Guadalcanal's Longest Fight: The Pivotal Battles of the Matanikau Front
Guadalcanal's Longest Fight: The Pivotal Battles of the Matanikau Front
Guadalcanal's Longest Fight: The Pivotal Battles of the Matanikau Front
Description
Description
"Drawing from previously unknown and unused sources, Holland paints a vivid picture of the desperate fights that broke the back of the Japanese forces ashore during that pivotal period of 1942. Holland's ground-breaking account is vital to the understanding of the struggle to secure America's first major land victory in the Pacific." - Seth Paridon, Historian, Deputy Director, Mississippi Armed Forces Museum
The Matanikau battles proved to be the critical turning points in the land campaign for Guadalcanal--the campaign's longest and bloodiest ground fight. A five-month conflict raged along the river and its basin. The real importance of this area has long remained unrecognized, yet the American and Japanese forces that fought over it knew that it was the key to the ultimate prize of Henderson Airfield. In this mile-long bloody tug-of-war from the river across to the hills and ravines were fought seven major battles and countless smaller skirmishes.
While countless books have been published on the Guadalcanal Campaign; none have concentrated on the pivotal battles of the Matanikau basin. Extensively researched, this first in-depth study of these important battles, objectively showing all sides, fills in this crucial missing piece of the history of the Guadalcanal campaign.
The well-known Guadalcanal battlefield guide Dave Holland spent three years walking the battlefields, researching, and documenting what he found. His unparalleled knowledge of the ground enables him to take the reader along with the men on the ground. Using his investigative skills and military background, he provides a fresh, detailed, and often completely new view of the land campaign, establishing previously unknown facts and specifically illustrating their significance as the campaign's land turning points.
The Matanikau battles proved to be the critical turning points in the land campaign for Guadalcanal--the campaign's longest and bloodiest ground fight. A five-month conflict raged along the river and its basin. The real importance of this area has long remained unrecognized, yet the American and Japanese forces that fought over it knew that it was the key to the ultimate prize of Henderson Airfield. In this mile-long bloody tug-of-war from the river across to the hills and ravines were fought seven major battles and countless smaller skirmishes.
While countless books have been published on the Guadalcanal Campaign; none have concentrated on the pivotal battles of the Matanikau basin. Extensively researched, this first in-depth study of these important battles, objectively showing all sides, fills in this crucial missing piece of the history of the Guadalcanal campaign.
The well-known Guadalcanal battlefield guide Dave Holland spent three years walking the battlefields, researching, and documenting what he found. His unparalleled knowledge of the ground enables him to take the reader along with the men on the ground. Using his investigative skills and military background, he provides a fresh, detailed, and often completely new view of the land campaign, establishing previously unknown facts and specifically illustrating their significance as the campaign's land turning points.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
"Author Holland lived on Guadalcanal for three years and knows its terrain intimately. His book is a detailed evaluation of forgotten action where the beleaguered 1st Marine Division prevailed."-- "National Maritime Historical Society"
"Guadalcanal's Longest Fight is an essential read for military history enthusiasts and scholars of the Pacific Theatre of World War II. It fills a significant gap in the historical record of the Guadalcanal campaign and provides valuable insights into a critical phase of the Pacific War."--Dr Peter Williams, author of The Kokoda Campaign 1942: Myth and Reality
"I am one of countless others who for decades have read everything I can find on Guadalcanal. Hence, I was amazed to read all the 'new material' in this professionally written book. Many of the fights are mentioned in other books, like USMC monograph[s] or personal accounts and histories. But never in the level of detail that is in this book. Not just the tactical maneuvering but vivid descriptions of individual Marines and small unit actions. Not just 1st or 5th Marines and the Raiders, but less covered units like the 6th and 8th Marines, units of the Army's Americal and 25th Infantry Division. If you consider yourself well-read on Guadalcanal, I think you will be surprised when you finish this book."--Sergeant Major Bert Caloud, USMC (Ret.)
"Drawing from previously unknown and unused sources, Holland paints a vivid picture of the desperate fights that broke the back of the Japanese forces ashore during that pivotal period of 1942. Holland's ground-breaking account is vital to the understanding of the struggle to secure America's first major land victory in the Pacific."--Seth Paridon, Historian, Deputy Director, Mississippi Armed Forces Museum
"Short of trekking to the Soloman Islands on your own, this book is as close to Guadalcanal as a reader can get."--Colonel Barry F. Graham, USA (Ret.), College Station, Texas
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Casemate
Pub date:
2025-10-30
Length:
256 pages
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