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The Battle of Wake Island was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on Wake Island.The assault began simultaneously with the attack on Pearl Harbor naval and air bases in Hawaii on the morning of 8 December 1941 (7 December in Hawaii), and ended on 23 December, with the surrender of American forces to the Empire of Japan.
On 20 November 1941, Maj Bayler and 48 Marines from MAG-21 departed Pearl Harbor on board the USS Wright (AV-1) bound for Wake Island. Arriving 29 November, their mission was to establish facilities at the airfield for air-ground radio communications. [ 3 ]
A map is shown with a voiceover giving a brief history of the United States military on Wake Island to November 1941. U.S. Marine Corps Major Geoffrey Caton departs Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii aboard the Pan American Clipper to take over command on Wake Island. A military contractor, Mr. McClosky, is also going there.
Winfield Scott Cunningham (February 16, 1900 – March 3, 1986) was the Officer in Charge, Naval Activities, Wake Island when the tiny island was attacked by the Japanese on December 8, 1941. Cunningham commanded the defense of the island against the massive Japanese attack. After 15 days, he surrendered the island to the Japanese.
On December 4, 1941, Captain Elrod flew to Wake Island with twelve aircraft, twelve pilots, and the ground crew of Major Paul A. Putnam's fighter squadron, VMF-211. Hostilities in the air over Wake Island commenced on December 8, 1941. On December 12, he single-handedly attacked a flight of 22 enemy planes and shot down two.
After the war, Putnam continued his career in the Marine Corps and was promoted to colonel retroactive to November 15, 1942. In 1947 he was awarded the Navy Cross for heroism on December 21, 1941, when he took off in a plane on an unescorted flight in an attempt to find the Japanese aircraft carrier whose planes were attacking Wake Island.
James Patrick Sinnott Devereux (February 20, 1903 – August 5, 1988) was a United States Marine Corps general, Navy Cross recipient, and Republican congressman. He was the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the 1st Defense Battalion Detachment during the defense of Wake Island in December 1941.
In November 1941, VMF-211 embarked 12 of its 24 F4F-3 Wildcats and 13 of its 29 pilots aboard USS Enterprise for movement to Wake Island, the scene of the squadron's heroic battle, launching from the carrier and arriving at Wake on 3 December. [4] On 8 December 1941, the Japanese attacked Wake, destroying seven of the aircraft on the ground.