Bataan Death March

Dead soldiers on the Bataan Death March

The Bataan Death March (also known as The Death March of Bataan) took place in the Philippines in 1942 and was later accounted as a Japanese war crime. The 60 mi (97 km) march occurred after the three-month Battle of Bataan, part of the Battle of the Philippines (1941–42), during World War II. In Japanese, it is known as Batān Shi no Kōshin (バターン死の行進^?), with the same meaning.

The march, involving the forcible transfer of 75,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war^[1] captured by the Japanese in the Philippines from the Bataan peninsula to prison camps, was characterized by wide-ranging physical abuse and murder, and resulted in very high fatalities inflicted upon the prisoners and civilians along the route by the armed forces of the Empire of Japan.^[2] Beheadings, cutting of throats and casual shootings were the more common actions—compared to instances of bayonet stabbing, rape, disembowelment, rifle butt beating and a deliberate refusal to allow the prisoners food or water while keeping them continually marching for nearly a week in tropical heat. Falling down or inability to continue moving was tantamount to a death sentence, as was any degree of protest.

Route of the death march. Section from San Fernando to Capas was by rail.

Prisoners were attacked for assisting someone falling due to weakness, or for no reason whatsoever. Strings of Japanese trucks were known to drive over anyone who fell. Riders in vehicles would casually stick out a rifle bayonet and cut a string of throats in the lines of men marching alongside the road. Accounts of being forcibly marched for five to six days with no food and a single sip of water are in postwar archives including filmed reports.^[3]

The exact death count is impossible to determine, but some historians have placed the minimum death toll between 6,000 and 11,000 men; other postwar Allied reports have tabulated that only 54,000 of the 72,000 prisoners reached their destination — taken together, the figures document a rate of death from one in four up to two in seven of those on the death march. The number of deaths that took place in the internment camps from the delayed effects of the march is considerably more.^[3]

On May 30, 2009, at the 64th and final reunion of Bataan Death March survivors in San Antonio, Texas, Japanese ambassador to the U.S. Ichiro Fujisaki apologized to the assembled survivors for the Japanese treatment of Allied prisoners of war, on behalf of the Japanese government.^[4]

The Death March

Prisoners on the march from Bataan to the prison camp, May 1942. (National Archives). Also appears [[1]].

U. S. Army personnel toiled to identify the charred remains of Americans captured at Bataan and burned alive on Palawan. 20 March 1945

News of the Bataan Death March sparked outrage in the US, as reflected in this poster.

At dawn on 9 April, and against the orders of Generals Douglas MacArthur and Jonathan Wainwright, Major General Edward P. King, Jr., commanding Luzon Force, Bataan, Philippine Islands, surrendered more than 75,000 (67,000 Filipinos, 1,000 Chinese Filipinos, and 11,796 Americans) starving and disease-ridden men. He inquired of Colonel Motoo Nakayama, the Japanese colonel to whom he tendered his pistol in lieu of his lost sword, whether the Americans and Filipinos would be well treated. The Japanese aide-de-camp replied: “We are not barbarians.” The majority of the prisoners of war were immediately robbed of their keepsakes and belongings and subsequently forced to endure a 61 mi (98 km) march in deep dust, over vehicle-broken macadam roads, and crammed into rail cars to captivity at Camp O’Donnell. Thousands died en route from disease, starvation, dehydration, heat prostration, untreated wounds, and wanton execution.

Those few who were lucky enough to travel to San Fernando on trucks still had to endure more than 25 mi (40 km) of marching. Prisoners were beaten randomly, and were often denied food and water. Those who fell behind were usually executed or left to die. Witnesses say those who broke rank for a drink of water were executed, some even decapitated. Subsequently, the sides of the roads became littered with dead bodies and those begging for help.

On the Bataan Death March, approximately 54,000 of the 75,000 prisoners reached their destination. The death toll of the march is difficult to assess as thousands of captives were able to escape from their guards. All told, approximately 5,000–10,000 Filipino and 600–650 American prisoners of war died before they could reach Camp O'Donnell.^[5]

Harrodsburg, Kentucky was the city with the most members in the Death March, at 66. These men are known as the Harrodsburg Tankers.

War crimes trial

After the surrender of Japan in 1945, an Allied commission convicted Masaharu Homma of war crimes, including the atrocities of the death march out of Bataan, and the following atrocities at Camp O'Donnell and Cabanatuan. The general, who had been absorbed in his efforts to capture Corregidor after the fall of Bataan, claimed in his defense that he remained ignorant of the high death toll of the death march until two months after the event. He was executed on April 3, 1946 outside Manila. For unknown reasons, the Allies did not attempt to prosecute Masanobu Tsuji for war crimes.

Commemorations

The Philippines

Every year on April 9, the captured soldiers are honored on Araw ng Kagitingan ("Day of Valour"), also known as the "Bataan Day", which is a national holiday in the Philippines. During the 1980–1990s, the Boy Scouts of America [Philippine troop] would reenact this march every two years along a portion of the initial route in Bataan taken by the soldiers. The march was about 10 km (6.2 mi) in length.

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

The Sacrifices of the Fall of Bataan and Corregidor are commemorated at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, Honolulu, Hawaii every year. On April 9, 2009, Philippines Secretary of National Defense, Hon. Gilberto C. Teodoro gave the "Araw ng Kagitingan Address" (Day of Valor Address) and led in a wreath laying ceremony, attended by US Senators Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka, Filipino World War II veterans, Hawaii government officials, members of the Consular Corps, the U.S. Pacific Command and the Filipino-American community in Honolulu. The Philippine Consul General in Honolulu, Hon. Ariel Y. Abadilla, organized the ceremony.

New Mexico, USA

The Bataan Death March is commemorated every year in March since 1993 at the White Sands Missile Range, east of Las Cruces, New Mexico, with a trail marathon known as the Bataan Memorial Death March. The full marathon and 15 mi (24 km) run covers paved road and sandy trails, and is regarded by Marathon Guide as one of the top 30 marathons in the U.S.^[6][7]

Around 4,000 marchers participate in both the marathon and the 15.4 mi (24.8 km) run (only the marathon is timed), with members of military units of the U.S. and foreign armed forces participating. Many civilians also participate, usually running in the full marathon, which is timed with awards (but not certified by USA Track and Field). Several of the few remaining Bataan prisoners usually await the competitors to congratulate them on completing the grueling march.^[8]

There are two categories, for both civilian and military divisions, known as "light" and "heavy." In the light category, runners may wear standard distance-running apparel. Marchers in the heavy division must carry a minimum of 35 lb (16 kg) in rucksacks or backpacks; military entrants in the heavy category must wear their Army Combat Uniform (ACUs) or other service equivalent uniform.^[9]

Minnesota, USA

Company A, 194th Armored Regiment, was deployed to the Philippines in autumn, 1941. To commemorate the military and civilian prisoners who were forced to march from Bataan to Camp O’Donnell, an annual Bataan Memorial March is organized by the 194th Armor Regiment of the Minnesota Army National Guard and held at Brainerd, MN. The march is open to anyone with both 10- and 20-mile distances. The march has different categories, consisting of teams, individuals, light pack, or a heavy pack. A closing ceremony is held to award the finishers and pay tribute to the survivors and their many comrades who perished on the death march.

Maywood, Illinois, USA

Plaque in Maywood, Illinois

For 65 years, this small western suburb of Chicago has marked the second Sunday in September as "Maywood Bataan Day." This is the anniversary of the first Maywood Bataan Day, held on the second weekend of September, 1942. The residents were then calling attention to the nearly 100 Maywood National Guard troops who were taken prisoner when American forces surrendered at Bataan on April 9, 1942. These men endured the death march, prison camps, prison ships and eventual slave labour in Japan itself. The men were part of Company B, 192nd Tank Battalion. The original Maywood Bataan Day drew more than 100,000 spectators, dozens of marching bands, and celebrities including the Mayor Ed Kelley of Chicago and movie and radio stars. Today's celebration is much smaller, but still draws several hundred. The memorial is supported by the village of Maywood, Illinois and a non-profit group, the Maywood Bataan Day Organization. ^[10]

American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor veterans association

Veterans of the death march held regularly scheduled conventions after World War II. The last convention, attended by 73 survivors from the march, was held on May 29, 2009, in San Antonio, Texas. At the convention, Japanese ambassador to the U.S. Ichiro Fujisaki apologized to the assembled attendees for "having caused tremendous damage and suffering to many people, including prisoners of war, those who have undergone tragic experiences."^[11]

Memorials

The Philippines

• In Capas, Tarlac, there is the Capas National Shrine built in the grounds surrounding Camp O'Donnell.
• There is also a shrine in Bataan on Mount Samat named Dambana ng Kagitingan ("Shrine of Valour") commemorating the battle and the march. The shrine has a colonnade that houses an altar, esplanade, and a museum. There is also a Memorial Cross built towering 92 m (302 ft) in height.

Battling Bastards of Bataan Memorial at Camp O'Donnell

• The Battling Bastards of Bataan Memorial commemorating all the Americans that died on the death march and at Camp O'Donnell during the war. Located at Camp O'Donnell, Capas, Tarlac, Philippines.

United States

• The Bataan Bridge in Carlsbad, New Mexico commemorates the victims of the march.
• The Bataan–Corregidor Memorial Bridge in Chicago, Illinois, where State Street crosses the Chicago River, commemorates the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor as well as those on the march.
• The Bataan Memorial Highway in Indiana, SR 38 from Richmond, Indiana to Lafayette, Indiana.
• Highway-70, through Southern New Mexico was renamed the Bataan Memorial Highway.
• Statue of American and Filipino Bataan survivors resides at Veterans Memorial Park, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
• The "A Tribute To Courage" Memorial in Kissimmee, Florida, at the corner of Lakeshore Boulevard and Monument Avenue. It depicts a scene from the Bataan Death March: two soldiers, one American and the other Filipino, are propping each other up while a Filipino woman is offering water to them. It symbolizes the unique friendship between the U.S. and the Philippines—the two countries fought together during World War II, and the heroism and comradeship between the Americans and Filipinos. It was sculpted by Sandra Storm and is made of bronze. A brick walkway encircles the monument and there are commemorative plaques depicting the history of the Bataan Death March and the Memorial. American and Filipino flags fly side by side. It is the only statue in the U.S. dedicated to the heroes and survivors of the fall of Bataan and Corregidor and the Bataan Death March [2].
• Bataan Elementary School in Port Clinton, Ohio commemorates the 32 men from the Port Clinton area who were victims of the march. [3]
• Bataan Memorial Trainway in El Paso, Texas honors the prisoners-of-war who died in the enemy camp [4]
• Bataan Death March Memorial Park in Spokane, Washington
• Bataan Memorial Building—Santa Fe, New Mexico. The building is named in memorial for the many New Mexico veterans serving in the 200th Coast Artillery (Regiment) during World War II. The building served as the State Capitol Building from 1900 to 1966.
• Bataan Memorial Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico memorializes the veterans of the 200th Coast Artillery (United States) and 515th CA regiments. The park was dedicated in 1943, a monument was added in 1960, and major additions were completed in 2002. Rows of granite slabs are etched with the history of the units and the names of those who served. Each year survivors meet to remember their ordeal.
• Bataan Street in NW Washington, DC (between Massachusetts and Rhode Island Avenues.)

See also

• Japanese war crimes
• Japanese militarism
• Battle of the Philippines (1941–42)
• USS Bataan (LHD-5)
• USS Bataan (CVL-29)
• San Fernando City, Pampanga
• Sandakan Death Marches
• List of Japanese war atrocities
• 2005 anti-Japanese demonstrations
• Anti-Japanese sentiment
• Category:Bataan Death March prisoners
• The March (1945)
• Raid at Cabanatuan
• The Great Raid (2005)
• Ghost Soldiers

References

Notes

Books

• Bilek, Anton (Tony) (2003). No Uncle Sam: The Forgotten of Bataan. Kent State University Press. ISBN 0873387686. 
• Jackson, Charles; Bruce H. Norton (2003). I Am Alive!: A United States Marine's Story of Survival in a World war II Japanese POW Camp. Presidio Press. ISBN 0345449118. 
• Mallonee, Richard C. (2003). Battle for Bataan : An Eyewitness Account. I Books. ISBN 0743474503. 
• Templeton, Billy D. (2006). Manila Bay Sunset: The Long March Into Hell. River Road Press. ISBN 0978515803. 
• Waldron, Ben; Emily Burneson (2006). Corregidor: From Paradise to Hell!. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 141202109X. 
• Whitman, John W. (1990). Bataan: Our Last Ditch: The Bataan Campaign, 1942. Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0870528777. 
• Young, Donald J. (1992). The Battle of Bataan: A History of the 90 Day Siege and Eventual Surrender of 75,000 Filipino and United States Troops to the Japanese in World War. McFarland & Company. ISBN 0899507573. 
• Sides, Hampton (2001). Ghost Soldiers: The Forgotten Epic Story of World War II's Most Dramatic Mission. Anchor Books. ISBN 038549565X. 

Stewart, Sidney, "Give Us This Day", W. W. Norton & Company, revised edition. ISBN 0393319210
Norman, Michael, Norman, Elizabeth, "Tears In The Darkness", Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 9780374272609

Web

• No Uncle Sam: The Forgotten of Bataan—A link to the book's page on the publisher's website
• American Battlefield Monument Commission website Those lost in Philippines are memorialized on Tablets of the missing on Manila American Cemetery,Manilia Philippines.
• Battling Bastards of Bataan survivors org.
• Bataan Memorial Death March—A 26-mile (42 km) march commemorating the Bataan Death March (held yearly in New Mexico, USA)
• "Back to Bataan, A Survivor's Story"—A narrative recounting one soldier's journey through Bataan, the march, prison camp, Japan, and back home to the United States. Includes a map of the march.
• The Bataan Death March—Information, maps, and pictures on the march itself and in-depth information on Japanese POW camps.
• PBS American Experience: Bataan Rescue The story of the 1945 rescue of Bataan Death March survivors
• "Technical Sergeant Jim Brown U.S. Army Air Corps (ret) Bataan Death March Survivor Presentation to EAA Chapter 108 May 16, 2000"
• Proviso East High School Bataan Commemorative Research Project—Comprehensive history of the Battle for Bataan, the Death March and the role of the 192nd Tank Battalion
• 4th Marine Regiment. 1st Battalion/4th Marines and 3rd Battalion/4th Marines were at Corregidor
• 4th Marines at Corregidor and Bataan Death March
• Maywood Bataan Day Organization Marks Bataan Day on the second Sunday in September since 1942
• 1200 Days, A Bataan POW Survivor's Story A biography of Russell A. Grokett's survival of the Bataan Death March, including three years as a Japanese Prisoner of War.
• "Back to Bataan" A survivor's Story {Alf Larson}
• Bataan Survivor story
• Chicago's Bataan–Corregidor Memorial Bridge
• [5]—Info on the Dambana ng Kagitingan Shrine.