by Zachary Grant, 6 August 2025
The United States, fresh from their victory at Midway, was eager to go on the offensive in the Pacific. Meanwhile, the Japanese had been expanding their forces in the lower Solomon Islands since the beginning of May. As U.S. intelligence services were at work in the Pacific theater, news came to light that the Japanese were building an airfield on Guadalcanal (Tucker). This airfield would allow Japanese bombers to attack advanced Allied bases and possibly bomb the much needed American supply lines to Australia and New Zealand (Shaw). A plan was put together to capture Guadalcanal to prevent the Japanese from completing this airfield.
click images to enlarge
The Battle of Guadalcanal campaign spanned over six months and consisted of about 50 separate actions with at least 7 important naval battles and 10 smaller land battles (Tucker). This article will focus on the first month of the Guadalcanal campaign, August 1942, and provide only a snapshot of the events that happened.
The month of August
The 1st Marine Division along with the 1st Raider Battalion and the US Navy, would begin the Battle of Guadalcanal. US Marine General Alexander A. Vandergrift led the ground offensive.
The pressure that Vandegrift felt was not unique to the landing force commander. The U.S. Navy’s ships were the key to success and they were scarce and invaluable. Although the Battles of Coral Sea and Midway had badly damaged the Japanese fleet’s offensive capabilities and crippled its carrier forces, enemy naval aircraft could fight as well ashore as afloat and enemy warships were still numerous and lethal. (Shaw, 1992, pp. 2, 4)
On 7 August, Marines landed at Tulagi and they had a very tough fight against the Japanese.
The attack jumped off again just before noon,and promptly ran into heavy Japanese resistance. For the remainder of the day the raiders fought to gain control of the saddle from the entrenched enemy, who would not surrender under any circumstances. The Marines quickly discovered that their only recourse was to employ explosives to destroy the men occupying the caves and bunkers. (Hoffman, 1995, p. 10)
By nightfall the Raiders had advanced to Hill 281 and set up a defensive line (Hoffman). The Japanese launched counter attacks once it was dark:
Throughout the night, the Japanese swarmed from hillside caves in four separate attacks, trying to penetrate the raider lines. They were unsuccessful and most died in the attempts. (Shaw, 1992, p. 10)
By the next morning, the Marines controlled Tulagi. There were still small pockets of Japanese soldiers to deal with; however, the island was declared secure by 1500 on 8 August (Hoffman).
In contrast, the Marines that landed at Guadalcanal met very light resistance and by the end of the day had captured the Japanese airfield. The Marines renamed the airfield Henderson Field after a Marine pilot who died during the Battle of Midway (Tucker).
Although the initial landings on Guadalcanal had gone well enough and the unloading of supplies and reinforcements were going as quickly as they could under the circumstances, disaster struck during the night of 8-9 August. Four Allied cruisers were sunk, one Australian and three US, by a group of Japanese cruisers and destroyers in the Battle of Savo Island (Tucker). This sudden loss of four Allied escort ships made the US Navy reconsider the current operation, and the US Navy withdrew the transport ships carrying the Marine’s supplies and ammunition. This left the Marines with 17 days worth of rations and just four days of supply for ammunition (Shaw).
While the Marines expanded and improved their defensive perimeter, work on Henderson Airfield continued, and by 12 August it was ready to be put to use (Shaw).
On 20 August, two squadrons of Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 23 were launched from the escort carrier Long Island (CVE-1) located 200 miles southeast of Guadalcanal. Captain John L. Smith led 19 Grumman F4F-4 Wildcats of Marine Fighting Squadron (VMF) 223 onto Henderson’s narrow runway. Smith’s fighters were followed by Major Richard C. Mangrum’s Marine Scout-Bombing Squadron (VMSB) 232 with 12 Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless dive bombers. (Shaw, 1992, p. 18)
Because the Allied radio identification for Guadalcanal was Cactus, the Marine aircraft were the first arrivals of what would unofficially become the Cactus Air Force (Shaw).
The Japanese had not been idle during this time. Supplies and reinforcements were being funneled to Guadalcanal as quickly as possible. The first substantial force to arrive was the 28th Infantry Regiment of the 7th Division under command of Colonel Kiyono Ichiki on 18 August (Zimmerman). Col. Ichiki’s mission was to attack and recapture the area held by the 1st Marine Division. Unbeknownst to Col. Ichiki, Marine defensive positions around Henderson Field had been strengthened and improved since they first arrived. In fact, Ichiki badly underestimated how many Marines were on Guadalcanal and how well supplied they were (Zimmerman).
On 20 July, Col. Ichiki positioned his forces near the Ilu River to prepare for an attack. The Marine defensive positions around the Ilu River were ready for the Japanese, and when the attack started early in the morning of 21 August, the Japanese were in for a rude awakening:
As the Japanese charged across the sand bar astride the Ilu’s mouth, Pollock’s Marines cut them down. After a mortar preparation, the Japanese tried again to storm past the sand bar. A section of 37mm guns sprayed the enemy force with deadly canister. Lieutenant Colonel Lenard B. Cresswell’s 1st Battalion, 1st Marines moved upstream on the Ilu at daybreak, waded across the sluggish, 50-foot-wide stream, and moved on the flank of the Japanese. Wildcats from VMF-223 strafed the beleaguered enemy force. Five light tanks blasted the retreating Japanese. By 1700, as the sun was setting, the battle ended. (Shaw, 1992, 20)
This battle is known as the Battle of Alligator Creek, or the Battle of Tenaru, due to an incorrect name of the Ilu River on many US maps.
One of the final events of August 1942 is the Battle of Solomon Island. While the Japanese navy was reinforcing Guadalcanal with troops and supplies, the U.S. navy was searching for the Japanese. Soon after each side’s air patrols located the other, the battle commenced. Like Midway, this was a battle of aircraft from the aircraft carriers. It was the US carriers Saratoga and the Enterprise versus the Japanese carriers Shokaku, Zuikku, and light carrier Ryujo (Office of Naval Intelligence, US Navy).
As Comdr. Felt approached, he ordered seven dive bombers and two torpedo planes to attack the cruiser and the remaining planes to concentrate on the carrier. The attack began at 1620. As our planes drew near, the Ryujo turned into the wind and launched one or two planes, but as soon as the first bomb fell she turned hard right and continued in a tight clockwise circle throughout the attack. As the bombing progressed, Comdr. Felt noted that the Ryujo was avoiding direct hits and ordered the planes previously detailed to the cruiser to desist from attacking her and join in the assault on the carrier. (Office of Naval Intelligence, US Navy, 1943, p. 50)
At the end of the battle, the light aircraft carrier Ryujo was sunk by Saratoga’s attack groups and the Enterprise’s flight deck was damaged to the point that it needed to return to Pearl Harbor for repairs (Office of Naval Intelligence, US Navy).
There are many more battles that make up the entire Guadalcanal campaign between August 1942 and February 1943. There is the Battle of Edson’s Ridge, the Battle of Cape Esperance, and the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands to name just a few. Look for them in future War Story Wednesdays!
Here are some other sources to learn more about the opening month of the Battle of Guadalcanal.
YouTube video providing a battlefield tour of the Ilu River and the Battle of Alligator Creek.
Book chapter by Dr. Rein published in the US Army’s Military Review
Pictures and maps from the National Museum of the U.S. Navy.
Interested in gaming the battle? Try one of these games:
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Guadalcanal: A Combat Boots Game (2020) – published by Dark City Games, Inc.
This is a small, fast playing tactical game that fits into a ziplock bag. The Armchair Dragoon’s own bbMike has a review of this game at his channel, My Own Worst Enemy. Spoiler alert! Although there were some small problems with the game, bbMike recommended it. |
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The Proud and the Few (2002; latest updated version 2025) – published by Wargame Design Studio
This is a turn-based tactical level game from Wargame Design Studio’s Squad Battles series. This game includes 72 scenarios with many of them taking place during the Guadalcanal campaign. |
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Pacific War: The Struggle Against Japan, 1941-1945 (Second Edition) (2022) – published by GMT Games.
This is an operational level wargame of the entire Pacific theater during World War II. It can be played as a complete campaign from the end of 1941 to mid 1945, or you can play smaller scenarios like the Guadalcanal campaign. Although described as “not a monster game” by GMT, it takes up a lot of space on your gaming table. |
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Guadalcanal: The Battle for Henderson Field Aug-42 to Jan-43 – Deluxe Edition (2021) – published by War Diary Publications.
This is an updated version of the Avalon Hill Game Company’s 1966 Guadalcanal game. |
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Tokyo Express: The Guadalcanal Naval Campaign – 1942 (1988) published by Victory Games
Although this game is long out of print and commands a high price on the secondary market, it was the 1988 Charles S. Roberts Best World War II Board Game winner. The game’s focus is on the naval battles that occurred at night during the Guadalcanal campaign and can be played as a solitaire or two-player game. |
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Archie’s War: The Battle for Guadalcanal (2023) published by Worthington Publishing, LLC
This game can be played solitaire as the US Marines, or as a two player game, with one person commanding the Japanese and the other person commanding the Jarheads. The solo game is played on one side of the game board, and the two player game is played on the other side of the game board. This game uses wooden blocks for pieces. And yes, there are stickers you need to apply to the blocks in order to play. |
References
Hoffman, J. T. (1995). From Makin to Bougainville: Marine Raiders in the Pacific war. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps.
Office of Naval Intelligence, US Navy. (1943). Combat narratives: Solomon Islands campaign: II The battle of Savo Island 9 August 1942: III The battle of the Eastern Solomons 23-25 August 1942. U.S. Navy
Shaw, H. I. (1992). First offensive: The Marine campaign for Guadalcanal. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps.
Tucker, S. C. (2010). Battles that changed history: An encyclopedia of world conflict. ABC-CLIO.
Zimmerman, J. L. (1949). The Guadalcanal campaign. Historical Section, Division of Public Information, U.S. Marine Corps
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Zachary, as someone who has written a few of these I know how much work goes into them. Great job on this! Best, Aaron
Thank you Aaron for your kind compliment, much appreciated!