MacArthur in Asia : The General and His Staff in the Philippines, Japan, and Korea

General Douglas MacArthur's storied career is inextricably linked to Asia. His father, Arthur, served as Military Governor of the Philippines while Douglas was a student at West Point, and the younger MacArthur would serve several tours of duty in that country over the next four decades, becoming friends with several influential Filipinos, including the country's future president, Emanuel L. Quezon. In 1935, he became Quezon's military advisor, a post he held after retiring from the U.S. Army and at the time of Japan’s invasion of 1941. As Supreme Commander for the Southwest Pacific, MacArthur led American forces throughout the Pacific War. He officially accepted Japan's surrender in 1945 and would later oversee the Allied occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951. He then led the UN Command in the Korean War from 1950 to 1951, until he was dismissed from his post by President Truman. In __MacArthur in Asia__, the distinguished Japanese historian Hiroshi Masuda offers a new perspective on the American icon, focusing on his experiences in the Philippines, Japan, and Korea and highlighting the importance of the general’s staff—the famous "Bataan Boys" who served alongside MacArthur throughout the Asian arc of his career—to both MacArthur’s and the region’s history. First published to wide acclaim in Japanese in 2009 and translated into English for the first time, this book uses a wide range of sources—American and Japanese, official records and oral histories—to present a complex view of MacArthur, one that illuminates his military decisions during the Pacific campaign and his administration of the Japanese Occupation. "Hiroshi Masuda reinterprets MacArthur by going back to his years in the Philippines. In particular, [the book] focuses on the 'Bataan Boys,' the group of subordinates who accompanied MacArthur in his 1942 evacuation from the Philippines, and their views of MacArthur. MacArthur in Asia offers valuable insights into not only MacArthur's public persona but also his personal and human characteristics, demonstrating the strengths of the biographical approach to historical scholarship."—Asahi Shimbun "This book offers an integrated view that links wartime and postwar Japan through the figure of one person, Douglas MacArthur. The Occupation appears as an extension of the war, and we are left with the historical awareness that, in East Asia, war continued even after 1945."—Tokyo Shimbun General Douglas MacArthur's storied career is inextricably linked to Asia. His father, Arthur, served as Military Governor of the Philippines while Douglas was a student at West Point, and the younger MacArthur would serve several tours of duty in that country over the next four decades, becoming friends with several influential Filipinos, including the country's future president, Emanuel L. Quezon. In 1935, he became Quezon's military advisor, a post he held after retiring from the U.S. Army and at the time of Japan's invasion of 1941. As Supreme Commander for the Southwest Pacific, MacArthur led American forces throughout the Pacific War. He officially accepted Japan's surrender in 1945 and would later oversee the Allied occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951. He then led the UN Command in the Korean War from 1950 to 1951, until he was dismissed from his post by President Truman. In MacArthur in Asia, the distinguished Japanese historian Hiroshi Masuda offers a new perspective on the American icon, focusing on his experiences in the Philippines, Japan, and Korea and highlighting the importance of the general's staff—the famous "Bataan Boys" who served alongside MacArthur throughout the Asian arc of his career—to both MacArthur's and the region's history. MacArthur implemented far-reaching democratic reforms under the Occupation. MacArthur's policy and view on the reforms are eloquently described based on Masuda's thorough studies. First published to wide acclaim in Japanese in 2009 and translated into English for the first time, this book uses a wide range of sources—American and Japanese, official records and oral histories—to present a complex view of MacArthur, one that illuminates his military decisions during the Pacific campaign and his administration of the Japanese Occupation. | General Douglas MacArthur's storied career is inextricably linked to Asia. His father, Arthur, served as Military Governor of the Philippines while Douglas was a student at West Point, and the younger MacArthur would serve several tours of duty in that country over the next four decades, becoming friends with several influential Filipinos, including the country's future president, Emanuel L. Quezon. In 1935, he became Quezon's military advisor, a post he held after retiring from the U.S. Army and at the time of Japan's invasion of 1941. As Supreme Commander for the Southwest Pacific, MacArthur led American forces throughout the Pacific War. He officially accepted Japan's surrender in 1945 and would later oversee the Allied occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951. He then led the UN Command in the Korean War from 1950 to 1951, until he was dismissed from his post by President Truman. In MacArthur in Asia , the distinguished Japanese historian Hiroshi Masuda offers a new perspective on the American icon, focusing on his experiences in the... Contents Preface and Acknowledgments 1. Encounter with the Philippines 2. Origins of the Bataan Boys 3. From the Approach of War to the Evacuation from Manila, October to December 1941 4. The Fall of Manila and the First Offensive and Defensive Battles, Early January to Early February 1942 5. Planning the Escape from Corregidor, Early February to Late February 1942 6. The Evacuation of MacArthur from Corregidor, Late February to the Middle of March 1942 7. The Second Bataan Operation and the Death March, Early February to Early May 1942 8. From Australia to the Philippines, March 1942 to October 1944 9. From the Philippines to Japan, October 1944 to August 1945 10. The Demilitarization of Japan, August 1945 to December 1947 11. The Democratization of Japan, August 1945 to April 1950 12. Washington’s Policy Shift on Japan and MacArthur’s Resistance, January 1948 to June 1950 13. The Korean War and the Dismissal of MacArthur, June 1950 to April 1951 Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index