| General Douglas MacArthur was ordered out of the Philippines in March 1942. Arriving in Australia, MacArthur declared that he would return. The first step his campaign was New Guinea, an unfamiliar mountainous country. The Japanese advanced over the Owen Stanley Mountains almost reaching Port Moresby, and the Australians barely held. American soldiers trekked through the mountainous terrain in pursuit. Fighting continued along New Guinea’s coast and on several islands until August 1945. |
