Kawaguchi's Gamble

Colonel Merritt Edson's command, a composite battalion made up of U.S.M.C. Raiders and Paramarines, had just been ordered to occupy a "quiet area", an unnamed ridge overlooking the all-important Henderson Airfield. Much depleted from past operations, they were moved to give them a rest. The Japanese, however, had …

1942-09-13

S064

Colonel Merritt Edson's command, a composite battalion made up of U.S.M.C. Raiders and Paramarines, had just been ordered to occupy a "quiet area", an unnamed ridge overlooking the all-important Henderson Airfield. Much depleted from past operations, they were moved to give them a rest. The Japanese, however, had organized a series of complicated maneuvers designed to surprise the American defenders and to reach a point adjacent to the ridge through which they planned to assault the American lines and break through to Henderson Field -- the key to maintaining control of Guadalcanal. General Kawaguchi's gamble gained him an element of surprise, allowing him to bring 3,000 soldiers against the 800 Marines occupying the ridge. But these Marines were some of the best and toughest on the island and were determined not to retreat.

Henderson Field, Guadalcanal

The Battle of Edson's Ridge, also known as the Battle of the Bloody Ridge, Battle of Raiders Ridge, and Battle of the Ridge, was a land battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II between Imperial Japanese Army and Allied (mainly United States Marine Corps) ground forces. It took place from 12–14 September 1942, on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, and was the second of three separate major Japanese ground offensives during the Guadalcanal campaign. In the battle, U.S. Marines, under the overall command of U.S. Major General Alexander Vandegrift, repulsed an attack by the Japanese 35th Infantry Brigade, under the command of Japanese Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi. The Marines were defending the Lunga perimeter that guarded Henderson Field on Guadalcanal, which was captured from the Japanese by the Allies in landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942. Kawaguchi's unit was sent to Guadalcanal in response to the Allied landings with the mission of recapturing the airfield and driving the Allied forces from the island. Underestimating the strength of Allied forces on Guadalcanal—about 12,000—Kawaguchi's 6,000 soldiers conducted several nighttime frontal assaults on the U.S. defenses. The main Japanese assault occurred around Lunga ridge south of Henderson Field, manned by troops from several U.S. Marine Corps units, primarily troops from the 1st Raider and 1st Parachute Battalions under U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Merritt A. Edson. Although the Marine defenses were almost overrun, Kawaguchi's attack was ultimately defeated, with heavy losses for the Japanese.

Japanese

American

Scenario Type = Starter Kit