Portal:Oceania/Selected article/October, 2010
The Guadalcanal Campaign was fought between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theatre of World War II. It was part of the Allied strategic plan to protect convoy routes between the US, Australia and New Zealand. It was the second major offensive by Allied forces against the Empire of Japan and marked the transition by the Allies from defensive operations to the strategic offensive in the Pacific.
On August 7, 1942, Allied forces landed on the islands of Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida in the southern Solomon Islands with the objective of denying their use by the Japanese as bases to threaten supply routes between the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand. The Allies overwhelmed the outnumbered Japanese defenders and captured Tulagi and Florida, as well as an airfield that was under construction on Guadalcanal.
The Japanese made several attempts between August and November 1942 to retake Henderson Field from the U.S. Marines. U.S. Army troops joined the defence in October. Three major land battles, five large naval battles, and continual, almost daily aerial battles culminated in the decisive Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in early November 1942. In December 1942, the Japanese abandoned further efforts to retake Guadalcanal and evacuated their remaining forces by February 7, 1943.