Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Island getaway --Corregidor

I recently visited the Island of Corregidor.
To those not in the US military, this used to be a US garrison back in WW2.
General Douglas MacArthur's last stand happened here before he retreated to Australia to regroup but not before uttering his famous words: "I shall return". And he did, liberating the Philippines 3 years later.

Battery Hearn. Range: 14-16 miles. These guns were built for repelling gigantic warships.
They were useless against airplanes which the Japanese used over and over again during the siege of the island. 
Topside barracks built on the top of the hill of Corregidor Island. Built with steel and cement ironically imported from Japan completed around the 1920's.
Japanese war memorial. The only one outside of Japan. When the war ended, the dead Japanese soldiers were buried with honor and given grave crosses here. The Japanese government found out about it a couple decades ago and sent funds to build a permanent memorial. All the remains have since been cremated.
It was good to see the island again. The last time I was there, I was 11 years old.


4 comments:

  1. Do I understand correctly, the Philipinos buried their invaders with honor? A beautiful story.

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  2. Yes it is what makes the story touching. perhaps it was mutual respect between combatants. I just learned of it at that last trip. the memorial did not exist when I was a kid. strange story. An American soldier took his photo on the site. The picture was later found in his house. It was taken to the Japanese government where they were absolutely impressed.with the respect given to their war dead. The Japanese government.then sent over funds to rebuild the site to what it is today.

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