The fall of the Philippines, as well as Bataan and
Corregidor, left much of the western Pacific in Japa-
nese hands. MacArthur arrived in Australia on 17
March 1942, where he was named as Southwest Pacific
Area commander. Shortly after his arrival, he made his
now-famous speech to reporters: “The President of the
United States has ordered me to break through the Jap-
anese lines and proceed from Corregidor to Australia
for the purpose, as I understand it, of organizing the
American offensive against Japan, a primary objective
of which is the relief of the Philippines. I came through
and I shall return.” Working with Admiral Chester W.
nimitz, MacArthur undertook a series of offensives
against Japanese targets in New Guinea, leading to the
capture of Leyte Island in 1944 and the eventual recap-
ture of the Philippines, which dragged on from October
1944 to July 1945. Keeping his promise, MacArthur
returned to the Philippines landing on Leyte on Octo-
ber 20, 1944.
MacArthur was promoted to the rank of General
of the Army in 1944, only one of a handful of officers
to ever hold this title. He was preparing to invade the
Japanese islands when atomic bombs were dropped on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Japan sued for peace. As
supreme commander of the Allied powers in the Pacific
Theater of Operations, it was MacArthur who accepted
the surrender of the Japanese government on 2 Septem-
ber 1945. Named by President Harry S. Truman as com-
mander of the occupation forces in Japan, he established
a democratic government and began instituting a series
of political and economic reforms that consequently
helped make Japan the democratic and economic giant
that it is today. Although MacArthur wished to break all
ties with the monarchy, he realized the importance ofGeneral of the Army Douglas MacArthur on Luzon, the Philippines, 1945
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