Kokoda Track Campaign
Kokoda Track, Owen Stanley Range, Papua New Guinea
What happened
Australian troops, supported by the United States and by Papuan carriers, fought Japanese forces under Major General Tomitarō Horii. Japanese troops landed on the north coast of Papua and set out on foot over the steep, jungle-covered Owen Stanley mountains to take Port Moresby. Australian soldiers were pushed back along a narrow track until the Japanese came within sight of Port Moresby. Short of supplies, and ordered back because of losses at Guadalcanal, the Japanese withdrew, and the Australians followed them back across the mountains.
Why it matters
Why it matters: It stopped the Japanese advance toward Port Moresby, which was part of a plan to cut Australia off from the United States. It became an important part of Australia's national story and changed how its army trained for jungle warfare.
What came next
Australian troops retook Kokoda on 2 November 1942 and pushed on to the Japanese beachheads at Buna and Gona, which held out until January 1943.
Did you know?
Papuan carriers moved supplies along the track and carried wounded soldiers back with such care that the troops called them the 'Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels', a wartime nickname.
Timeline
- 21 July 1942Japanese troops land near Buna and Gona.
- 29 July 1942Japanese forces capture Kokoda.
- Late September 1942The Japanese withdraw from near Port Moresby.
- 2 November 1942Australian troops retake Kokoda.
- 22 January 1943Fighting at the Buna-Gona beachheads ends.