Carnage in the Streets

The Battle of Manila

The Philippines - 1945

Second World War

Follow the Battle of Manila in 1945, as the Japanese occupation forces defend the city to the last man against the liberating American and Filipino forces day by day as it happened. A revisiting of the original Battle of Manila Project, which can be found here in its entirety.

Starting February 3, 2023

Contextual Information

Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Sunday, 11 February

The Americans finally secure Provisor Island, albeit with the power plant destroyed, and tighten their grip around the city. Internees begin to be evacuated from Santo Tomas, while the Japanese continue their campaign of extermination against civilians in the city center.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Saturday, 10 February

The Americans link all three of their forces, surrounding the city, and Admiral Iwabuchi commits to making a final stand in Manila. Massacres escalate today as well, with notable incidents at the German Club and Red Cross, as the Japanese elect to take as many innocents with them as possible.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Friday, 9 February

The 37th Infantry engages Japanese strongpoints at the Paco Rail Station and Provisor Island, while the 11th Airborne presses its attack on Nichols Field. The 1st Cavalry also reenters the fight, prompting Admiral Iwabuchi to relocate his headquarters to Fort McKinley and order the beginning of the extermination of Manila’s remaining citizens.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Thursday, 8 February

The Americans push out from their beachhead in the Malacañang Gardens, encountering heavy resistance and a flood of refugees as they push into Paco. Meanwhile, the 11th Airborne is still engaged in vicious fighting around Nichols Field, and the Japanese begin to target foreign diplomats as well as civilians.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Wednesday, 7 February

MacArthur visits Bilibid, Santo Tomas and the Malacañang Palace, and the 37th Infantry crosses the Pasig against heavy resistance to begin the drive through Paco to the power station on Provisor Island. Meanwhile, the Japanese begin burning the Intramuros and massacring civilians in Fort Santiago.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Tuesday, 6 February

The city north of the Pasig is almost secure, as the 11th Airborne fights through the teeth of the Genko Line, and the inferno continues to build. in the Intramuros, the Japanese force more than 1,000 men and boys into the dungeons of Fort Santiago.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Monday, 5 February

The hostages from Santo Tomas are freed in what is possibly the only parley between US and Japanese forces during the war, as the fighting continues to intensify on the north side of the Pasig. The 11th Airborne pushes onto Nichols Field in the south, while the Japanese tighten their grip on the civilians in the city center. Intramuros is locked down, and the entire Escolta area has become an inferno.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Sunday, 4 February

The 37th Infantry Division enters Manila as the Japanese intensify their campaign to destroy the city. Large fires are being set in neighborhoods north of the Pasig, while the Americans deal with the humanitarian crisis of caring for the inmates of Santo Tomas and Bilibid Prison, which is also liberated today.

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Walter Gurske Walter Gurske

Saturday, 3 February

The first American troops enter Manila since the city fell in 1942, liberating the internees at Santo Tomas and securing the Malacañang Palace, but they also encounter heavy resistance as they try to approach the destroyed bridges over the Pasig. Meanwhile, the 11th Airborne drops on Tagaytay Ridge and begins their advance toward the city from the south, and the Japanese begin the massacre of civilians.

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A number of sources were used for the creation of this project, cited within.