The Battle of Mount Tambu was a series of actions fought in the
Salamaua
Salamaua () was a small town situated on the northeastern coastline of Papua New Guinea, in Salamaua Rural LLG, Morobe province. The settlement was built on a minor isthmus between the coast with mountains on the inland side and a headland. The c ...
area of the
Territory of New Guinea
The Territory of New Guinea was an Australian-administered United Nations trust territory on the island of New Guinea from 1914 until 1975. In 1949, the Territory and the Territory of Papua were established in an administrative union by the nam ...
between Allied and Japanese forces, which took place between 16 July and 18 August 1943, during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The battle formed part of the wider
Salamaua–Lae campaign
The Salamaua–Lae campaign was a series of actions in the New Guinea campaign of World War II. Australian and United States forces sought to capture two major Japanese bases, one in the town of Lae, and another one at Salamaua. The campai ...
and was fought in the final stages of the campaign, which had seen a combined Australian and US force advance from
Wau towards Salamaua following the repulse of the Japanese attack on
Wau in late January and early February 1943. After several frontal assaults on the position by Australian and US infantrymen were rebuffed by determined Japanese defenders, an indirect approach was sought and flanking moves were undertaken to cut off the Japanese supply route along the Komiatum Track. This succeeded in eventually forcing the Japanese off the position as they withdrew to avoid encirclement.
Background
In late January and early February 1943, Japanese efforts to secure a vital airfield at
Wau were checked by a small Australian force, leading to the end of Japanese attempts to capture Port Moresby. This victory was followed up by the Australians as they pushed into the surrounding area. Following actions around
Mubo and
Lababia Ridge in late June and early July 1943, the Australian troops from Brigadier
Murray Moten
Brigadier Murray John Moten, (3 July 1899 – 14 September 1953) was a senior officer in the Australian Army during World War II who commanded the 2/27th Battalion during the Syria-Lebanon campaign in 1941, and the 17th Brigade during the Sal ...
's
17th Brigade was ordered to push towards the Komiatum and Mount Tambu area—about from Salamaua—as the Allies advanced towards Salamaua, with a view to tying down Japanese reserves there, to divert their attention away from
Lae
Lae () is the capital of Morobe Province and is the second-largest city in Papua New Guinea. It is located near the delta of the Markham River and at the start of the Highlands Highway, which is the main land transport corridor between the Highl ...
.
Battle
The highest feature on the route between Mubo and Salamaua, Mount Tambu consisted of a series of steep razorback ridges that were covered in dense jungle. Throughout July and August, troops from the
Second Australian Imperial Force
The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the name given to the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial ...
2/5th and
2/6th Infantry Battalions and the Militia
42nd Infantry Battalion, undertook a series of actions around Mount Tambu and Komiatum. The area was defended by around 700 Japanese troops, from two battalions of the
66th Infantry Regiment under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Fukuzo Kimura and Major Sakai Sugiyama; initially the position was defended by only Sugiyama's II Battalion but in mid-July, Kimura's III Battalion arrived to reinforce them. These actions were fought in conjunction with actions in the surrounding area, which also included attacks on
Bobdubi, an amphibious landing by US troops at
Nassau Bay and actions around
Roosevelt Ridge.
![Leslie Allen at Mount Tambu July 1943 (AWM photo 015515)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Leslie_Allen_at_Mount_Tambu_July_1943_%28AWM_photo_015515%29.jpg)
The initial Allied assault was made by troops from the 2/5th on 16 July 1943 and the Australians secured part of the southern slopes of Mount Tambu. The Japanese began to counter-attack that night but were repulsed with heavy losses: the Australians suffered 39 casualties, including 14 killed, while the Japanese lost around 350 men in the eight attacks before dawn. Shortly after this, Kimura's battalion arrived to reinforce the Japanese positions as the Japanese high command determined the need to hold Tambu. On 24 July, the 2/5th launched a further attack across a steep ravine, which had to be crossed to reach the summit of the position. A small group reached the top but they were eventually forced off following fierce fighting. On the periphery, the
58th/59th and
2/7th Infantry Battalion were heavily engaged around the "Old Vickers" position, during the fighting around Bobdubi, while the
24th Infantry Battalion was engaged in "security and diversionary roles", trying to draw Japanese forces away from the main Australian forces.
On 28 July, the several companies—consisting of about 400 men—from the
1st Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, which had landed at Nassau Bay earlier in the month, arrived and relieved some of the Australian forces in the forward positions around Mount Tambu. Australian mortar crews and stretcher bearers remained in the line supporting the US troops, while one company from the Australian 2/5th Infantry Battalion continued to maintain a base around the mountain. On 30 July, an uphill company-level attack was made by the American troops, which failed. For his efforts in rescuing 12 wounded US soldiers during the attack while under fire, an Australian stretcher bearer from the 2/5th Infantry Battalion, Corporal
Leslie Allen, was awarded the US
Silver Star
The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...
; his actions were captured in a photograph by Gordon Short.
The Australian commander, Moten, looked for an indirect approach, focusing upon cutting the Japanese defenders' supply route along the Komiatum Track. This was completed on 16 August 1943, when the 2/6th Infantry Battalion secured the southern part of the Komiatum Ridge and then held it against determined Japanese counter-attacks, supported from its flanks by heavy machine gun fire from the 2/5th and small arms from the 42nd from Davidson Ridge. The Japanese defenders then withdrew from the position as they became threatened with encirclement.
Aftermath
Operations in the area continued for the rest of August and into September as the Japanese fought to hold the Allied advance on their final defensive line in front of Salamaua. Nevertheless, the Francisco River was crossed in late August, and the main Japanese position around Charlie Hill was taken in the first week of September. The Allies also launched a
seaborne landing near Lae and an
airborne landing at Nadzab as part of an operation to secure Lae, which Allied planners considered more important than Salamaua. Pressure had been maintained on Salamaua in an effort to draw reinforcements away from Lae but as the Lae operation developed, the Japanese moved about 5,000 to 6,000 troops away from Salamaua by sea, abandoning the badly bomb damaged town. In early September, Major General
Edward Milford
Major General Edward James Milford (10 December 1894 – 10 June 1972) was an Australian Army officer who fought in the First and the Second World Wars.
Born in Melbourne, Milford graduated from the Royal Military College in 1915. Commissio ...
's
5th Division headquarters took over from the 3rd Division and the Australians launched the final effort to secure Salamaua. Bad weather hampered their efforts but the airfield and vicinity were eventually secured on 11 September by Australian forces from the
15th and
29th Brigades, after a brief engagement with the Japanese rearguard. Australian losses in the campaign were 343 men killed and 1,083 wounded, and 8,100 Japanese casualties, 2,722 being killed.
References
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External links
The Battles For and Around Salamaua
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Tambu, Battle of
Conflicts in 1943
1943 in Papua New Guinea
South West Pacific theatre of World War II
Battles of World War II involving Australia
Battles of World War II involving the United States
Battles of World War II involving Japan
July 1943 events
August 1943 events