Galloping Horse Ridge

The soldiers of the US Army’s 25th Infantry Division prepared for their third day of fighting on Galloping Horse Ridge where their objective was to take the final hill and thereby further the American advance to secure the island. Brought in to relieve the beleaguered Marines on Guadalcanal, the infantrymen …

1943-01-13

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The soldiers of the US Army’s 25th Infantry Division prepared for their third day of fighting on Galloping Horse Ridge where their objective was to take the final hill and thereby further the American advance to secure the island. Brought in to relieve the beleaguered Marines on Guadalcanal, the infantrymen of the 25th would continue the hard-pressed fight against the Japanese. Over the course of a month, the Division would struggle ridge to ridge, hill to hill, and over rivers and streams to drive the Japanese defenders off the island. These actions on Galloping Horse Ridge were later depicted in the book and movie of the same name. The Thin Red Line.

Mount Austen, Guadalcanal

The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse, part of which is sometimes called the Battle of the Gifu, took place from 15 December 1942 to 23 January 1943 and was primarily an engagement between United States and Imperial Japanese forces in the hills near the Matanikau River area on Guadalcanal during the Guadalcanal Campaign. The U.S. forces were under the overall command of Alexander Patch and the Japanese forces were under the overall command of Harukichi Hyakutake. In the battle, U.S. soldiers and Marines, assisted by native Solomon Islanders, attacked Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) forces defending well-fortified and entrenched positions on several hills and ridges. The most prominent hills were called Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse by the Americans. The U.S. was attempting to destroy the Japanese forces on Guadalcanal and the Japanese were trying to hold their defensive positions until reinforcements could arrive. Both sides experienced extreme difficulties in fighting in the thick jungles and tropical environment of the battle area. Many of the American troops were also involved in their first combat operations. The Japanese were mostly cut off from resupply and suffered greatly from malnourishment and lack of medical care. After some difficulty, the U.S. succeeded in taking Mount Austen, in the process reducing a strongly defended position called the Gifu, as well as the Galloping Horse and the Sea Horse.

Wikipedia: Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse

American

Japanese