In Photos: The Battle of Guadalcanal – America’s First Offensive of WWII

Although not as well-known as the Battles of Midway or Iwo Jima, the Battle of Guadalcanal played a key role in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The six-month-long Guadalcanal Campaign took place on and around the island of Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands located in the South Pacific, to the northeast of Australia.

The battle began with the successful capture of the southern Solomon Islands by U.S. Marines, but dragged on for many more months as the Japanese made repeated attempts to retake the island and its crucial airfield.

In the end, both sides incurred heavy losses of soldiers, ships, and aircraft. But unlike the U.S. forces, the Japanese could not sustain these losses and were forced on the defensive for the rest of the war.


A machine gun captured from the Japanese at Guadalcanal is being used by two American Marines.

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U.S. Marines hanging out machine gun ammo belts to dry on Guadalcanal. February, 1943.

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A medic dressing the wounds of an injured survivor from USS Calhoun, which sunk during an assault on Guadalcanal. October 7, 1942

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Group of U.S. marines discover a booby trap on Guadalcanal.

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Bodies of Japanese soldiers who tried to overrun the U.S. Marine positions on the island’s coast, lying half-buried in the sandy banks.

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Three Japanese soldiers lie dead at Guadalcanal. The battle was a major turning point for Allied forces in the Pacific War, as the Japanese were forced on the defensive.

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A U.S. soldier uses aflamethrower during the battle.

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A U.S. solder looks out at the water from the shore of Guadalcanal.

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A helmeted and bewhiskered Santa Claus hands out presents to wounded American soldiers in 90 degree heat on Christmas Day, 1942.

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U.S. soldiers stationed in Guadalcanal hold an animal contest with American Red Cross volunteer Patricia O’Neill.

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Rear Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner (left) and Major General Alexander A. Vandegrift discuss strategies for the Guadalcanal Campaign.

Department of the Navy collections in the U.S. National Archives

American soldiers proudly showing captured Japanese imperial flag.

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A sunken Japanese ship remains suspended in the tranquil waters of Sealark Channel near Guadalcanal.

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Marine grave at Guadalcanal.

Department of the Navy collections in the U.S. National

A battle-stained American infantryman after a bloody battle for a 1,500-foot peak euphemistically called the Grassy Knoll.

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A U.S. Marine sets up a defensive position at Guadalcanal.

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Infantrymen clean their weapons next to a foxhole after a bloody battle for a 1,500-ft. peak called the Grassy Knoll.

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A group of American soldiers — from left, Corp. Jesse C. Luper, Sgt. Leroy Kelley, Corp. Benjamin Cox, and Maj. Charles W. Davis — show off a crocodile they caught during a lull in fighting. Using dynamite, the soldiers stunned what they thought was a very large fish but was in fact this five-foot crocodile.

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Members of the 1st Battalion, 11th Marines operate an anti-aircraft gun.

Department of the Navy collections in the U.S. National Archives

American troops unload supplies on the shores of Guadalcanal Island.

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