Battle of Wake Island 1941
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 8 December 1941 – 23 December 1941 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1941 | Wikidata P580 (start time) |
| Era | World War II era (1939–1945) | derived from year |
| Location | United States Minor Outlying Islands | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Oceania | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Pacific War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Empire of Japan, United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 19.2900, 166.6010 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Wake Island was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on Wake Island. The assault was one of five simultaneous assaults on American naval and air bases in the Pacific on the morning of 8 December 1941 (7 December in Hawaii), with the Battle of Wake Island ending on 23 December, with the surrender of American forces to the Empire of Japan. It was fought on and around the atoll formed by Wake Island and its minor islets of Peale and Wilkes Islands by the air, land, and naval forces of the Japanese Empire against those of the United States, with marines playing a prominent role on both sides.
The battle started with a surprise bombing raid on 8 December 1941, within hours of Pearl Harbor, and the air raids continued almost every day for the duration of the battle. There were two amphibious assaults, one on 11 December 1941 (which was rebuffed) and another on 23 December, that led to the Japanese capture of the atoll. In addition, there were several air battles above and around Wake and an encounter between two naval vessels. The U.S. lost control of the island and 12 fighter aircraft; in addition to the garrison being taken as prisoners of war, nearly 1,200 civilian contractors were also captured by the Japanese.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Wake Island (revision 1380883903), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Other battles of the Pacific War
- Battle of Hong Kong 1941
- Battle for Henderson Field 1942
- Battle of Badung Strait 1942
- Battle of Balikpapan (1942) 1942
- Battle of Christmas Island 1942
- Battle of Corregidor 1942
- Battle of Manado 1942
- Battle of Midway 1942
- Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse 1942
- Battle of Palembang 1942
All 56 battles of the Pacific War →
Browse more: battles in United States Minor Outlying Islands · Oceania · World War II era battles