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Asia Fought Its Own Bloody Stalingrad At The End of WWII
The Battle of Manila
The War in the Pacific is known for short, brutal fights on uninhabitable coral atolls and unpronounceable islands. The war was an interesting case study because there was little room for tactics. Armies could not maneuver. There were no elaborate feints or flanking attacks. Tanks were used sparingly and as wedges to bully over coral embankments instead of as fast attack guns.
Despite that, at the end of the conflict, the United States fought one of the hardest and bloodiest urban fights in history. As Douglas MacArthur made his famous return to the Philippines, the Japanese made sure that he would not retake the capital of Manila without a fight. The fighting in Manila went block by block. Buildings were cleared one at a time. The fighting took weeks. The Battle of Manila was more akin to the Battle of Stalingrad than it was to Tarawa.
By the end, it would be one of the worst urban fights of the war and one that is largely overlooked.
The Battle of Manila
