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LIBERATION — Guam Remembers
A Golden Salute for the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of Guam
Old Glory sways proudly once again
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With civilians and military alike
standing in salute, a small American flag, made by hand during the
Japanese occupation, is raised on the flagpole at the Plaza de Espana in
Agana. The site was where naval Governor George McMillin formally
surrendered the island to the Japanese on Dec. 10, 1941 (top).
A Marine walks in the ruins of an Agana home where a statue of
Christ is practically intact. Agana was devastated by pre-invasion
bombardment because military officials did not want a repeat of the
fierce house-to-house fighting experienced at Garapan village in Saipan
in June 1944 (bottom, left).
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20 October 1944
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MacArthur makes good on his vow to return to the Philippines as four
U.S. Army divisions land at Leyte. By February, U.S. forces have landed
in Luzon and go on to occupy Manila.
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Families take refuge in crypts at a
cemetery in Agana. War's destruction had leveled Agana, the island's
main residential center, and people resorted to finding shelter anywhere
they could (top, left).
Marines pose for a photograph using a torn and tattered American flag
captured from the enemy. The island's two major villages of Agana and
Sumay were both devastated in the pre-invasion bombardment. As a result,
Agana never regained its pre-war population and Sumay, which rivaled
Agana as a commercial center, simply ceased to exist, absorbed into what
was to become the Naval Station (bottom, right).
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24-25 October 1944
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The Battle of Leyte Gulf, comprised off our separate engagements and
the largest of the war, results in devastating defeat of the Japanese
navy. Four Japanese carriers are sunk as the U.S. solidifies its ability
to retake the Philippines. For the first time, "kamikazes" -
pilots on suicide missions - are sent into battle in a
desperate attempt to halt the U.S. advance toward Japan.
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