On 20 October 1944, troops of the United States Sixth Army under the direct command of Lieutenant General Walter Krueger, invaded the Philippine island of Leyte. This operation was the beginning of General Douglas MacArthur's fulfillment of his promise in March 1942 to the Filipino people that he would liberate them from Japanese rule.
The choice of Leyte was the result of heated discussion at the highest levels of the US military and government. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Ernest J. King had forcefully advocated for an invasion of the island of Formosa, about north of the Philippines, insisting that it would both bolster the morale of the Nationalist Chinese, then fighting the Japanese occupation of their country, and provide a much closer base for military operations against the Japanese home islands. In the event, MacArthur's viewpoint that the United States needed to be seen as following through on its promise to liberate the Filipino people from Japanese oppression won out.
Summary of US ground forces:
US Sixth Army<br> Lieutenant General Walter Krueger<br> Approx. 202,500 total officers and enlisted
Northern landing area
: X Army Corps
: Lieutenant General Franklin C. Sibert
:: Left: 24th Infantry ("Taro") Division
:: Right: 1st Cavalry Division
Southern landing area
: XXIV Army Corps
: Lieutenant General John R. Hodge
:: Left: 7th Infantry ("Bayonet") Division
:: Right: 96th Infantry ("Deadeye") Division
:: Reserve: 11th Airborne ("Angels") Division
Reserves
: Landed 14 Nov: 32nd Infantry ("Red Arrow") Division
: Landed 23 Nov: 77th Infantry ("Statue of Liberty") Division
United States
Southwest Pacific Area<br /> General Douglas MacArthur
<big>US Sixth Army</big><br> Lieutenant General Walter Krueger<br> Approx. 202,500 officers and enlisted
Army-level units
: 2nd Engineer Support Brigade
: 6th Ranger Battalion
: 21st Infantry Regiment
Northern landing area
X Army Corps
Lieutenant General Franklin C. Sibert
: Embarked in Task Force 78 under Rear Admiral Daniel E. Barbey
Left sector (Red Beaches)
: 24th Infantry ("Taro") Division
: Major General Frederick A. Irving
:: Infantry
::: Left: 19th Infantry Regiment
::: Right: 34th Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipients: Pvt. Harold H. Moon Jr. (), Sgt. Charles E. Mower (), Capt. Francis B. Wai ()
:: Artillery
::: 13th, 52nd, 63rd FA Battalions (105mm)
::: 11th FA Battalion (155mm)
:: Division troops
::: 3rd Engineer Combat Battalion
::: 24th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
::: 24th Medical Battalion
::: 24th Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
Right sector (White Beaches)
: 1st Cavalry Division
: Major General Verne D. Mudge
:: 1st Cavalry Brigade HQ (Brigadier General William C. Chase)
::: Left: 5th Cavalry Regiment
::: Center: 12th Cavalry Regiment
:: 2nd Cavalry Brigade HQ (Brigadier General Hugh F. T. Hoffman)
::: Right: 7th Cavalry Regiment
::: Reserve: 8th Cavalry Regiment
:: 61st, 82nd, 99th, 271st FA Battalions (105mm)
:: 302nd Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
:: 603rd Medium Tank Company
:: 801st Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
Southern landing area
XXIV Army Corps
Lieutenant General John R. Hodge
: Embarked in Task Force 79 under Vice Admiral Theodore S. Wilkinson
Left sector (Yellow and Violet Beaches)
: 7th Infantry ("Bayonet") Division
: Major General Archibald V. Arnold
:: Infantry
::: Left (Yellow): 184th Infantry Regiment
::: Right (Violet): 32nd Infantry Regiment
::: Reserve: 17th Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipients: PFC Leonard C. Brostrom (), PFC John F. Thorson ()
:: Artillery
::: 48th, 49th, 57th FA Battalions (105mm)
::: 31st FA Battalion (155mm)
:: Division troops
::: 7th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
::: 13th Engineer Combat Battalion
::: 7th Medical Battalion
::: 7th Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
Right sector (Blue and Orange Beaches)
: 96th Infantry ("Deadeye") Division
: Major General James L. Bradley
:: Infantry
::: Left (Blue): 382nd Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipient: Pvt. Ova A. Kelley ()
::: Right (Orange): 383rd Infantry Regiment
::: Reserve: 381st Infantry Regiment
:: Artillery
::: 361st, 362nd, 921st FA Battalions (105mm)
::: 363rd FA Battalion (155mm)
:: Division troops
::: 96th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
::: 321st Engineer Combat Battalion
::: 321st Medical Battalion
::: 96th Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
: Other units
:: 20th Armored Group
:: 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment
XXIV Corps Reserve â Landed 18 Nov
: 11th Airborne ("Angels") Division
: Major General Joseph M. Swing
:: Infantry
::: 187th Glider Infantry Regiment
::: 188th Glider Infantry Regiment
::: 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipient: Pvt. Elmer E. Fryar ()
:: Artillery
::: 674th Glider FA Battalion (75mm)
::: 675th Glider FA Battalion (75mm)
::: 457th Parachute FA Battalion (75mm)
:: Division troops
::: 127th Airborne Engineer Battalion
::: 157th Airborne Anti-Aircraft Battalion
::: 221st Airborne Medical Company
::: 11th Parachute Maintenance Company
Other XXIV Corps units
: 20th Armored Group
: 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment
Sixth Army reserve
Landed 14 Nov, relieved 24th Inf. Div.
: 32nd Infantry ("Red Arrow") Division
: Major General William H. Gill
:: Infantry
::: 126th Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipients: PFC Dirk J. Vlug, Sgt. Leroy Johnson (), PFC William A. McWhorter ()
::: 127th Infantry Regiment
::: 128th Infantry Regiment
:: Artillery
::: 120th, 126th, 129th FA Battalions (105mm)
::: 121st FA Battalion (155mm)
:: Division troops
::: 114th Engineer Combat Battalion
::: 32nd Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
::: 107th Medical Battalion
::: 32nd Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
Landed 23 Nov south of Ormoc
: 77th Infantry ("Statue of Liberty") Division
: Major General Andrew D. Bruce
:: Infantry
::: 305th Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipient: Lt. Robert B. Nett
::: 306th Infantry Regiment
:::: CMoH recipient: PFC George Benjamin Jr.
::: 307th Infantry Regiment
:: Artillery
::: 304th, 305th, 902nd FA Battalions (105mm)
::: 306th FA Battalion (155mm)
:: Division troops
::: 302nd Engineer Combat Battalion
::: 77th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
::: 302nd Medical Battalion
::: 77th Counterintelligence Corps Detachment
Japan
Southern Army (Southeast Asia)<br /> Field Marshal Count Hisaichi Terauchi at Manila
Fourteenth Area Army
General Tomoyuki Yamashita
: Thirty-Fifth Army
: Lieutenant General Sosaku Suzuki
:: 1st Division
:: 16th Division
:: 26th Division
:: 102nd Division
:: Elements of 30th Division
:: 54th Independent Mixed Brigade
:: 55th Independent Mixed Brigade
:: 68th Independent Mixed Brigade
: Third Shipping Transport Command
: Major General Masazumi Inada
Leyte Defense Forces
: 16th Division
: Lieutenant General Shiro Makino
:: 9th Infantry Regiment
:: 20th Infantry Regiment
:: 33rd Infantry Regiment
:: 22nd Artillery Regiment
:: 16th Engineer Regiment
:: Miscellaneous units
::: 2nd Company, 16th Transport Regiment
::: 7th Independent Tank Company
::: 16th Division Special Troops
::: Thirty-Fifth Army Depots units
::: Elements, 63rd Motor Transport Battalion
::: 316th Independent Motor Transport Company
::: 317th Independent Motor Transport Company
: 34th Air Sector Command
:: 98th Airfield Battalion
:: 114th Airfield Battalion
:: 54th Airfield Company
:: 2nd Airfield Construction Unit
:: 11th Airfield Construction Unit
: Naval Land Forces
:: Elements, 36th Naval Garrison Unit
:: 311th Naval Construction Unit
Air Forces
: Fourth Air Army at Manila
: Lieutenant General Kyoji Tominaga
:: 2nd Air Division
:: 4th Air Division
: IJN Fifth Base Air Force under on Formosa
: Vice Admiral Kinpei Teraoka
Notes
References
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