Units Involved

1st Marine Division

The Battle of Cape Gloucester was a battle in the Pacific theater of World War II between Japanese and Allied forces which took place on the island of New Britain, Territory of New Guinea, between late December 1943 and April 1944.

The battle was a major part of Operation Cartwheel, the main Allied strategy in the South West Pacific Area and Pacific Ocean Areas during 1943–1944, and was the second World War II landing of the U.S. 1st Marine Division, after Guadalcanal. The main objective of the operation was to capture the two Japanese airfields around Cape Gloucester.

The main landing came on 26 December 1943 when U.S. Marines landed either side of the peninsula. The western landing force cut the coastal road, while the main force, landing on the eastern side, advanced north towards the airfields. Their advance was slowed by the swampy terrain, however, initially resistance was light. A Japanese counterattack briefly slowed the advance, however, by 30 December the airfields were firmly under Marine control. Further fighting followed into early January 1944 as the U.S. troops extended their perimeter south from the airfields, with mopping up operations in the vicinity continuing into April 1944.