bigpigeon.us webpage WWII Japan > Order of Battle > OOB - Philippines Liberated, © 2024 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated by RAC 6 Mar 2024. 
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This webpage will provide an organizational context to the ground war fought against Japan by the US Army in the Philippine Islands in 1944 and 1945.

​Overview
​========
The liberation of the Philippines, from October 1944 to August 1945, consisted of three US Army campaigns:
  • Leyte - Leyte Island (including Samar Island)
  • Luzon - Luzon Island (including Mindoro Island)
  • Southern Philippines (all other islands)
involving two armies:
  • Sixth Army (Kreuger) - major combat on Leyte and Luzon
  • Eighth Army (Eichelberger) - follow-up on Leyte and Luzon and operations in the Southern Philippines
and five corps:
  • I Corps (Swift) - assault corps on Luzon
  • X Corps (Sibert) - assault corps on Leyte; Southern Philippines
  • XI Corps (Hall) - later landings on Luzon; Southern Philippines
  • XIV Corps (Griswold) - assault corps on Luzon
  • ​XXIV Corps (Hodge) - assault corps on Leyte
The Leyte Campaign - Sixth Army (Krueger)
=====================================
Division Participation under Sixth Army: 7th, 11th Airborne, 24th, 32nd, 38th, 77th, 96th, 1st Cavalry
Division Participation under Eighth Army: Americal, 81st.

Landings on outlying islands began on 17 October 1944.
The main Leyte landing took place on Leyte's east coast on 20 October 1944. 
XXIV Corps: (on the left)
  • 7th Infantry Division: 20 October 1944–
  • 96th Infantry Division: 20 October 1944–
X Corps: (on the right)
  • 24th Infantry Division (Irving): 20 October 1944–
  • 1st Cavalry Division: 20 October 1944–
  • 112th Cavalry RCT (Cunningham) (sep.): 14 Nov 1944–
  • 32nd Infantry Division (Gill): 14 November 1944–
  • ? 11th Airborne Division, 18 November 1944–
  • ? 38th Infantry Division (Jones): 16 December 1944–
  • Americal Division (Arnold): 25 January 1945–
A secondary Leyte landing took place south of Ormoc 7 December 1944.
  • 77th Infantry Division (Bruce): 7 December 1944–​ (replaced by Americal Division)
​Commentary on the Leyte Campaign:
  • The Leyte Campaign included Samar Island.
  • Official campaign dates are 17 October 1944–25 December 1944. However, mopping-up operations continued until 8 May 1945.
  • On 26 December 1944, responsibility for Leyte was passed to the Eighth Army (Eichelberger), as the Sixth Army prepared for the invasion of the main Philippines island of Luzon.
The Luzon Campaign - Sixth Army (Krueger)
​======================================
Division Participation under Sixth Army: 6th, 11th Airborne, 24th, 25th, 32nd, 33rd, 37th, 38th, 40th, 41st?, 43rd, 1st Cavalry
Division Participation under Eighth Army:

preliminary landing on Mindoro Island, 15 December 1944
Western Visayan Task Force (Dunckel), under Sixth Army command.
  • 24th Infantry Division (Woodruff) > 19th Regimental Combat Team: 15 December 1944–
  • 503rd Parachute RCT: 15 December 1944–
  • 24th Infantry Division (Woodruff) > 21st Regimental Combat Team: late December 1944–

The main Luzon landing took place in Lingayen Gulf about 130 miles north of Manila, 9 January 1945.
I Corps: (on the left) (Swift)
  • 43rd Infantry Division (Wing): 9 January 1945–
  • 6th Infantry Division (Patrick, Hurdis):  9 January 1945– (in XI Corps 15 Mar-11 Jun)
  • 25th Infantry Division (Mullins): 11 January 1945–
  • 32nd Infantry Division (Gill): 27 January 1945–
  • 33rd Infantry Division (Clarkson): 10 February 1945–
XIV Corps: (on the right) (Griswold)
  • 37th Infantry Division (Beightler): 9 January 1945–
  • 40th Infantry Division (Brush): 9 January 1945–2 March 1945
  • 1st Cavalry Division (Mudge, Hoffman): 27 January 1945–26 June 1945
  • 112th Cavalry RCT (Cunningham): 27 January 1945–

Landing in the San Narcisco/San Antonio area NW of Manila, 29 January 1945.
XI Corps (Hall)
  • 38th Infantry Division (Jones, Chase): 29 January 1945–
  • 24th Infantry Division > 34th Infantry Regiment: 29 January 1945–
Commentary on the XI Corps Landing:
  • XI Corps thennpassed from the Eighth Army to the Sixth Army on 30 January 1945.
​
Later landings on Luzon:
at Nasugbu, southwest of Manila, 31 January 1945:
  • 11th Airborne Division (Swing) (to XIV Corps 10 February 1945)
  • 24th Infantry Division > 19th Infantry Regiment, 10 February 1945–
at Mariveles, on Bataan Peninsula, 15 February 1945:
  • 38th Infantry Division (elts.)
on Corregidor Island in Manila Bay, 16 February 1945:
  • 503rd Parachute Regiment (by air)
  • 24th Infantry Division > 34th Infantry Regiment (elts.)
at Legaspi in southeast Luzon, 1 April 1945:
  • 158th Regimental Combat Team (MacNider) (sep.)

Commentary on the Luzon Campaign:
  • Operations in Mindoro passed to the control of the Eighth Army 1 January 1945 and operations in Luzon passed to the control of the Eighth Army 1 July 1945.
  • Combat in northern Luzon was still ongoing when WWII hostilities ended in August 1945.
The Southern Philippines Campaign - Eighth Army (Eichelberger)
​========================================================
The Southern Philippines Campaign included over 50 amphibious landings which were generally fought by smaller units; few if ay of the smaller landings are included here. The campaign was under the control of the Eighth Army. It is not clear if there was any corps involvement except on Mindanao.

First Phase, seizing Puerto Princessa on Palawan (VICTOR III) and the Zamboanga Peninsula of western Mindanao and parts of the Sulu Archipelago (VICTOR IV).
  • Palawan - 41st Infantry Division (Doe) > 186th RCT, 28 February-late April.
  • Zamboanga Peninsula - 41st Infantry Division (Doe) > 162nd & 163rd RCTs, 10 March-
  • Sulu Archipelago - 41st Infantry Division (Doe) > 163rd Inf. Regt., March-

Second Phase, seizing the Visayan Islands in the central Philippines.
  • Panay & northwestern Negros (VICTOR I), 40th Infantry Division (Brush) & 503rd parachute RCT, 18 March-
  • Cebu, Bohol & southeastern Negros (VICTOR II), Americal Division (Arnold), 26 March-

Third Phase, seizing the bulk of Mindanao (VICTOR V), X Corps (Sibert):
  • 24th Infantry Division, 17 April-
  • 31st Infantry Division, 22 April-
  • 41st Infantry Division (Doe) > 162nd RCT, 4 May-
  • 108th Inf. Regt. of the 40th Infantry Division, 10 May-
  • 155th Inf. Regt. of the 31st Infantry Division, 24 June-
The Planned Operation Olympic Order of Battle - Sixth Army (Krueger)
=============================================================
Planned for November 1945 on the Japanese Home Island of Kyushu
Peripheral Landings:
  • 40th Infantry Division - Luzon veteran
  • 158th RCT - Luzon veteran
I Corps (Swift): - 
  • 25th Infantry Division - Luzon veteran
  • 33rd Infantry Division - Luzon veteran
  • 41st Infantry Division
V Amphibious Corps (Schmidt): - veteran Iwo Jima divisions
  • 3rd Marine Division
  • 4th Marine Division
  • 5th Marine Division
XI Corps (Hall):
  • 1st Cavalry Division - Leyte & Luzon veteran
  • Americal Division
  • 43rd Infantry Division
IX Corps (Ryder): - no previous combat experience; staging on Leyte, floating reserve
  • 81st Infantry Division
  • 98th Infantry Division
Follow-up Units:
  • 11th Airborne Division - Leyte & Luzon veteran
  • 77th Infantry Division - Leyte veteran
Sources:
​Triumph in the Philippines, https://history.army.mil/html/books/005/5-10-1/CMH_Pub_5-10-1.pdf
​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orders_of_battle_for_Downfall