The Americans had placed Fort Frank on this island, which late in 1941, had a military garrison of about 400 men, mostly Philippine Scouts. Except at one point along its eastern shore, the island rises precipitously from the sea in cliffs more than 100 ft (30 m) high. The last- Carabao Island-lay only 500 yd (460 m) from the shores of Cavite Province. Equipped with four 14-inch (356 mm) guns in armored turrets facing seaward, a secondary battery of four casemated 6-inch (152 mm) guns, and two anti-aircraft guns, the fort with its 200-man garrison was considered impregnable to attack. The top deck of this concrete battleship was 40 ft (12 m) above the low-water mark and had 20 ft (6.1 m) thick walls. Military engineers had cut away the entire top of El Fraile Island down to the water-line and used the island as a foundation to build a reinforced concrete "battleship", 350 ft (110 m) long and 144 ft (44 m) wide, with exterior walls of concrete and steel 25–36 ft (7.6–11.0 m) thick. Coastal artillery numbered some 13 assorted pieces, including a single 14-inch M1910 field gun, four 12-inch M1912 mortars, two 6-inch M1908 guns, and 2 3-inch M1903 guns, with its anti-aircraft defenses are tied in with those of Corregidor.įort Drum-which lay about 4 mi (6.4 km) south of Fort Hughes-was the most unusual of the harbor defenses. Bridget was in charge of its beach defenses with a total of 800 men, of whom 93 were Marines and 443 belonged to the Navy, by the end of April 1942. At about 160 acres (65 ha), the island rose abruptly from the bay to a height of 380 ft (120 m) on its western side. The two 12-inch (305 mm) guns of Batteries Smith and Hearn, with a horizontal range of 29,000 yd (27,000 m) and all-around traverse were the longest range of all the island's artillery.Ĭaballo Island, with Fort Hughes-just south of Corregidor-was the next largest in area. The defensive arsenal on Corregidor was formidable with 45 coastal guns and mortars organized into 23 batteries, some seventy-two anti-aircraft weapons assigned to thirteen batteries and a minefield of approximately 35 groups of controlled mines. The Malinta Tunnel furnished bombproof shelters for the hospital, headquarters, and shops, as well as a maze of underground storehouses. Reinforced with concrete walls, floors, and overhead arches, it also had blowers to furnish fresh air, and a double-track electric tramway line along the east-west passage. Wainwright's headquarters during the battle, after MacArthur relocated to Australia on 12 March 1942). The Navy tunnel system, which lay opposite the hospital, under the south side of Malinta was connected to the main tunnel by a partially completed low passageway through the quartermaster storage lateral.Įast of this was Malinta Tunnel, the location of General Douglas MacArthur's headquarters (Lieutenant General Jonathan M. The facility could be reached either through the main tunnel or by a separate outside entrance on the north side of Malinta Hill. It had 12 laterals (tunnels) and space for 1,000 beds. A separate system of tunnels north of this housed the underground hospital. It contained a main east-west passage 826 ft (252 m) long with a 24 ft (7.3 m) diameter, in addition to 25 lateral passages, each about 400 ft (120 m) long, which branched out at regular intervals from each side of the main passage. The tunnel system under Malinta Hill was the most extensive construction on Corregidor. Americans called it "The Rock" or even the " Gibraltar of the East", comparing it to the fortress that guards the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Africa. Bottomside was the lower area, where a dock area and the civilian town of San Jose were located. Middleside was a small plateau containing battery positions as well as barracks. Army, however, then successfully recaptured the island in 1945. Homma had to take Corregidor, since as long as the island remained in American hands, the Japanese would be denied the use of Manila Bay, the finest natural harbor in the Far East.
The island bastion of Corregidor, with its network of tunnels and formidable array of defensive armaments, along with the fortifications across the entrance to Manila Bay, was the remaining obstacle to the 14th Japanese Imperial Army of Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma. Army Forces Far East to the invading Japanese forces on Luzon, in the northern Philippines. The fall of Bataan on April 9, 1942, ended all organized opposition by the U.S.
The Battle of Corregidor ( Filipino: Labanan sa Corregidor Japanese: コレヒドールの戦い), fought on May 5–6, 1942, was the culmination of the Japanese campaign for the conquest of the Commonwealth of the Philippines during World War II. and Filipino troops, 2 gunboats, and 1 minesweeper Corregidor island in Manila Bay, Luzon Island, Philippinesġ3,000 U.S.