The Battle of Leyte Gulf – Part 1

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The Battle of Leyte Gulf – Part 1
With Mark E Stille
Part of Moments in History Week
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDG3XyxGI5lDjzHOh3VqAJWisXzlKy2SY

A fascinating re-examination of the battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval encounter in history and probably the most decisive naval battle of the entire Pacific War, and one that saw the Imperial Japanese Navy eliminated as an effective fighting force and forced to resort to suicide tactics. So much of the accepted wisdom of the battle has developed from the many myths that surround it, myths that have become more firmly established over time

Leyte was a huge and complex action, actually consisting of four major battles. Over two parts on WW2TV, historian Mark E. Stille will take us through the battle.

Part 1
The Opposing Forces
Key Command Personalities
The Japanese Plan
The Start of Sho-Go
Battle of the Sibuyan Sea
Battle of Surigao Strait

Part 2 (to air later in 2023)
Halsey’s Decision to go North
The Myths of the Battle off Samar
Halsey’s Decision to go South
The Battle off Cape Engano
The Myth of the Lost Japanese Victory

Mark Stille – Commander USN (retired) is the author of numerous books focusing on naval history in the Pacific. He recently concluded a nearly 40-year career in the intelligence community, including tours on the faculty of the Naval War College, on the Joint Staff and on US Navy ships. He received his BA in History from the University of Maryland and also holds an MA from the Naval War College.

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22 thoughts on “The Battle of Leyte Gulf – Part 1”

  6. While the Kongo class was older than Fuso and Yamashiro, they started out as battle cruisers, and despite being upgraded to "battleships" they are not always regarded as such. The Fuso class were approximate contemporaries of the USN Nevada class, but were more akin to the older New York class, and with a turret-farm like main gun layout akin to the older Wyoming class. They were not formidable compared to Oldendorff's BBs, but were too capable to be ignored and allowed to enter Leyte Gulf. Anthony Tully, in his book "The Battle of Surigao Strait", suggests that Nishimura's force was intended to lure USN forces away from Leyte Gulf much as Ozawa's carriers did.

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  7. 6:39 I assume you mean surface fights. Because Kinkaid was at the Coral Sea and Midway as a carrier screen commander. Later he commanded Enterprise’s TF16 for Eastern Solomons, Santa Cruz and the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.

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  9. Hah! Halsey sent half of his task groups south to replenish just as Kurita's fleet showed up, and nobody noticed. Yet Fletcher sent Wasp south to refuel at Eastern Solomons, and he got chastised.

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  10. This is a great example of revisiting even the well established facts, I never grasped the naval battles were 4 days after the amphibious landings were established, so yes, what was actual threat to the U.S. ?

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  11. The fact that a battle as crazy as Leyte Gulf actually happened is kind of difficult to wrap ones head around. Japan's plan was of late night video gaming quality, they got decimated, then against all odds their strongest surface force makes it into the American support forces. Truth is stranger than fiction.

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  12. Drachinfel got me into naval big time.
    His series on Guadalcanal got me hooked. I’m the farthest thing from a water guy but the amount of interest I have now in US & Especially the Japanese. I don’t know why.

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  13. So many ships and aircraft involved; so many moving parts. It almost makes one dizzy. Mark offers us an informed analysis based on his experience as a former naval intelligence officer and we can see that his conclusions are well conceived and thought out. Looking forward to part II.

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  16. Interesting presentation. There is mythology and misconception built up around most major battles in World War II. This one is no different. I think we get wrapped up in the, for lack of a better term, romance of the battle of Surigao Strait because of the battleship element. Reassessment of the orthodox history is important. Neither fleet in 44 is what it was in 42, and neither fleet in 42 is what it would be in 44. I would be curious what opportunities Mr. Stille thinks are open to reexamination.

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  17. Another knowledgeable presentation here on WW2 TV. The quality of the information this channel has exposed me to is pretty impressive. The best of what is available on “social media.”

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  19. If I believe there are huge volumes of text and interviews about the war. However it’s in Japanese. We need more interest on their side as well so that we can get these works translated. Or wait for the tech to catch up to translate it for us after scanning.

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