The Battle of Leyte Gulf: 1944
The battle of Leyte Gulf, also known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", was one of the largest naval battles of World War II. This historic battle was fought near the Philippine islands of Leyte, Samar in October of 1944. Under command of General Douglas MacArthur the troops first began to land at Leyte on October 20th. Assisting General Douglas was Vice Admiral Thomas Kinkaid. He was in charge of the US 7th fleet which showed close support to Douglas when they began their venture to the Philippine Islands. The 3rd fleet, under the watch of Admiral William "Bull" Halsey, stayed close by at sea to provide cover. Admiral Soemu Toyoda, commander of the Japanese combined fleet, was fully aware of the intentions of the Americans in the Philippines. He intended to block their efforts by the Sho - Go 1 plan. This plan required that the rest of the Japanese naval force split the sea into four different forces. There were three different powers from the west that were going to attack the US ships that landed in Leyte. The largest of these powers was Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita. It contained five battleships and ten heavy cruisers. On the 24th, part of the Southern force, led by Nirshimura entered the Surigao Straight where they were attacked allied forces and PT boats. Shima encountered the wrecks of Nirshimura and retreated. In the battle of Leyte Gulf the Japanese lost a great amount. There were 4 aircraft carries, 3 battleships, 8 cruisers, and 12 destroyers. There were also more than ten thousand killed. The loses on the allied side were less intense. There were one thousand five hundred deaths, one light aircraft carrier, two escort carrier two destroyers, and one destroyer escort. The battle of Leyte Gulf was the last time the Japanese Imperial Navy would conduct large - scale operations during the war.