MacArthur's Jungle War

The 1944 New Guinea Campaign

by Stephen R. Taaffe

Series: Modern War Studies

Sales Date: January 2, 1998

328 Pages, 6.13 x 9.25 in

Hardcover
9780700608706
Published: January 1998

$55.00

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When General Douglas MacArthur led Allied troops into the jungles of New Guinea in World War II, he was already looking ahead. By successfully leapfrogging Japanese forces on that island, he placed his armies in a position to fulfill his personal promise to liberate the Philippines.

The New Guinea campaign has gone down in history as one of MacArthur’s shining successes. Now Stephen Taaffe has written the definitive history of that assault, showing why it succeeded and what it contributed to the overall strategy against Japan. His book tells not only how victory was gained through a combination of technology, tactics, and Army-Navy cooperation, but also how the New Guinea campaign exemplified the strategic differences that plagued the Pacific War, since many high-ranking officers considered it a diversionary tactic rather than a key offensive.

MacArthur’s Jungle War examines the campaign’s strategic background and individual operations, describing the enormous challenges posed by jungle and amphibious warfare. Perhaps more important, it offers a balanced assessment of MacArthur’s leadership and limitations, revealing his reliance on familiar battle plans and showing the vital role that subordinates played in his victory. Taaffe tells how MacArthur played the difficulties of the New Guinea campaign by maintaining his undivided attention on reaching the Philippines. He also discloses how MacArthur frequently deceived both his superiors and the public in order to promote his own agenda, and examines errors the general would later repeat on a larger scale up through the Korean War.

MacArthur’s Jungle War offers historians a more analytical treatment of the New Guinea campaign than is found in previous works, and is written with a dramatic flair that will appeal to military buffs. By revealing the interaction among American military planning, interservice politics, MacArthur’s generalship, and the American way of war, Taaffe’s account provides a clearer understanding of America’s Pacific war strategy and shows that the New Guinea offensive was not a mere backwater affair, but a critical part of the war against Japan.

"The definitive study of the New Guinea campaign. Taaffe presents a balanced view of the men and events, sparing neither criticism nor praise. . . . Taaffe’s book represents the beginning of a new era of McArthur scholarship."—War in History
"Based on thorough research in private manuscript collections, government documents, memoirs, unit military histories, and numerous secondary sources, this superb study is well written and cogently argued."—Journal of Military History
"Taaffe’s coverage is comprehensive: strategy, logistics, tactics, weapons, health, morale, personalities, weather and terrain, the enemy, and variety of other small but interesting aspects of his subject. . . . Taaffe is specially skillful in portraying the complexities of MarArthur’s personality and leadership style."—Army History
"The author draws on an array of official documents, unit histories, personal papers, and oral history interviews to give character and dimension to the soldiers’ war and to evaluate the roles MacArthur’s often-ignored subordinates played in bringing about the American victory."—Journal of American History
"Taaffe writes of the long, costly campaign in the Southwest Pacific with detail and clarity. His comprehensive coverage of this period is impressive."—World War II
"Well researched and an easy read, this book is a must for anyone with an interest in the Pacific War."—New York Military Affairs Symposium Newsletter
"Writing with verve and imagination, Taaffe’s compelling reassessment of MacArthur’s 1944 New Guinea operations brings to life the officers and men behind MacArthur's shining success. Skillfully using the participants’ own words to expand our understanding of these complex operations, Taaffe shows how the U.S. Army defeated a stubborn Japanese enemy while fighting in some of the most godforsaken places in the world."—Edward J. Drea, author of MacArthur’s ULTRA
"Taaffe reexamines one of the great ‘forgotten’ offensives of World War II. He shows how conflicting egos, interservice rivalries, enemy blunders, and human bravery combined to achieve an important victory in the Pacific war. Along the way he provides insightful portraits of what motivated MacArthur and other U.S. commanders. A vibrant work of military history."—Michael Schaller, author of Douglas MacArthur
"Taaffe gets underneath the MacArthur facade and looks at a major campaign in all of its important aspects."—Eric M. Bergerud, author of Touched with Fire
"Will become the standard volume on this neglected subject. It is extremely well written and also presents the most balanced view of MacArthur that I have seen in a long time. A fine piece of work, recommended with enthusiasm."—William M. Leary, author of We Shall Return