War in the Pacific

Pacific War

Map showing the main areas of the conflict and Allied landings in the Pacific, 1942–45.

Date	7 December 1941 – 2 September 1945 (3 years, 8 months, 3 weeks and 5 days)
Location	East Asia South Asia Southeast Asia Oceania Western Pacific Ocean^a Indian Ocean^b
Result	Decisive Allied victory End of World War II 1951 Treaty of San Francisco Surrender of the Empire of Japan Substantial weakening of European colonial powers and the gradual decolonization of Asia Indonesian National Revolution First Indochina War Korean War
Territorial changes	Allied occupation of Japan Removal of all Japanese troops occupying parts of the Republic of China and the retrocession of Taiwan to China Liberation of Korea and Manchuria from Japanese rule, followed by the division of Korea Cession of all Japanese-held islands in the Central Pacific Ocean to the United Nations Removal of all Japanese troops from the Australian-governed Solomon Islands and the territories of New Guinea and Papua Seizure and annexation of South Sakhalin and of the Kuril Islands by the Soviet Union

Belligerents

Allies
United States

and others

Axis
Empire of Japan
Thailand

and others

Commanders and leaders

Strength

14,000,000

3,621,383+ (1945)

600,000

400,000

2,000,000

140,000

1,669,500 (1945)

7,800,000–7,900,000 (1945)

126,500

and others: ~1,000,000+ (1945)

Casualties and losses

Military
4 battleships
1 battlecruiser
12 aircraft carriers
25 cruisers
84 destroyers and destroyer escorts
63 submarines
21,555+ aircraft
4,000,000+ dead (1937–45)
Breakdown
- Allied casualties 1937–1945:
  - 10 million military casualties including 3.8 million killed (3.2 million Nationalist/-allied and 580,000 Communist)
  - ~426,000 casualties including 161,000 killed
  - ~240,000 casualties including ~82,000 killed (50,000 killed in action, ~32,000 POW deaths)
  - 46,000 casualties, including 17,501 killed
  - 27,000 killed (including POWs who died in captivity), 70,000+ captured (not including those who died), unknown wounded (not including guerrilla forces),
  - 68,407+ casualties including at least 22,526 killed and 45,881 wounded
  - 9,400 killed including 8,500 who died in captivity of the 37,000 captured (not including colonial forces)
  - ~20,000 military casualties in the Japanese coup d'état in French Indochina (including almost all of the European French troops being captured)
  - 1,000+ casualties
  - 578 killed, unknown wounded/POW
  - 5 deaths
  - Malaria was the most important health hazard encountered by U.S. troops in the South Pacific during World War II, where about 500,000 men were infected.
Civilian deaths
26,000,000+ (1937–45)

Military
8 battleships
3 battlecruisers
25 aircraft carriers
39 cruisers
135 destroyers
131 submarines
43,125+ aircraft
2,500,000+ dead (1937–45)
Civilian deaths
1,000,000+

Allies
United States