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 Lieutenant General Walter Krueger Approx. 202,500 total officers and enlistedChun, p. 16 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 General Douglas MacArthur

US Sixth Army Lieutenant General Walter Krueger Approx. 202,500 officers and enlistedChun, p. 16

Army-level unitsChun, p. 23 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") DivisionStanton, p. 98 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 DivisionStanton, p. 71 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") DivisionStanton, p. 87 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") DivisionStanton, p. 172 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 – Landed 18 Nov 11th Airborne ("Angels") DivisionStanton, p. 94 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.army.mil 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 Ormocarmy.mil 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)Chun, p. 23 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

Bibliography Print

Web