Battle of Wau 1943
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 4 February 1943 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1943 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | World War II era (1939–1945) | derived from year |
| Location | Papua New Guinea | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Oceania | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | New Guinea campaign | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | -7.3389, 146.7167 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Wau (29 January – 4 February 1943) was a battle in the New Guinea campaign of World War II. Forces of the Empire of Japan sailed from Rabaul and crossed the Solomon Sea and, despite Allied air attacks, successfully reached Lae, where they disembarked. Japanese troops then advanced overland on Wau, an Australian base that potentially threatened the Japanese positions at Salamaua and Lae. A race developed between the Japanese moving overland, hampered by the terrain, and the Australians, moving by air, hampered by the weather. By the time the Japanese reached the Wau area after a trek over the mountains, the Australian defenders had been greatly reinforced by air. In the battle that followed, despite achieving tactical surprise by approaching from an unexpected direction, the Japanese attackers were unable to capture Wau.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Wau (revision 1371108110), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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- Battle of Mount Tambu 1943 · 41 km
- Landing at Nadzab 1943 · 88 km
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Other battles of the New Guinea campaign
- Battle of Buna–Gona 1942
- Battle of Milne Bay 1942
- Battle of the Coral Sea 1942
- Battle of Driniumor River 1944
- Battle of Hollandia 1944
All 6 battles of the New Guinea campaign →
Browse more: battles in Papua New Guinea · Oceania · World War II era battles