I Corps Patch (1st) - FELT
On 6 July 1942 Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger took command of the corps which he would lead through the majority of its service in the war. In the summer of 1942 the corps was ordered to Australia, closing into the area at Rockhampton on 17 October 1942 This move was to be part of a larger overall offensive in the south Pacific region.The corps at this time comprised the 41st and 32nd Divisions, engaged in the defense of British New Guinea, the beginning of the New Guinea campaign. Though the Japanese advanced rapidly at first, a number of factors slowed their progress against the Allied forces. Stubborn resistance from two Australian brigades bought time for I Corps reinforcements to arrive while the terrain proved more difficult than the Japanese had anticipated.[8][9] Supplies, which were already insufficient for the Japanese forces, were shortened even more as Japan's high command diverted them to the Guadalcanal campaign. The Japanese attack stalled, and once the threat of a Japanese invasion of Australia was abated, the I Corps launched an offensive to push back the Japanese. With the 32nd Division and the 163rd Infantry Regiment of the 41st Division, the offensive was launched across the Owen Stanley Mountains of New Guinea. This force, later augmented by the Australian 7th Division, fought the Battle of Buna-Gona, slowly advancing north against a tenacious enemy under harsh weather and terrain conditions. Overstretched Japanese forces, low on supplies, were eventually overcome by US and Australian forces. Despite being surrounded, trapped, and outnumbered, the Japanese forces continued to fight until they were completely wiped out by Allied forces. Buna, on the north coast of the island, fell on 22 January 1943. The campaign was the first major Allied victory against the Japanese Army, and the I Corps received the Distinguished Unit Citation. This victory marked the turn of the tide in the ground war against Japan
LVTs head for the invasion beaches at Humboldt Bay, Netherlands New Guinea, during the Hollandia landing in the campaign
After this campaign the I Corps returned to Rockhampton, where it was engaged in the training of the Allied forces beginning to arrive in that area for the coming campaigns. From February 1943 until March 1944 the I Corps prepared for its next assignment, Operation Cartwheel That mission was the capture of Hollandia on the north coast of Dutch New Guinea; the units allocated to the corps for this task were the 24th and 41st Infantry Divisions. The Task Force established itself ashore after a successful amphibious assault on 19 April 1944. It then began an offensive in that area to remove Japanese forces, before establishing air bases there. The battle was a vicious one; the jungles and swamps made difficult fighting ground, and it was not until 6 June that the area was secured. The entire Japanese 18th Army was cut off from its bases by the force. Following this campaign the corps directed the seizure of the island of Biak, which was secured by 24 June, to complete the advances necessary for the subsequent invasion of the Philippine Islands. On 20 August Major General Innis P. Swift succeeded General Eichelberger as commander of the corps.
On 27 July 1944, the headquarters of the World War I-era I Corps was concurrently reconstituted in the Regular Army and consolidated with the headquarters of the currently-active I Corps, preserving its Great War lineage and honors.
On 6 July 1942 Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger took command of the corps which he would lead through the majority of its service in the war. In the summer of 1942 the corps was ordered to Australia, closing into the area at Rockhampton on 17 October 1942 This move was to be part of a larger overall offensive in the south Pacific region.The corps at this time comprised the 41st and 32nd Divisions, engaged in the defense of British New Guinea, the beginning of the New Guinea campaign. Though the Japanese advanced rapidly at first, a number of factors slowed their progress against the Allied forces. Stubborn resistance from two Australian brigades bought time for I Corps reinforcements to arrive while the terrain proved more difficult than the Japanese had anticipated.[8][9] Supplies, which were already insufficient for the Japanese forces, were shortened even more as Japan's high command diverted them to the Guadalcanal campaign. The Japanese attack stalled, and once the threat of a Japanese invasion of Australia was abated, the I Corps launched an offensive to push back the Japanese. With the 32nd Division and the 163rd Infantry Regiment of the 41st Division, the offensive was launched across the Owen Stanley Mountains of New Guinea. This force, later augmented by the Australian 7th Division, fought the Battle of Buna-Gona, slowly advancing north against a tenacious enemy under harsh weather and terrain conditions. Overstretched Japanese forces, low on supplies, were eventually overcome by US and Australian forces. Despite being surrounded, trapped, and outnumbered, the Japanese forces continued to fight until they were completely wiped out by Allied forces. Buna, on the north coast of the island, fell on 22 January 1943. The campaign was the first major Allied victory against the Japanese Army, and the I Corps received the Distinguished Unit Citation. This victory marked the turn of the tide in the ground war against Japan
LVTs head for the invasion beaches at Humboldt Bay, Netherlands New Guinea, during the Hollandia landing in the campaign
After this campaign the I Corps returned to Rockhampton, where it was engaged in the training of the Allied forces beginning to arrive in that area for the coming campaigns. From February 1943 until March 1944 the I Corps prepared for its next assignment, Operation Cartwheel That mission was the capture of Hollandia on the north coast of Dutch New Guinea; the units allocated to the corps for this task were the 24th and 41st Infantry Divisions. The Task Force established itself ashore after a successful amphibious assault on 19 April 1944. It then began an offensive in that area to remove Japanese forces, before establishing air bases there. The battle was a vicious one; the jungles and swamps made difficult fighting ground, and it was not until 6 June that the area was secured. The entire Japanese 18th Army was cut off from its bases by the force. Following this campaign the corps directed the seizure of the island of Biak, which was secured by 24 June, to complete the advances necessary for the subsequent invasion of the Philippine Islands. On 20 August Major General Innis P. Swift succeeded General Eichelberger as commander of the corps.
On 27 July 1944, the headquarters of the World War I-era I Corps was concurrently reconstituted in the Regular Army and consolidated with the headquarters of the currently-active I Corps, preserving its Great War lineage and honors.
On 6 July 1942 Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger took command of the corps which he would lead through the majority of its service in the war. In the summer of 1942 the corps was ordered to Australia, closing into the area at Rockhampton on 17 October 1942 This move was to be part of a larger overall offensive in the south Pacific region.The corps at this time comprised the 41st and 32nd Divisions, engaged in the defense of British New Guinea, the beginning of the New Guinea campaign. Though the Japanese advanced rapidly at first, a number of factors slowed their progress against the Allied forces. Stubborn resistance from two Australian brigades bought time for I Corps reinforcements to arrive while the terrain proved more difficult than the Japanese had anticipated.[8][9] Supplies, which were already insufficient for the Japanese forces, were shortened even more as Japan's high command diverted them to the Guadalcanal campaign. The Japanese attack stalled, and once the threat of a Japanese invasion of Australia was abated, the I Corps launched an offensive to push back the Japanese. With the 32nd Division and the 163rd Infantry Regiment of the 41st Division, the offensive was launched across the Owen Stanley Mountains of New Guinea. This force, later augmented by the Australian 7th Division, fought the Battle of Buna-Gona, slowly advancing north against a tenacious enemy under harsh weather and terrain conditions. Overstretched Japanese forces, low on supplies, were eventually overcome by US and Australian forces. Despite being surrounded, trapped, and outnumbered, the Japanese forces continued to fight until they were completely wiped out by Allied forces. Buna, on the north coast of the island, fell on 22 January 1943. The campaign was the first major Allied victory against the Japanese Army, and the I Corps received the Distinguished Unit Citation. This victory marked the turn of the tide in the ground war against Japan
LVTs head for the invasion beaches at Humboldt Bay, Netherlands New Guinea, during the Hollandia landing in the campaign
After this campaign the I Corps returned to Rockhampton, where it was engaged in the training of the Allied forces beginning to arrive in that area for the coming campaigns. From February 1943 until March 1944 the I Corps prepared for its next assignment, Operation Cartwheel That mission was the capture of Hollandia on the north coast of Dutch New Guinea; the units allocated to the corps for this task were the 24th and 41st Infantry Divisions. The Task Force established itself ashore after a successful amphibious assault on 19 April 1944. It then began an offensive in that area to remove Japanese forces, before establishing air bases there. The battle was a vicious one; the jungles and swamps made difficult fighting ground, and it was not until 6 June that the area was secured. The entire Japanese 18th Army was cut off from its bases by the force. Following this campaign the corps directed the seizure of the island of Biak, which was secured by 24 June, to complete the advances necessary for the subsequent invasion of the Philippine Islands. On 20 August Major General Innis P. Swift succeeded General Eichelberger as commander of the corps.
On 27 July 1944, the headquarters of the World War I-era I Corps was concurrently reconstituted in the Regular Army and consolidated with the headquarters of the currently-active I Corps, preserving its Great War lineage and honors.