought with him from Corregidor formed the nucleus of General Headquarters (GHQ) Southwest Pacific Area (SWPA).[93] The "Bataan Gang", as they came to be called, remained with MacArthur for the duration, and were noted for their fanatical loyalty to him.[94] So too was Bulkeley, who lauded MacArthur as "the greatest general as well as statesman since George Washington", and hailed his decision to escape on PT boats as a stroke of genius.[91] Brigadier General Harold H. George, who had escaped with MacArthur from Corregidor, was killed on duty in April 1942 at Batchelor Field, southeast of Darwin, when a USAAF P-40 lost control on takeoff and slammed into George and his party who had just landed in a Lockheed C-40 to inspect the airfields of northern Australia on behalf of MacArthur. George and two others died in the accident.[95] MacArthur eventually kept his promise, and returned to the Philippines. The Bataan Gang returned to Corregidor in March 1945 on four PT boats.[96]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Morton 1953, pp. 18–19.
  2. ^ Manchester 1978, pp. 66–69.
  3. ^ James 1970, pp. 500–505.
  4. ^ a b Morton 1953, pp. 8–13.
  5. ^ Morton 1953, pp. 25–30.
  6. ^ MacArthur 1964, p. 106.
  7. ^ a b Smith 2005, pp. 52–53.
  8. ^ Smith 2005, p. 70.
  9. ^ Bulkley 1962, p. 1.
  10. ^ Miller 1991, pp. 53–61.
  11. ^ Morton 1953, pp. 31–32.
  12. ^ Morton 1953, pp. 160–164.
  13. ^ Manchester 1978, pp. 179–180.
  14. ^ James 1975, pp. 74–75.
  15. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 229.
  16. ^ a b Manchester 1978, p. 250.
  17. ^ a b Bulkley 1962, pp. 6–11.
  18. ^ Bulkley 1962, pp. 13–15.
  19. ^ Morton 1962, p. 194.
  20. ^ Rogers 1990, p. 186.
  21. ^ a b Morton 1962, pp. 193–194.
  22. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 242.
  23. ^ Borneman, Walter R. "Why Did MacArthur Become a Hero? In a Crisis We Are Desperate for Leaders". from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  24. ^ a b c Smith 2005, p. 166.
  25. ^ a b Morton 1953, pp. 356–357.
  26. ^ a b c d e f Manchester 1978, pp. 252–254.
  27. ^ Smith 2005, p. 165.
  28. ^ Bulkley 1962, p. 494.
  29. ^ Smith 2005, pp. 168–169.
  30. ^ Smith 2005, p. 169.
  31. ^ Morton 1953, p. 358.
  32. ^ a b Bulkley 1962, p. 16.
  33. ^ a b c Manchester 1978, p. 256.
  34. ^ Fowler, Glenn (28 January 1989). "Robert B. Kelly, 75, Naval Officer Prominent in Storied PT Boat Unit". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
  35. ^ Smith 2005, p. 171.
  36. ^ Smith 2005, p. 173.
  37. ^ a b Smith 2005, p. 175.
  38. ^ a b c Rogers 1990, pp. 187–189.
  39. ^ MacArthur 1964, p. 107.
  40. ^ a b MacArthur 1964, p. 141.
  41. ^ a b Manchester 1978, pp. 256–257.
  42. ^ Smith 2005, p. 186.
  43. ^ Smith 2005, p. 266.
  44. ^ Smith 2005, p. 180.
  45. ^ a b Smith 2005, p. 187.
  46. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 257.
  47. ^ Smith 2005, p. 189.
  48. ^ Smith 2005, p. 181.
  49. ^ Smith 2005, p. 190.
  50. ^ MacArthur 1964, pp. 143–144.
  51. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 259.
  52. ^ Smith 2005, p. 193.
  53. ^ a b Bulkley 1962, pp. 17–18.
  54. ^ Smith 2005, pp. 194–195.
  55. ^ Smith 2005, pp. 196–197.
  56. ^ a b Rogers 1990, p. 191.
  57. ^ Smith 2005, p. 199.
  58. ^ Smith 2005, p. 201.
  59. ^ Manchester 1978, pp. 262–263.
  60. ^ Willoughby & Chamberlain 1954, p. 50.
  61. ^ Blair 1975, pp. 193–194.
  62. ^ Bulkley 1962, p. 19.
  63. ^ White 1942, p. 155.
  64. ^ a b Brett 1947, p. 139.
  65. ^ a b c d Brett 1947, p. 140.
  66. ^ Rogers 1990, pp. 192–193.
  67. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 263.
  68. ^ Watson 1948, p. 407.
  69. ^ Willoughby & Chamberlain 1954, p. 52.
  70. ^ a b James 1975, p. 106.
  71. ^ Rogers 1990, p. 193.
  72. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 267.
  73. ^ Rogers 1990, p. 194.
  74. ^ "I Came Through; I Shall Return". The Advertiser. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 21 March 1942. p. 1. ISSN 1836-7682. from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  75. ^ "I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return". Monument Australia. from the original on 27 October 2017. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  76. ^ "Own Troops Welcome MacArthur". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane: National Library of Australia. 23 March 1942. p. 3. ISSN 1322-5235. from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  77. ^ Hurd, Charles (18 March 1942). "M'Arthur in Australia as Allied Commander; Move Hailed as Foreshadowing Turn of Tide". The New York Times. p. 1. from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  78. ^ James 1975, pp. 125–126.
  79. ^ James 1975, p. 125.
  80. ^ James 1975, p. 126.
  81. ^ James 1975, p. 154.
  82. ^ Manchester 1978, p. 275.
  83. ^ James 1975, pp. 130–132.
  84. ^ Bulkley 1962, pp. 21–24.
  85. ^ Smith 2005, p. 234.
  86. ^ Smith 2005, pp. 240–241.
  87. ^ Morton 1953, pp. 574–578.
  88. ^ Smith 2005, p. 244.
  89. ^ Smith 2005, p. 250.
  90. ^ White, W. L. (26 October 1942). "They Were Expendable". Life. Vol. 13, no. 17. Time Inc. pp. 114–124. ISSN 0024-3019. from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
  91. ^ a b Smith 2005, p. 257.
  92. ^ Smith 2005, pp. 255–256.
  93. ^ Morton 1962, p. 253.
  94. ^ Smith 2005, p. 262.
  95. ^ https://www.ozatwar.com/ozcrashes/nt105.htm 6 January 2022 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 5 January 2022
  96. ^ Smith 2005, p. 253.

References

  • Blair, Clay (1975). Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War Against Japan. Philadelphia: Lippincott. ISBN 978-0-397-00753-0. OCLC 821363.
  • Brett, George H. (October 1947). "The MacArthur I Knew". True. OCLC 270661854.
  • Bulkley, Robert J. Jr. (1962). At Close Quarters: PT Boats in the United States Navy. Washington: Naval History Division. OCLC 4444071. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  • James, D. Clayton (1970). The Years of MacArthur. Vol. 1, 1880–1941. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-0-395-10948-9. OCLC 60070186.
  • James, D. Clayton (1975). The Years of MacArthur. Vol. 2, 1941–1945. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-0-395-20446-7. OCLC 12591897.
  • MacArthur, Douglas (1964). Reminiscences of General of the Army Douglas MacArthur. Annapolis: Bluejacket Books. ISBN 978-1-55750-483-8. OCLC 220661276.
  • Manchester, William (1978). American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880–1964. Boston: Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-440-30424-1. OCLC 3844481.
  • Miller, Edward S. (1991). War Plan Orange: The U.S. Strategy to Defeat Japan, 1897–1945. Annapolis: United States Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-500-7. OCLC 23463775.
  • Morton, Louis (1953). (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army. OCLC 29293689. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  • Morton, Louis (1962). (PDF). Washington, D.C.: United States Army Center of Military History. OCLC 63151391. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  • Rogers, Paul P. (1990). The Good Years: MacArthur and Sutherland. New York: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 978-0-275-92918-3. OCLC 20452987.
  • Smith, George W. (2005). MacArthur's Escape: John "Wild Man" Bulkeley and the Rescue of an American Hero. St Paul, Minnesota: Zenith Press. ISBN 978-0-7603-2176-8. OCLC 58752820.
  • Watson, Richard L. (1948). "The Defense of Australia". In Craven, Wesley Frank; Cate, James Lea (eds.). Plans and Early Operations (January 1939 to August 1942) Vol. I. The Army Air Forces in World War II. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 403–426. OCLC 222565036.
  • White, William Lindsay (1942). They Were Expendable. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co. OCLC 397892.
  • Willoughby, Charles Andrew; Chamberlain, John (1954). MacArthur, 1941–1951. New York: McGraw-Hill. OCLC 366467.

Further reading

  • "GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR IN AUSTRALIA DURING WWII". ozatwar.com. Retrieved 6 March 2023.

March 20, 2023
douglas, macarthur, escape, from, philippines, march, 1942, during, world, general, douglas, macarthur, members, family, staff, left, philippine, island, corregidor, forces, which, were, surrounded, japanese, they, traveled, boats, through, stormy, seas, patro. On 11 March 1942 during World War II General Douglas MacArthur and members of his family and staff left the Philippine island of Corregidor and his forces which were surrounded by the Japanese They traveled in PT boats through stormy seas patrolled by Japanese warships and reached Mindanao two days later From there MacArthur and his party flew to Australia in a pair of Boeing B 17 Flying Fortresses ultimately arriving in Melbourne by train on 21 March In Australia he made a speech in which he declared I came through and I shall return PT 32 one of the four PT 20 class motor torpedo boats involved MacArthur was a well known and experienced officer with a distinguished record in World War I who had retired from the United States Army in 1937 and had become a defense advisor to the Philippine government He was recalled to active duty with the United States Army in July 1941 a few months before the outbreak of the Pacific War between the United States and the Empire of Japan to become commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East USAFFE uniting the Philippine and United States Armies under one command By March 1942 the Japanese invasion of the Philippines had compelled MacArthur to withdraw his forces on Luzon to Bataan while his headquarters and his family moved to Corregidor The doomed defense of Bataan captured the imagination of the American public At a time when the news from all fronts was uniformly bad MacArthur became a living symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese Fearing that Corregidor would soon fall and MacArthur would be taken prisoner President Franklin D Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to go to Australia A submarine was made available but MacArthur elected to break through the Japanese blockade in PT boats under the command of Lieutenant junior grade John D Bulkeley The staff MacArthur brought with him became known as the Bataan Gang They would become the nucleus of his General Headquarters GHQ Southwest Pacific Area SWPA Contents 1 Background 2 Decision 2 1 Washington 2 2 Corregidor 3 Escape 3 1 Preparations 3 2 PT boat voyage 3 3 Aircraft 4 Aftermath 5 Notes 6 References 7 Further readingBackground EditDouglas MacArthur was a well known and experienced officer The son of Lieutenant General Arthur MacArthur Jr who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his services in the American Civil War MacArthur graduated at the top of the United States Military Academy class of 1903 1 He was an aide de camp to his father from 1905 to 1906 and to President Theodore Roosevelt from 1906 to 1907 2 During World War I he commanded the 84th Brigade of the 42nd Rainbow Division in the fighting on the Western Front After the war he served as Superintendent of the United States Military Academy and as Chief of Staff of the United States Army He retired from the United States Army in 1937 and became a field marshal in the Philippine Army 1 MacArthur s job was to advise the Philippine government on defense matters and prepare the Philippine defense forces when the Philippines became fully independent which was to be in 1946 3 The Philippine Army almost entirely manned and officered by Filipinos with only a small number of American advisors was raised by conscription with two classes of 20 000 men being trained each year starting in 1937 In addition there was a regular U S Army garrison of about 10 000 half of whom were Filipinos serving in the U S Army known as Philippine Scouts 4 When MacArthur was recalled from retirement in July 1941 to become commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East USAFFE at the age of 61 he united the Philippine and United States Armies under one command 1 MacArthur became a symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese In getting the Philippine Army ready for war MacArthur faced an enormous task 5 On a visit to the United States in 1937 MacArthur lobbied the Navy Department for the development of PT boats small fast boats armed with torpedoes for which he believed that the geography of the Philippines with its shallow waters and many coves was ideally suited 6 7 The nascent Philippine Navy acquired three known as Q boats after President Manuel L Quezon 8 In August 1941 the U S Navy created Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three under the command of Lieutenant junior grade John D Bulkeley It was a half strength squadron with only six PT boats instead of the normal twelve numbered 31 to 35 and 41 7 It arrived at Manila in September 1941 9 It was understood that a fleet consisting of more than PT boats would be required for a successful defense of the Philippines 4 As early as 1907 U S naval and military planners had concluded that it would be impractical to repel an invasion of the Philippines The best that could be hoped for was that the garrison could hold out on the Bataan peninsula until help arrived In the 1920s it was estimated that they could do so for about 60 days By the 1930s the planners had become decidedly pessimistic in view of the increased capability of aircraft and by 1936 they were agreed that the Philippines should be written off 10 But in July 1941 this decision was abruptly reversed and it became the policy of the U S government to defend and hold the Philippines This was based at least in part in the belief that Boeing B 17 Flying Fortress bombers could deter or defeat an invading force 11 Soon after the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in 1941 MacArthur in accordance with the pre war plan declared Manila an open city and ordered his forces on Luzon to withdraw to Bataan The Philippine government the high commissioner s office and MacArthur s USAFFE headquarters moved to Corregidor Island 12 Although the dependents of U S military personnel had been sent back to the United States MacArthur was until his recall from retirement a Philippine government employee so his family had remained in the Philippines 13 MacArthur s wife Jean MacArthur and young son Arthur MacArthur IV went with him to Corregidor 14 Arthur celebrated his fourth birthday on Corregidor on 21 February 1942 15 When an aide asked about Arthur s possible fate MacArthur replied He is a soldier s son 16 Most of the United States Asiatic Fleet retired to the south of the Philippines A small force was left behind under the command of Rear Admiral Francis W Rockwell consisting of the submarine tender USS Canopus the submarine rescue ship Pigeon gunboats Oahu Luzon and Mindanao minesweepers Finch Tanager and Quail five tugboats three small patrol boats and the PT boats of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three 17 The loss of Manila and the U S Naval Base Subic Bay meant that fuel and spare parts became scarce The PT boats relied on Canopus and the floating dry dock USS Dewey for assistance with maintenance Despite this Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three continued to patrol On 17 December PT 32 PT 34 and PT 35 rescued 296 survivors from SS Corregidor which had been carrying refugees to Australia when it struck a mine and sank in Manila Bay A week later PT 33 ran aground while patrolling south of Manila Bay and was set on fire to prevent her being salvaged by the Japanese PT 31 met a similar fate a month later after its engines failed and it drifted onto a reef 17 The PT boats attacked enemy barges off Luzon on the night of 23 January 1942 a small Japanese warship on 1 February and a small vessel probably a fishing trawler on 17 February 18 Decision EditWashington Edit In a message to President Franklin D Roosevelt in Washington D C on 11 February MacArthur announced that he and his family intended to share the fate of the garrison 19 This meant surrender at best MacArthur knew that death from artillery fire or an air raid was also likely 20 Three days later the Chief of Staff of the United States Army George C Marshall urged MacArthur to send his family away but MacArthur ignored this part of the message Singapore once considered impregnable fell on 15 February and in Washington the possibility that Corregidor would also fall and MacArthur would be taken prisoner was considered MacArthur was America s most experienced general but would be of little use in a prisoner of war camp 21 Moreover he had become a living symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese The brave but doomed defense of Bataan had captured the imagination of the American public 22 who saw MacArthur as the only Allied general who knew how to fight the Japanese 16 Walter R Borneman noted that in a fragile period of the American psyche when the general American public still stunned by the shock of Pearl Harbor and uncertain what lay ahead in Europe desperately needed a hero they wholeheartedly embraced Douglas MacArthur good press copy that he was There simply were no other choices that came close to matching his mystique not to mention his evocative lone wolf stand something that always resonated with Americans 23 The Chief of Staff of the United States Army George C Marshall left confers with the Secretary of War Henry L Stimson in January 1942 Secretary of State Cordell Hull raised the possibility of MacArthur s evacuation 21 Brigadier General Dwight Eisenhower wrote in his diary I cannot help thinking that we are disturbed by editorials and reacting to public opinion rather than to military logic Pa Watson is certain we must get MacArthur out as being worth five Army corps 24 Roosevelt considered sending MacArthur to Mindanao to coordinate the defense of the Philippines from there but another consideration arose The fall of Singapore sealed the fate of the American British Dutch Australian Command ABDA of which MacArthur s command was nominally a part Discussions were held with the British about future command arrangements A broad agreement was reached that the United States would assume responsibility for the Southwest Pacific A senior American officer was required and MacArthur was the obvious choice 25 On 23 February MacArthur received a message that had been drafted by Roosevelt Secretary of War Henry L Stimson and Marshall 26 It read The President directs that you make arrangements to leave and proceed to Mindanao You are directed to make this change as quickly as possible From Mindanao you will proceed to Australia where you will assume command of all United States troops Instructions will be given from here at your request for the movement of submarine or plane or both to enable you to carry out the foregoing instructions You are authorized to take your chief of staff Major General Richard K Sutherland 27 Corregidor Edit MacArthur responded with a request that he might select the time of his departure Unless the right moment is chosen for this delicate operation he wrote a sudden collapse might occur 24 With regard to the actual movement he went on I deem it advisable to go to Mindanao by combined use of surface craft and submarine and thence by air further movement by submarine being too time consuming 24 Marshall replied that Roosevelt would allow him to choose the time and method of his departure 26 ABDA was dissolved on 27 February and MacArthur nominally came under Dutch command but was ordered to continue communicating directly with the War Department 25 MacArthur inspected the PT boat squadron on 1 March With air cover provided by his four remaining Curtiss P 40 Warhawks MacArthur and his wife Jean took a half hour ride on PT 41 Although the sea was tranquil Jean still felt queasy 26 Ostensibly the purpose of MacArthur s visit was presenting Bulkeley with the Distinguished Service Cross for sinking an unidentified 5 000 ton enemy ship with torpedoes without serious damage to his ship or casualty to his crew 28 but afterwards MacArthur took Bulkeley aside and asked him if it would be possible to make the 600 mile 970 kilometer journey through uncharted waters at night in PT boats 29 Bulkeley told him that it would be a piece of cake 30 When some days passed without any further word on the matter follow up messages were sent on 6 and 9 March 26 By 10 March MacArthur had decided that the Bataan front was not in danger of imminent collapse 31 and replied that he planned to depart on 15 March 26 when the submarine USS Permit was scheduled to arrive at Corregidor Radio broadcasts in the United States calling for MacArthur to be placed in charge in Australia had been picked up by MacArthur s headquarters in Corregidor and it had to be assumed that the Japanese had heard them too There were ominous signs Japanese surface patrols had been stepped up in the Subic Bay area and there were reports of Japanese destroyers heading north from the southern Philippines 32 MacArthur therefore elected not to wait for the Permit but to leave as soon as possible by PT boat on the night of 11 March 26 Major General Jonathan M Wainwright was left in command on Bataan and Corregidor When I get back MacArthur told him if you re still on Bataan I ll make you a lieutenant general Wainwright replied I ll be on Bataan if I m still alive 33 Of the decision to depart by PT boat rather than wait for the submarine Lieutenant Robert B Kelly executive officer of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three and commander of PT 34 34 later recalled Having served with Lieutenant Bulkeley as his second in command on this and a prior assignment I was privy to much of what transpired during his conferences with General MacArthur during the decision making process MacArthur s decision to use the PT boats for the evacuation of his party dramatically emphasized to the American public the overwhelming odds against which the United States was fighting in the Philippines It evened an old score with the United States Navy And since he had a tendency towards claustrophobia and did not relish making the trip on a submerged submarine with a commander whom he did not personally know it provided an acceptable alternative which he elected to exercise 35 Escape EditPreparations Edit Lieutenant J D Bulkeley commander of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three Bulkeley and his crews overhauled the PT boats for the voyage All of the engines had performed hard war service and had been operated for double the recommended mileage without overhaul As a result they were reduced to operating at half speed Since there were no replacement parts the gaskets which normally would have been discarded had to be carefully cleaned and replaced Each PT boat would carry twenty 55 gallon drums of additional fuel on the deck This reduced the top speed of the boats to about 30 knots 56 kilometers per hour 35 miles per hour 36 To make room for the passengers Bulkeley had to leave 32 of his men behind who would be sent to fight as infantry on Bataan 37 Sutherland who was MacArthur s chief of staff drew up the passenger lists 38 Rockwell and his chief of staff Captain Herbert J Ray were ordered to accompany MacArthur 32 They were already under orders to return by submarine but this was switched to accompanying MacArthur when his date of departure was brought forward 37 A United States Army Air Corps officer Brigadier General Harold H George was included at the request of the United States Army Air Forces 38 MacArthur was accompanied by his family his wife Jean four year old son Arthur 39 and Arthur s Cantonese amah Ah Cheu MacArthur later defended his decision to take her instead of an American nurse 33 Few people outside the Orient he wrote know how completely a member of the family an amah can become and Ah Cheu had been with us since Arthur s birth Because of her relationship to my family her death would have been certain had she been left behind 40 In case a doctor was needed Major Charles H Morhouse was summoned from Bataan to accompany the party The remaining thirteen were members of MacArthur s staff who were loyal and experienced some had been with MacArthur for years Creating a new staff in Australia would have taken time while taking his existing one would enable him to commence work soon after arrival in Australia They would be more valuable there than in the Philippines where they would have been taken prisoner Sutherland included two of his own men his assistant Lieutenant Colonel Francis H Wilson and his stenographer Master Sergeant Paul P Rogers Promoted from private that day Rogers was the only enlisted man on the list which he typed A number of men gave him letters to post 38 Because there was no food for the passengers on the PT boats Jean and MacArthur s aide de camp Lieutenant Colonel Sidney L Huff packed tins of food into four duffel bags one for each boat 33 Huff removed the four star rank number plates from MacArthur s car so they could be used in Australia and took a mattress for the MacArthurs to lie on Stories later circulated that it was full of cash or gold Other stories had it that furniture from MacArthur s residence in the Manila Hotel had been loaded on board the PT boats even in one version of the story the piano 40 In fact each passenger was limited to one piece of luggage weighing 35 pounds 16 kilograms or less Jean took a small suitcase with some clothes 41 It sported a label from the Hotel New Grand in Yokohama where she stayed during her honeymoon 42 Ah Cheu wrapped her possessions in a handkerchief MacArthur took nothing 41 PT boats and passengers 43 Boat Skipper Other officers PassengersPT 32 Lieutenant junior grade Vince Schumacher Ensign Cone Johnson Brigadier General Spencer B Akin Brigadier General Hugh J Casey Brigadier General William F Marquat Brigadier General Harold H George Lieutenant Colonel Joe R Sherr Major Curtis L LambertPT 34 Lieutenant Robert B Kelly Ensign Iliff D Richardson Rear Admiral Francis W Rockwell Brigadier General Richard J Marshall Colonel Charles P Stivers Captain Joseph McMickingPT 35 Ensign Anthony B Akers Lieutenant junior grade Henry Brantingham Ensign Bond Murray Colonel Charles A Willoughby Lieutenant Colonel LeGrande A Diller Lieutenant Colonel Francis H Wilson Master Sergeant Paul P RogersPT 41 Lieutenant John Bulkeley Ensign George Cox General Douglas MacArthur Jean MacArthur Arthur MacArthur IV Ah Cheu Major General Richard K Sutherland Captain Herbert J Ray Lieutenant Colonel Sidney L Huff Major Charles H MorhousePT boat voyage Edit Only PT 41 which carried MacArthur and his family departed from Corregidor s North Dock The passengers of the remaining boats were taken to Bataan in launches and boarded their PT boats there 44 While his family boarded MacArthur spoke to Major General George F Moore the commander of the Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays George he told him keep the flag flying I m coming back 45 PT 41 departed at 19 45 on 11 March and joined the other three 15 minutes later 45 A navy minelayer led the PT boats through the protective minefield in single file 46 The boats then assumed a diamond formation with PT 41 in the lead and PT 34 bringing up the rear 47 If attacked by the Japanese PT 41 was to flee while the other three boats engaged the enemy 48 The seas were moderate but most of the passengers quickly became seasick 49 MacArthur later recalled The weather deteriorated steadily and towering waves buffeted our tiny war weary blacked out vessels The spray drove against our skin like stinging pellets of birdshot We would fall into a trough then climb up the steep water peak only to slide down the other side The boat would toss crazily back and forth seeming to hang free in space as though about to breach and would then break away and go forward with a rush I recall describing the experience afterward as what it must be like to take a trip in a concrete mixer 50 Lieutenant John D Bulkeley left at the helm of a PT boat During the night the four boats became separated Bulkeley spent time looking for the other three boats but was unable to find them in the darkness At dawn he gave up and headed for one of the alternative hiding places 51 Kelly s PT 34 was the first to reach the rendezvous point a cove on Tagauayan Island two hours late at 09 30 There was no sign of the other boats and Rockwell in the same boat with Kelly was far from convinced that Kelly had found the correct island Some repairs were made and the boat was refueled by hand pumps from the drums Two men were posted atop the island s tallest hill to watch out for the Japanese and the other boats 52 PT 32 which had only two good engines had straggled behind the others Around dawn Schumacher spotted what appeared to be a Japanese destroyer heading towards him He jettisoned his fuel drums so he could increase speed and run from it 53 He ordered his crew to man the 50 caliber machine guns and get ready to launch torpedoes Akin prepared to toss a barracks bag filled with code books overboard However as the light improved and the vessel drew closer another look through the binoculars revealed that it was not a Japanese destroyer at all but PT 41 carrying an angry Bulkeley Schumacher was ordered to recover the drums he had jettisoned but this proved to be a time consuming task and a dangerous one in broad daylight and it had to be abandoned after only a few drums were recovered Bulkeley had his gunners sink the rest The two boats then hid for the day in a nearby cove 54 In the afternoon PT 41 and PT 32 made their way to Tagauayan where they found PT 34 There was a discussion about whether to proceed to Mindanao or wait for Permit Bulkeley warned that the seas might even be higher But since there was no assurance that the submarine would make it MacArthur decided to continue departing in daylight at 18 00 so as to be sure to meet their air transport there Since PT 32 had no fuel to make Mindanao its passengers were divided between PT 41 and PT 34 55 Soon after they had departed PT 35 belatedly arrived at the rendezvous point Akers found the crew of PT 32 there and discovered that the other two boats had been and gone He therefore set out for Cagayan de Oro as well 56 Route of MacArthur s escape by PT boat red and B 17 blue At 19 00 about an hour after they had left Tagauayan PT 34 and PT 41 spotted a Japanese cruiser Bulkeley made a sharp turn due west and headed at top speed about 20 knots 37 km h 23 mph into the setting sun Whether because of the high waves the glare of the sun or simple inattentiveness the cruiser did not spot them 57 53 After midnight the weather began to worsen with heavy swells and sporadic squalls Kelly later recalled Big foaming waves fifteen or twenty feet high thundering over the cockpit drenching everybody Our binoculars were full of water and our eyes so continuously drenched with stinging salt that we couldn t see in addition to which it was pitch black We were making good speed through strange waters with islands all around us We could see the outlines of the big ones Negros and Mindanao very dimly against the horizon through the storm But there were dozens of small ones and probably hundreds of reefs You had to keep one hand in front of your eyes to avoid the slapping force of the water and yet you needed both to hold on The Admiral was pretty wrought up I ve sailed every type of ship in the Navy except one of these MTBs he shouted at me above the wind and this is the worst bridge I ve ever been on I wouldn t do duty on one of these for anything in the world you can have them 58 By dawn the winds and swells had subsided but the delay caused by the bad weather had slowed the two boats and they now had to travel across the Mindanao Sea in daylight Cagayan was sighted shortly after 06 30 on 13 March Although PT 34 had led all the way from Tagauayan Kelly now let Bulkeley take the lead as he had the channel charts PT 41 therefore pulled up at the wharf first with MacArthur on the bow They were met by Colonel William Morse an officer on the staff of the Brigadier General William F Sharp the commander of U S forces on Mindanao MacArthur told Bulkeley I m giving every officer and man here the Silver Star for gallantry You ve taken me out of the jaws of death and I won t forget it 59 A few hours later PT 35 reached Cagayan Willoughby later recalled We were behind schedule and reached the north coast of Mindanao in broad daylight It was a clear dazzling day Fortunately no Japanese planes cut across the blue sky though the enemy was known to make regular mail flights from Mindanao to Luzon We were pretty conspicuous as the hours dragged on 60 USS Permit under the command of Lieutenant Wreford G Chapple reached Tagauayan on 13 March and found PT 32 With two of his three engines out of action Schumacher felt that his boat was no longer seaworthy He had Chapple destroy the boat with Permit s deck gun Chapple then took the fifteen PT 32 crewmen back to Corregidor There eight of the crew were disembarked while Chapple embarked forty more passengers thirty six of them codebreakers Nonetheless Chapple was ordered to conduct a regular war patrol which he did He finally reached Australia on 7 April 61 Unaware of this Bulkeley attempted to locate PT 32 62 Over the next few days he flew over the area as a passenger in various aircraft including a P 35 and a P 40 in the hope of finding it 63 Aircraft Edit The commander of U S Army Forces in Australia Lieutenant General George H Brett received a radiogram from General Marshall in Washington D C alerting him that MacArthur would be requesting bombers to transport his party from Mindanao to Australia A subsequent message from MacArthur requested his most experienced pilots and the best available planes in top condition 64 but the only long range aircraft that Brett had were Boeing B 17 Flying Fortresses of the 19th Bombardment Group which had seen hard service in the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies campaigns 64 He therefore approached Vice Admiral Herbert F Leary the commander of naval forces in the Anzac Area to ask for a loan of some of twelve newly arrived Navy B 17s Leary who had a reputation for refusing requests unless he could see how the Navy would benefit turned Brett down 65 Boeing B 17E Flying Fortresses Brett therefore sent four of the 19th Bombardment Group s old planes Two were forced to turn back with engine trouble One of the others accidentally dumped 300 US gallons 1 100 litres 250 imperial gallons of its fuel The pilot flew on and nearly made it to Del Monte Field but just a few miles from his destination the fuel tanks ran dry and the engines stopped The B 17 crash landed in the sea Two of the crew were killed but the rest made it to shore and thence to Del Monte Field Only one B 17 piloted by Lieutenant Harl Pease reached Del Monte and this B 17 was in poor condition with no brakes and a faulty supercharger Sharp ordered it back to Australia before MacArthur arrived Despite the lack of brakes Pease made the return trip carrying sixteen passengers 56 65 Thus with the arrival of PT 35 all of MacArthur s group had reached Mindanao safely but there were no aircraft at Del Monte Field to meet them They were taken to the Del Monte Plantation where they were lodged in the guest houses and had breakfast in the clubhouse MacArthur sent a couple of sharp messages to Brett in Melbourne and Marshall in Washington On their second day there a Filipino woman arrived who wanted to speak to MacArthur Her son was fighting on Luzon and she had walked 25 miles 40 kilometers in the hope that the general would have some news about him He did not but the fact that she was aware of MacArthur s presence was disturbing to the party as the Japanese were only 30 miles 48 km away at Davao on the south coast of Mindanao 66 67 MacArthur evacuation memorial at the site of the Del Monte Field Manolo Fortich Bukidnon Philippines Brett went back to Leary expecting to be turned down again but this time Leary gave Brett the aircraft he wanted Perhaps Brett speculated Leary had heard from Washington 65 The newly formed 40th Reconnaissance Squadron manned the bombers 68 One B 17 turned back but two made it to Del Monte Field on 16 March landing in the dark on a runway lit by flares 69 Lieutenant Frank P Bostrom the pilot of the first plane calculated that everyone could be carried in just two planes if they left most of their baggage behind They divided into two groups and the two bombers took off at 01 30 on 17 March MacArthur rode in the radio operator s seat which did not need to be manned as the aircraft were travelling under radio silence 70 For most of the passengers the trip was dark and cold with only a blanket between them and the metal skin of the aircraft 71 As the two planes approached Darwin word was received that a Japanese air raid was in progress there The two B 17s therefore flew on to Batchelor Airfield where they touched down at 09 30 MacArthur awarded Silver Stars to the crews of the two bombers 70 Brett s chief of staff Brigadier General Ralph Royce was on hand to greet them and Brett had sent two Australian National Airways DC 3s to bring them to Melbourne 65 However Jean now refused to fly any further so MacArthur asked for a motorcade to take them to the nearest railway station which was at Alice Springs 1 000 miles 1 600 km away Sutherland had received word of an incoming Japanese air raid and asked Morhouse to intervene Morhouse told MacArthur that Arthur who had suffered badly from seasickness and airsickness was on an intravenous feed and could not guarantee that he would survive the trip across the desert MacArthur then agreed to take the planes to Alice Springs Sutherland had Huff hurry everyone onto the aircraft which took off as the air raid siren sounded 72 At Alice Springs the party split up MacArthur his family Sutherland Morhouse and Huff took a special train that Brett had borrowed from the Australians while the rest of the staff flew down to Melbourne via Adelaide in the DC 3s 73 His speech in which he said I came through and I shall return was first made at Terowie railway station in South Australia on 20 March where he changed trains 74 75 On 21 March MacArthur s journey was completed when his train rolled into Melbourne s Spencer Street station where he was greeted by the Australian Minister for the Army Frank Forde 76 Aftermath Edit Bulkeley right receives the Medal of Honor from President Franklin D Roosevelt left Admiral William D Leahy looks on Roosevelt issued a public statement on 17 March I know that every man and woman in the United States admires with me General MacArthur s determination to fight to the finish with his men in the Philippines But I also know that every man and woman is in agreement that all important decisions must be made with a view toward the successful termination of the war Knowing this I am sure that every American if faced individually with the question as to where General MacArthur could best serve his country could come to only one answer 77 On Bataan the reaction to MacArthur s escape was mixed with many American and Filipino troops feeling bitter and betrayed 78 When Wainwright broke the news to his generals they were all at first depressed by the news But I soon saw that they understood just as I understood 79 Some people with family members in the Philippines were dismayed One wrote to Roosevelt that Nothing you could have done would have broken their morale and that of their parents at home so thoroughly 80 Wainwright held out on Corregidor until 6 May 81 To Joseph Goebbels MacArthur was a fleeing general while Benito Mussolini labeled him a coward 82 Marshall decided that the best way to counter this was to award MacArthur the Medal of Honor 83 In April 1942 Bulkeley led his squadron in an attack on the Japanese cruiser Kuma The PT boats scored a hit on the cruiser but the torpedo was a dud and failed to explode No damage resulted 84 With the loss of Cebu City there were no more torpedoes so the active careers of the remaining boats of Bulkeley s squadron came to an end MacArthur gave PT boat officers a high priority to be flown out from Mindanao Bulkeley was flown out on MacArthur s orders on 13 April 85 Knox Kelly and Akers were evacuated on 23 April and Brantingham also made one of the last flights out from Mindanao Sharp surrendered on Mindanao on 10 May 86 87 MacArthur subsequently nominated Bulkeley for the Medal of Honor The Commander in Chief U S Fleet Admiral Ernest King was not going to let MacArthur award the Medal of Honor to a naval officer so he wrote a citation for Bulkeley on behalf of the Navy 88 Roosevelt presented it to Bulkeley in a ceremony in the Oval Office on 4 August 1942 89 Bulkeley contributed to a book about his PT squadron s exploits entitled They Were Expendable Parts were serialized in Reader s Digest and Life magazines and it became a bestseller in 1942 90 In 1944 it was adapted as a movie of the same name with Robert Montgomery playing a character based on Bulkeley John Wayne one based on Kelly and Donna Reed in the role of an Army nurse with whom Kelly had a brief liaison 91 Postwar analysis found that most of the book s claims were exaggerated 92 The staff that MacArthur brought with him from Corregidor formed the nucleus of General Headquarters GHQ Southwest Pacific Area SWPA 93 The Bataan Gang as they came to be called remained with MacArthur for the duration and were noted for their fanatical loyalty to him 94 So too was Bulkeley who lauded MacArthur as the greatest general as well as statesman since George Washington and hailed his decision to escape on PT boats as a stroke of genius 91 Brigadier General Harold H George who had escaped with MacArthur from Corregidor was killed on duty in April 1942 at Batchelor Field southeast of Darwin when a USAAF P 40 lost control on takeoff and slammed into George and his party who had just landed in a Lockheed C 40 to inspect the airfields of northern Australia on behalf of MacArthur George and two others died in the accident 95 MacArthur eventually kept his promise and returned to the Philippines The Bataan Gang returned to Corregidor in March 1945 on four PT boats 96 Notes Edit a b c Morton 1953 pp 18 19 Manchester 1978 pp 66 69 James 1970 pp 500 505 a b Morton 1953 pp 8 13 Morton 1953 pp 25 30 MacArthur 1964 p 106 a b Smith 2005 pp 52 53 Smith 2005 p 70 Bulkley 1962 p 1 Miller 1991 pp 53 61 Morton 1953 pp 31 32 Morton 1953 pp 160 164 Manchester 1978 pp 179 180 James 1975 pp 74 75 Manchester 1978 p 229 a b Manchester 1978 p 250 a b Bulkley 1962 pp 6 11 Bulkley 1962 pp 13 15 Morton 1962 p 194 Rogers 1990 p 186 a b Morton 1962 pp 193 194 Manchester 1978 p 242 Borneman Walter R Why Did MacArthur Become a Hero In a Crisis We Are Desperate for Leaders Archived from the original on 16 January 2021 Retrieved 15 May 2016 a b c Smith 2005 p 166 a b Morton 1953 pp 356 357 a b c d e f Manchester 1978 pp 252 254 Smith 2005 p 165 Bulkley 1962 p 494 Smith 2005 pp 168 169 Smith 2005 p 169 Morton 1953 p 358 a b Bulkley 1962 p 16 a b c Manchester 1978 p 256 Fowler Glenn 28 January 1989 Robert B Kelly 75 Naval Officer Prominent in Storied PT Boat Unit The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on 24 June 2018 Retrieved 8 June 2012 Smith 2005 p 171 Smith 2005 p 173 a b Smith 2005 p 175 a b c Rogers 1990 pp 187 189 MacArthur 1964 p 107 a b MacArthur 1964 p 141 a b Manchester 1978 pp 256 257 Smith 2005 p 186 Smith 2005 p 266 Smith 2005 p 180 a b Smith 2005 p 187 Manchester 1978 p 257 Smith 2005 p 189 Smith 2005 p 181 Smith 2005 p 190 MacArthur 1964 pp 143 144 Manchester 1978 p 259 Smith 2005 p 193 a b Bulkley 1962 pp 17 18 Smith 2005 pp 194 195 Smith 2005 pp 196 197 a b Rogers 1990 p 191 Smith 2005 p 199 Smith 2005 p 201 Manchester 1978 pp 262 263 Willoughby amp Chamberlain 1954 p 50 Blair 1975 pp 193 194 Bulkley 1962 p 19 White 1942 p 155 a b Brett 1947 p 139 a b c d Brett 1947 p 140 Rogers 1990 pp 192 193 Manchester 1978 p 263 Watson 1948 p 407 Willoughby amp Chamberlain 1954 p 52 a b James 1975 p 106 Rogers 1990 p 193 Manchester 1978 p 267 Rogers 1990 p 194 I Came Through I Shall Return The Advertiser Adelaide National Library of Australia 21 March 1942 p 1 ISSN 1836 7682 Archived from the original on 20 March 2022 Retrieved 22 July 2012 I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return Monument Australia Archived from the original on 27 October 2017 Retrieved 18 November 2017 Own Troops Welcome MacArthur The Courier Mail Brisbane National Library of Australia 23 March 1942 p 3 ISSN 1322 5235 Archived from the original on 20 March 2022 Retrieved 22 July 2012 Hurd Charles 18 March 1942 M Arthur in Australia as Allied Commander Move Hailed as Foreshadowing Turn of Tide The New York Times p 1 Archived from the original on 24 June 2016 Retrieved 26 May 2016 James 1975 pp 125 126 James 1975 p 125 James 1975 p 126 James 1975 p 154 Manchester 1978 p 275 James 1975 pp 130 132 Bulkley 1962 pp 21 24 Smith 2005 p 234 Smith 2005 pp 240 241 Morton 1953 pp 574 578 Smith 2005 p 244 Smith 2005 p 250 White W L 26 October 1942 They Were Expendable Life Vol 13 no 17 Time Inc pp 114 124 ISSN 0024 3019 Archived from the original on 20 October 2021 Retrieved 22 November 2011 a b Smith 2005 p 257 Smith 2005 pp 255 256 Morton 1962 p 253 Smith 2005 p 262 https www ozatwar com ozcrashes nt105 htm Archived 6 January 2022 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 5 January 2022 Smith 2005 p 253 References EditBlair Clay 1975 Silent Victory The U S Submarine War Against Japan Philadelphia Lippincott ISBN 978 0 397 00753 0 OCLC 821363 Brett George H October 1947 The MacArthur I Knew True OCLC 270661854 Bulkley Robert J Jr 1962 At Close Quarters PT Boats in the United States Navy Washington Naval History Division OCLC 4444071 Retrieved 8 July 2012 James D Clayton 1970 The Years of MacArthur Vol 1 1880 1941 Boston Houghton Mifflin ISBN 978 0 395 10948 9 OCLC 60070186 James D Clayton 1975 The Years of MacArthur Vol 2 1941 1945 Boston Houghton Mifflin ISBN 978 0 395 20446 7 OCLC 12591897 MacArthur Douglas 1964 Reminiscences of General of the Army Douglas MacArthur Annapolis Bluejacket Books ISBN 978 1 55750 483 8 OCLC 220661276 Manchester William 1978 American Caesar Douglas MacArthur 1880 1964 Boston Little Brown ISBN 978 0 440 30424 1 OCLC 3844481 Miller Edward S 1991 War Plan Orange The U S Strategy to Defeat Japan 1897 1945 Annapolis United States Naval Institute Press ISBN 1 59114 500 7 OCLC 23463775 Morton Louis 1953 The Fall of the Philippines PDF Washington D C Office of the Chief of Military History Department of the Army OCLC 29293689 Archived from the original PDF on 30 April 2021 Retrieved 22 July 2012 Morton Louis 1962 Strategy and Command The First Two Years PDF Washington D C United States Army Center of Military History OCLC 63151391 Archived from the original PDF on 21 October 2020 Retrieved 9 July 2012 Rogers Paul P 1990 The Good Years MacArthur and Sutherland New York Praeger Publishers ISBN 978 0 275 92918 3 OCLC 20452987 Smith George W 2005 MacArthur s Escape John Wild Man Bulkeley and the Rescue of an American Hero St Paul Minnesota Zenith Press ISBN 978 0 7603 2176 8 OCLC 58752820 Watson Richard L 1948 The Defense of Australia In Craven Wesley Frank Cate James Lea eds Plans and Early Operations January 1939 to August 1942 Vol I The Army Air Forces in World War II Chicago University of Chicago Press pp 403 426 OCLC 222565036 White William Lindsay 1942 They Were Expendable New York Harcourt Brace and Co OCLC 397892 Willoughby Charles Andrew Chamberlain John 1954 MacArthur 1941 1951 New York McGraw Hill OCLC 366467 Further reading Edit GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR IN AUSTRALIA DURING WWII ozatwar com Retrieved 6 March 2023 Portals Philippines World War II Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Douglas MacArthur 27s escape from the Philippines amp oldid 1145612249, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.