Courtesy Photo | First Lt. Adam Obregon, the command secretary, 173rd Airborne Brigade, stands in front...... read more read more
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VICENZA, Italy – It was the last stronghold of the Japanese. A small tadpole shaped island in the Philippines known as Corregidor and it was all the Americans needed in order to secure a victory. The 503rd Parachute Regimental Combat Team, activated in August of 1941 prior to the beginning of World War II, was among the few chosen to combat Japanese defenses there.
Corregidor, an American outpost nicknamed “the Rock” before the war, had withstood a fierce Japanese siege for nearly five months. It is also where Gen. Douglas MacArthur, supreme allied commander, Southwest Pacific Area, was when he uttered his famous words while evacuating the island on March 11, 1942, “I shall return.”
Even after Manila had been captured, thousands of U.S. and Filipino soldiers continued to fight off the advances of Japanese forces from the Bataan Peninsula. On April 9, 1942, the U.S. call to surrender the peninsula on the main Philippine island of Luzon served a devastating blow to U.S. and Filipino soldiers who had held out against the Japanese despite having no naval or air support.
Starved and disease ridden, approximately 75,000 soldiers on Bataan were forced to walk a 65-mile march to the prison camps. Those who could not make the arduous walk were rounded up like cattle and used as bayonet practice by the Japanese army. Others were simply barricaded into bunkers and burned alive.
Retaking Corregidor would be the most grueling combat action in which the 503rd Combat Team engaged in during the war.
Strategically Corregidor was of major importance though, said U.S. Army paratrooper 1st Lt. Adam Obregon, assigned to 173rd Airborne Brigade, describing the history of Corregidor. Being able to take back the island gave the Allies access to Manila to push additional supplies through the Philippines.
Heavily fortified, over 6,550 Japanese soldiers defended the Island. With a position dominating the bay, an amphibious assault would be anticipated and costly. The paratroopers of the 503rd were called for an audacious mission.
Second Battalion of the 503rd would conduct a daytime airborne assault onto the island, with 1st Battalion conducting an amphibious assault.
With the invasion of the island of Leyte in October 1944, paratroopers surprised the Japanese garrison by jumping onto “the Rock.”
Three years later on March 2, Gen. MacArthur made good on his promise and he returned, giving the order to raise the U.S. flag once again over Corregidor.
“I see the old flag pole still stands,” said MacArthur. “Have your troops hoist the colors to its peak and let no enemy ever haul them down.
Only one-third of the men MacArthur left behind on March 11, 1942, survived to see his return. “I’m a little late,” he told them, “but we finally came.”
One of the paratroopers that jumped in that day was U.S. Army Cpl. Maurice Obregon, assigned to the 462nd Parachute Field Artillery Battalion, 503rd Parachute Regimental Combat Team during WWII and fought at Corregidor.
His grandson, 1st Lt. Obregon, had the privilege to carry the 503rd’s colors from their home in Vicenza, Italy to the Philippines, March 2, 2015, in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the re-taking of Corregidor Island by Allied Forces during WWII.
“I’m third-generation Army,” said Obregon. “My father served twenty years and my grandfather of course [who] served with the 462nd. When I found out I was selected, my dad was just in awe. It’s a level of pride that he has not only for me but for his father.”
In its initial history, the 503rd was a separate entity. After the battle at Corregidor, the regiment became known as “the Rock.”
When the 173rd Airborne Brigade activated in Okinawa, Japan in 1963, it was built upon the 503rd regiment, with four battalions of the 503rd Infantry Regiment. First and 2nd Battalions of the regiment currently make up the core maneuver force of the brigade. Seventy years later, Corregidor still carries huge significance for paratroopers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, especially for Obregon who is well versed in its history.
“It was an absolute honor to be able to visit Corregidor in person,” said Obregon. “[Maj. Gen. Pasquarette] in his speech made a statement that, Cpl. Maurice Obregon, jumped into Corregidor. I doubt that [my grandfather], 70 years ago, would have ever thought that his name would be mentioned in a celebration. So for me to be in Corregidor and to hear that, it’s absolutely amazing to see the connections and the legacy that service members carry with them, and it is an honor that we continue to serve.”
For Obregon, it was also the opportunity to walk in the footsteps of a man he never really knew.
“It’s tough because I didn’t really get to know my grandfather; he passed away when I was two,” said Obregon. “And so, through this, it’s actually the only way I knew him. There was an Army colonel at the ceremony that had a cousin [who] served and fought in Manila. It is neat to have those family ties because his cousin was fighting the same exact time that my grandfather was. So this is my way of really getting to know him and some of the great things that he was able to accomplish.”
Official U.S. War Department estimated the 503rd killed over 10,000 Japanese troops during its combat operations in the Southwest Pacific. But the 503rd also lost men in order to accomplish the task of retaking Corregidor with 169 dead and 531 wounded. Of the 2,065 paratroopers from both lifts by the 503rd PRCT, about 280 were killed or injured. Of those killed in battle, only 392 names were identified.
As part of the commemoration ceremony, U.S. and Filipino soldiers laid wreaths on the same location that MacArthur gave his famous speech. Some of the old buildings at Corregidor still stand, along with the cannons that were fired at Japanese forces. And in the spirit of remembrance, a flag was raised as the bugle sounded for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.
On March 2, 1945, Col. George Jones, commander of the "Rock" stood at the head of his men. After months of battling the Japanese the 503rd were tired, bloodied but unshaken. With his men standing at attention, the colonel saluted his commanding general and stated, "Sir, I present to you the Fortress Corregidor."
The 173rd Airborne Brigade, based in Vicenza, Italy, is the U.S. Army Contingency Response Force in Europe, capable of projecting forces to conduct the full range of military operations across the United States European, Central and Africa Commands areas of responsibility.
| Date Taken: | 03.19.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.19.2015 10:07 |
| Story ID: | 157475 |
| Location: | VICENZA, IT |
| Web Views: | 162 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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