By early June, nearly all American forces in the Philippines had surrendered.įurther west, a Japanese force overran Burma and entered the capital, Rangoon, on March 8.
The American headquarters in the fortress of Corregidor, in Manila Bay, fell on May 6, 1942, after a fierce defense. The Japanese captured the peninsula in April. The northern Philippines, with a mixed native and American force, was quickly overrun except for the Bataan Peninsula, where 100,000 soldiers and refugees were bottled up. In the Dutch East Indies, the 140,000-man colonial army was overwhelmed. They would defend the perimeter while the rich resources of the region were incorporated into the Japanese war effort. The Japanese armed forces aimed to capture a broad area in the south.
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