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Author: D C

Cebu 2015, Part I: Talisay Beach Landing, 70th Anniversary Ceremony

Published by D C on June 9, 2015
  • Tracked amphibious landing vehicles (LVT) make their way ashore. In the distance, Talisay Beach is masked in thick smoke. The larger craft at center is an LCI, the type of ship Company G landed in. Source: Naval History and Heritage Command, 80-G-259254.
  • Sailors of the Philippine Navy pass the reviewing stand at the ceremony on the 70th anniversary of the Talisay Beach landing, 26 March 2015. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Filipino special forces wade ashore at the reenactment of the Talisay Beach landing on Cebu, on the the 70th anniversary of the event, 26 March 2015. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • The waterfront of Talisay Beach erupts during a mock naval bombardment, during the reenactment of the amphibious landing on Cebu during World War II. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • A straw hut explodes in a fireball on the shores of Talisay Beach, during the 2015 reenactment of the 1945 amphibious landing on the beaches of Cebu. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Filipino military forces re-enact the Americal Division landing at Talisay Beach on the 70th anniversary of the battle, 26 March 2015. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Reenactment of the Talisay Beach landing on Cebu, on the the 70th anniversary of the event, 26 March 2015. Japanese forces (at right) defend the beachhead against the advance of Americal Division troops (at left). Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Larger than life statues of Americal Division soldiers mark the spot on Talisay Beach where they came ashore on Cebu, 26 March 1945. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Sam Arnold (left) and Dave Colamaria pose for a photo on Talisay Beach where their Americal Division ancestors came ashore in 1945. In the background are boats of the Filipino military used in the 70th anniversary reenactment of the landing. Source: Dave Colamaria.

 

(Note: for a detailed introduction to the Americal Division Veterans Association’s 2015 trip to Cebu, along with links to other stories from the trip, read our introductory story Cebu 2015: The Ghosts of World War II, 70 Years Later. Learn more about the World War II battle for Cebu here.)

On 26 March 2015, the people of Cebu, in conjunction with the military forces of the Philippines, commemorated the 70th anniversary of their liberation from Japanese occupation during World War II (see Photo #1 for a view of the real landing). In an alternately moving and exciting ceremony, the amphibious landing of the Americal Division on the shores of Talisay Beach was reenacted, complete with a mock naval bombardment. I had the honor to watch the landing operation and ensuing “battle” from a podium on the beach, alongside members of the Americal Division Veterans Association and leaders of the Philippine military.

We awakened to a rainy morning at our hotel in Cebu City, and boarded our van for the short ride down the coast to Talisay. Upon arriving, we were all taken aback by the scale of the festivities. On a small street running parallel to the beach, huge tents were set up to shelter rows and rows of seats for spectators. A podium had been erected for dignitaries. It was difficult to even make our way forward through the thick crowds of Cebuanos. We were very pleased to see that seats had been reserved for us in the front row – not far from Filipino military veterans, including some who had fought the Japanese as guerrillas during the occupation. Joining our group this morning was Sam Arnold, the great-grandson of Lieutenant General William Arnold, who commanded the Americal Division during the Cebu campaign. Sam was whisked away for a quick TV interview as preparations for the festivities continued. Media coverage of the event was heavy, and stories can be read here, here, here, and here.

We were all finally called to attention, and the day’s events began. The festivities began with an impressive military parade, featuring soldiers and sailors of the Filipino military, along with several armored vehicles. They marched in fine order past the main podium, where they saluted dignitaries and military officials (see Photo #2). Next came lines of police and firemen. The tail end of the parade was comprised of many groups of local youths from military academies and training institutions.

Once the parade had wrapped up, we all stood for the raising of the flags of each of the involved nations. The Philippine flag was the first to be raised. Next was perhaps the strangest moment of the day – the raising of the Japanese flag over Cebu, accompanied by their national anthem. It was a wonderful token of peace and forgiveness, but it certainly seemed a bit surreal, knowing what horrible war crimes were inflicted upon the people of Cebu during the occupation. Lastly, the American flag was raised to the strains of the Star Spangled Banner. Following the flag raising, wreaths were placed at the base of the flagpoles, including one wreath placed by Roger Gilmore of the Americal Division Veterans Association and John Gilbert of the local VFW. The mayor of Talisay, Johnny De los Reyes, delivered an energetic speech, which was unfortunately not in English, so we did not know what he was saying! You can view the whole ceremony and parade on YouTube here.

We finally moved on to the final, most exciting portion of the day. The speakers wrapped up their remarks, and the crowd began to shuffle over to the beach, just 100 yards away. With the thick crowd, I began to worry that we would not even be able to see the reenactment. As we mingled through, the crowd parted and we were waved up to a temporary platform with seats for the dignitaries. It was right on the water’s edge – a front row seat. Before us we could see a number of fake straw huts built on the dark, wet sand of the beach. By this point the rain had ended, and it had turned into a pleasant (though muggy) day with light clouds. Offshore we could see a number of small military craft circling in the distance. The crowd gathered in a semi-circle around the “battle front” and a public address announcer started the event by describing the situation on 26 March 1945. Dramatic music was added for effect, and the show was on. First ashore were Filipino special forces, simulating US Navy Underwater Demolition Teams (the forerunners of Navy Seals) who cleared the beach of mines in advance of the landing (see Photo #3). They were dropped off by fast, armed rigid hull inflatable (RHIB) boats. After completing their mine clearance duties, they were picked up once again by the RHIBs and made a rapid exit out to sea.

With the mines cleared and the beach prepared for assault, the real fun began. The crowd yelped with surprise and delight as the “US Navy” began to bombard the shore, and explosions ripped through the waterfront. What was in fact carefully placed explosive effects, combined with sound effects on the PA system, did a nice job of simulating the explosive power of a naval shore bombardment. The gentle water lapping the shore burst skyward dramatically (see Photo #4), and the straw huts on the water’s edge exploded in huge fireballs (see Photo #5), while the crowd gasped in awe. You can see this portion of the “fighting” in the video I shot, posted at the bottom of this story.

While the shore bombardment was exploding on the water’s edge, “Japanese” troops moved into place to defend the beach. These soldiers were played by local Filipino youths. In fact, during the real invasion, the Japanese did not resist the invasion in force. Instead, they fell back into well defended mountain positions to await the soldiers of the Americal Division. For dramatic purposes, the 70th anniversary reenactment took some liberties with the way things actually happened. As the Japanese defenders took their positions behind the now-burning grass huts, Filipino landing craft advanced on the beach, simulating the Americal Division. They disgorged soldiers on the water’s edge (see Photo #6), as machine gun blasts (once again, carefully placed explosive charges) tore up the beach sand. A gun fight ensued, resulting in the slaughter of the Japanese troops (see Photo # 7). The children in the crowd could be heard laughing as some of the Japanese reenactors died in overly melodramatic fashion. At last, the beach was secure, and the day’s events ended.

It was quite a scene to behold. While some liberties were taken with the facts of the landing, the overall impact of the event was impressive. Even more impressive was the fact that the people of Cebu still remember that day, and go to great lengths to commemorate it. In fact, this ceremony is an annual event. The Americal Division’s sacrifices are remembered with great fondness, and a statue on the beach (see Photo #8) – a column of advancing soldiers – means that it won’t soon be forgotten.

This video shows the dramatic explosives used to simulate naval gunfire bombardment:

Read the next piece in this series here: Cebu 2015 Part II, Tracking the War in Cebu City.

Cebu 2015: The Ghosts of World War II, 70 Years Later

Published by D C on June 6, 2015
  • Tracked amphibious landing vehicles (LVT) make their way ashore. In the distance, Talisay Beach is masked in thick smoke. The larger craft at center is an LCI, the type of ship Company G landed in. Source: Naval History and Heritage Command, 80-G-259254.
  • Americal Division Veterans Association tour group at Museo Sugbo, Cebu City, 2015. Source: Americal Division Veterans Association.
  • Filipino military forces re-enact the Americal Division landing at Talisay Beach on the 70th anniversary of the battle. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Comparison of the landing at Talisay Beach in Cebu, with 1945 at top, and 2015 at bottom. Source: top photo Naval History and Heritage Command SC 264198, bottom photo Dave Colamaria.
  • Dave Colamaria at an overlook on top of Babag Ridge, looking down on the sprawl of Cebu City below. Source: Dave Colamaria.
  • Sam Arnold (left) and Dave Colamaria pose with the newly dedicated monument at the site of the Japanese surrender on Cebu. Source: Dave Colamaria.

In March 2015, I had the amazing opportunity to visit Cebu, an island in the Philippines. Along with a group of men from the Americal Division Veterans Association (all veterans of the war in Vietnam), I spent a week on the island touring sites with ties to World War II. This included several locations where the 182nd Infantry engaged in combat. It was a very emotional experience for me, retracing the footsteps of my grandfather, Ed Monahan. He served as First Sergeant for Company G of the 182nd on Cebu, from their amphibious landing in March 1945, until he was rotated home on points in May 1945, with the heaviest fighting completed.

Over the next few weeks, I plan to post a short series of stories on the Cebu trip. I am going to post them in an order approximating the sequence of events that the fighting on Cebu occurred, rather than how our trip was scheduled. The first piece will look at the extravagant ceremonies hosted by the people of the Philippines to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Americal Division’s landing at Talisay Beach, on 26 March 1945 (read Part I here). Next I’ll look at some of the sites in the urban center of Cebu City, which was seized shortly after the successful landing at Talisay (read Part II here). We’ll move from there into the imposing hills of Babag Ridge, scene of the bloodiest fighting of the campaign (read Part III here).  A visit to the west coast of Cebu affords the chance to tour some World War II pillboxes and tank barriers (read Part IV here). And lastly, we’ll finish up with a piece on the dedication of a new monument at the spot where thousands of Japanese troops surrendered to the Americal at the end of the war (read Part V here).

The main purpose of our visit was to attend this new monument dedication. My grandfather was not present when the Japanese on Cebu surrendered to the Americal Division at the end of the war. So in a way, I saw this trip as a way for me to bring some symbolic closure to the war for him. On that last day in Cebu at the monument dedication, I did find that closure, in a deeply satisfying and emotional moment I’ll describe in my story on the ceremony.

After completing the Cebu portion of the trip, I had a brief stopover in Manila, where I visited the graves of men from Company G who were killed during the war. You can read that story here. To learn more about the battle for Cebu, read the story here. Please check back throughout the month as a I post the details of the 2015 trip. The journey begins with the reenactment of the Talisay Beach Landing.

Memorial Day 2015: Remembering the Dead of Company G

Published by D C on May 24, 2015
  • The names of 53 men from Company G killed in action, in roughly chronological order. It remains uncertain whether this is a complete list of those killed in the company, but it is certainly a close approximation. Source: Edward Monahan Collection.
  • Just a few of the men from Company G, 182nd Infantry Regiment, killed during World War II.
  • Manila American Cemetery, 28 March 2015. Source: David Colamaria.
  • Manila American Cemetery, 28 March 2015. Source: David Colamaria.
  • Manila American Cemetery, 28 March 2015. Source: David Colamaria.
  • Just a few of the hundreds of panels inscribed with the names of Americans still Missing in Action from the Pacific during World War II, at the Manila American Cemetery, 28 March 2015. Source: David Colamaria.
  • Grave at Manila American Cemetery of Private First Class Carlton O. Duley, killed in action, Bougainville, 7 March 1944. Source: David Colamaria.
  • Grave at Manila American Cemetery of Private First Class Arnold M. West, killed in action, Bougainville, 1 October 1944. Source: David Colamaria.

I’ve spent a good deal of time this Memorial Day weekend finalizing the Killed in Action page for the Company G website. It was important to me to have it finished for Memorial Day. The foundation for this list of KIA is my grandfather Ed Monahan‘s handwritten list of men, numbering 53 dead (see Photo #1). Based on the list of the dead in the back of the Americal Division’s book Under the Southern Cross, as well as an initial scan of Company G’s morning reports, and of course the burials listed by the American Battle Monuments Commission, I feel that this list is a nearly complete accounting of the dead for Company G. I’ll continue to investigate this as part of my ongoing research. I suspect that there may be some names missing from the list, but I am quite comfortable stating that those listed were in fact the names of those killed during the war. Just a few of their faces can be seen in Photo #2.

In March, I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Cebu, in the Philippine Islands, as a part of a trip with the Americal Division Veteran’s Association, to witness the dedication of a new monument at the spot of a major Japanese surrender at the end of the war (read about it here). The final stop on my trip was the Manila American Cemetery, final resting place for over 17,000 American casualties in the Pacific during World War II. On the strikingly beautiful grounds of this cemetery (see Photo #3, Photo #4, Photo #5) lie the remains of 10 men from Company G. On the walls of the missing, the names of 4 other men from Company G are inscribed (see Photo #6). During my visit on 29 March 2015, I stopped to pay respects to each man. It was a powerful, emotional morning, under a bright sun, with a brisk wind coursing over the quiet cemetery grounds. With the help of my mother, Claire Ciampa, my wife Angie, and the son of another Company G man, Ed Gekosky, we had assembled small ribbons prior to my departure for the Philippines. I left a ribbon with the Americal Division insignia and a symbol of each man’s home state at each grave (see Photo #7, Photo #8). It felt like a very small gesture to me, inconsequential when measured against the sacrifice these men had made. For weeks, I had been conscious of the fact that these men had likely never had a personal visitor, given the thousands of miles separating them from home. I wanted my visit to mean something – for these men to be remembered.

I hope that others out there will see and visit the Killed in Action page on this site, to remember the great sacrifice these men made. And I hope that some will read this story on Memorial Day, to help keep all of their memories alive.

2015: Website Relaunch

Published by D C on May 13, 2015

I am very pleased to announce a relaunch of this website. The original site was launched in 2010, using the Omeka platform from George Mason University. For a few years now, I’ve wanted to migrate to a newer format, with a blog. This blog will allow me to post updates and news story about my research. It will also hopefully be a good way to connect veterans of the unit and their families. In 5 years of being online, I’ve made so many connections to other Company G men and their families, but the old website format made it difficult to talk about it. I hope to do more of that in the future.

The newer, streamlined format should also make it easier to navigate the site, and will allow me to make easier and more frequents updates and corrections. Stay tuned for more to come shortly!

New 182nd Infantry website, launched May 2015.
New 182nd Infantry website, launched May 2015.
Old 182nd Infantry website, launched in 2010.
Old 182nd Infantry website, launched in 2010.