First Battle of Guam

First Battle of Guam
Part of the Pacific Theater of World War II
A Japanese illustration of the main landing on Guam by the 144th Infantry Regiment, South Seas Detachment. Painting by Kohei Ezaki.
Date 8–10 December 1941 Location Guam, Mariana Islands, Pacific Ocean Result Japanese victory
Belligerents
United States	Japan
Commanders and leaders
George J. McMillin	Tomitaro Horii
Strength
Land: 547 marines and sailors Sea: 1 minesweeper 2 patrol boats 1 freighter	Land: 5,900 infantry and marines Sea: 4 heavy cruisers 4 destroyers 2 gunboats 6 submarine chasers 2 minesweepers 2 tenders Air: unknown air forces
Casualties and losses
17 killed 35 wounded 406 captured 1 minesweeper scuttled 1 patrol boat scuttled 1 patrol boat captured 1 freighter damaged	1 killed 6 wounded 1 aircraft destroyed
13 Americans civilians and five POWs were killed by Japanese forces during the battle. Three Japanese infiltrators were captured by American forces but were released upon the surrender of the island.

The First Battle of Guam was an engagement during the Pacific War in World War II, and took place on 8 December 1941 on Guam in the Mariana Islands between Japan and the United States. The American garrison was defeated by Japanese forces, which resulted in an occupation until the Second Battle of Guam in 1944.

Guam is the southernmost part of the Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. It is the largest of the islands, with an area of 225 square miles. Guam's interior is rugged, with heavy tropical forest in the north of the island and wooded hills in the south. Much of the island's coastline is edged with coral reefs and cliffs, though beaches suitable for landing troops exist in the center of the west coast. Guam has a tropical climate, though December forms part of the dry season.

The United States captured Guam from the Kingdom of Spain on 21 June 1898 during the Spanish–American War. The next year Spain sold the other islands in the Marianas chain to Germany. The United States Navy established a facility near the village of Piti on Guam in 1899, and the United States Marine Corps (USMC) opened a barracks at Sumay in 1901. A naval coaling station was established on the island in 1905, and a battery of six 6-inch (15 cm) guns was emplaced to strengthen Guam's defenses in 1909. A U.S. Navy captain served as both the Governor and commander of the naval base from 1899 onwards, though there were some elements of a civilian government on the island.

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