129 - Slim in Burma - Innovation, Air Power and Special Forces
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Release Date: 05/25/2025
154 - Guadalcanal's Battle of the Gifu - Cannabalism in the jungle
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
The US Army's 132nd Infantry Regiment walked into one of the strongest Japanese defensive positions of the Guadalcanal campaign — and didn't know it until they'd already lost their battalion commander. This episode traces the Americal Division's assault on the Gifu, a horseshoe of 45–50 log bunkers at Mount Austen that artillery couldn't crack and terrain made impossible to flank. Key learnings: • Why American commanders mistook the Gifu's main defensive belt for a rear-guard delaying action • How a Piper Cub revving its engine over Hill 27 guided infantry through jungle ravines to...
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153 - Guadalcanal - Battle of Mount Austen - Hyakutake vs Patch, intelligence failures, sabotage raids and crippling casualties.
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Major General Patch had a simple plan: send the fresh 132nd Infantry Regiment to clear a company of sick Japanese from Mount Austen before the January offensive. Intelligence estimated perhaps 100 defenders. The actual Japanese force was far larger, dug into complex terrain with observation over Henderson Field, and Hyakutake had deliberately positioned them to draw American combat power away from the coastal thrust. Key learnings: • Why Japanese 38th Engineer Regiment demolition teams were conducting SAS-style raids on Fighter Field Two from Mount Austen • How Hyakutake's defensive...
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152 - National Guard vs Imperial Japanese Army on Guardalcanal - Lessons Learnt for employing green troops at 5th Matanikau
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
The US 182nd Infantry Regiment crossed the Matanikau on 18 November 1942 and within 48 hours all three companies of 1st Battalion had broken under Japanese mortar and flanking fire. This episode examines how green National Guard troops faltered in their combat debut, why a four-hour artillery delay negated the prep fires, and what the six-week Point Cruz stalemate reveals about the cost of transitioning from defence to offence. Key learnings: • Why the 182nd's thousand-yard overnight gap invited the Japanese counterattack that shattered 1st Battalion on 20 November • How pulling back 300...
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151 - How Sea Control doomed the 17th Army to Starvation on Guadalcanal: The failure of the Tokyo Express
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal cost the US Navy two rear admirals and six warships — yet it stopped 11 Japanese transports carrying 10,000 troops and the supplies needed to take Henderson Field. We discuss the critical 12–15 November 1942 engagements where Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan's cruisers intercepted a battleship bombardment force, and Willis Lee's radar-directed gunnery from USS Washington sank the Kirishima in the war's only battleship-versus-battleship duel in the Pacific. Key learnings: • Why Henderson Field functioned as the decisive terrain controlling both sides' ability...
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150 - What new tactics did Carlson's Raiders use to hunt Shoji's Regiment during the Long Patrol on Guadalcanal?
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Colonel Shoji landed 1,500 Japanese troops east of Henderson Field — and the Americans needed three battalions and a week of manoeuvre to trap just 450 of them at Gavaga Creek. This episode unpacks the Koli Point "Rat Race," the pursuit by Carlson's Raiders, and the fire team tactics that would reshape Marine infantry doctrine for decades. Dave Holland is an ex-Marine and was posted to Guadalcanal with the Australian Federal Police. He regularly leads battlefield study tours through the area. He is a world-leading expert on the battles of Guadalcanal and author of - The Pivotal...
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How do you defend an island nation when 40% of your trade flows through contested waters?
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Forty percent of Australian trade flows through the South China Sea — and if conflict erupts near Taiwan, that route becomes uninsurable overnight. Maritime strategist Mark Bailey argues that Western continentalism has left island nations dangerously unprepared for the Indo-Pacific's return to its ancient strategic shape, where China and India once again compete for influence over Southeast Asia. This keynote address traces how Beijing treats the South China Sea as sovereign territory to be garrisoned, why Tokyo has quietly reorganised its navy for convoy escort, and what the Taiping...
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Strategic Context for Australia's WW2 mobilisation
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Australia spent 20 years preparing for a war most politicians refused to discuss publicly — and that systematic industrial strategy may be the nation's greatest governance success story. Dr. Mark Bailey traces how bipartisan policy from 1919 built the secondary industry that would have annihilated Japanese forces had they landed at Port Stephens in 1942, while Major General Jason Blake connects those lessons to today's Army transformation through HIMARS, PrSM missiles, and the AS9 Huntsman. This is a special seminar presentation in conjunction with the Royal Australian Artillery Historical...
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Australia's Road to War - 1936 to 1941 - Dr Peter Layton
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
Australia built a coherent defence industrial strategy in the 1920s and 30s that actually worked when tested by total war — yet we've forgotten most of what made it succeed. This seminar recording pairs Dr Peter Layton's analysis of the interwar Munitions Supply Board with Major General Jason Blake's discussion of current Army modernisation. This is a special seminar presentation in conjunction with the Royal Australian Artillery Historical Company's , "Firepower: Lessons from World War II" Our presenter is Dr Peter Layton and it is followed by our Panel Discussion with Major General...
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149 - Why did the Marines stop 1,000 yards short of victory at 4th Matanikau - Guadalcanal
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
After the defeat at Henderson Field, Japanese 17th Army headquarters remained confident — fresh divisions and hundreds of aircraft were promised within weeks. But Vandegrift had no intention of letting them regroup. This episode traces the Fourth Battle of the Matanikau and the emergency pivot to Koli Point, revealing how interior lines and improving logistics let the Marines mount the largest US Marine land attack in history to that date. Key learnings: • How Vandegrift assembled 12 battalions for an offensive while his perimeter forces were already exhausted after two and a half months...
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148 - The Battle of Henderson Field - Guadalcanal 1942
The Principles of War - Lessons from Military History on Strategy, Tactics, Doctrine and Leadership.
This episode is the 14th episode in our Guadalcanal series. We look at the Battle of Henderson Field, which is the decisive terrain for the campaign. Had the airfield been lost, it is likely that the US would not have been able to hold Guadalcanal. We discuss: How do you defend critical terrain against a numerically superior force?How should defensive positions exploit terrain to maximize effectiveness? How do you integrate combined arms in the defense? How does poor communication affect tactical coordination? How do you integrate unfamiliar units into ongoing operations? ...
info_outlineHow did Field Marshall Slim innovate in the Burma Campaign? This is a look at military innovation through necessity that developed key capabilities for the 14th Army to defeat the Japanese forces in the Burma theatre.
We discuss:
Slim's innovation overcame critical resource shortages in Burma.
Developed aerial resupply, air evacuation, and improvised naval logistics.
Used teakwood barges to cross rivers with tanks.
Created monsoon-proof airfields with hessian and tar.
Strong advocate of Special Forces—mobilized Force 136 and Karen levies.
Outmanoeuvred Japanese by leveraging terrain and logistics.
Fought against Generals Aida, Mutaguchi, and Kimura.
Trained the Indian Army in combined arms warfare.
Built floating bridges across vast rivers like the Chindwin.
Crossing the Irrawaddy.
Led with humility and authenticity, known to Indian troops as “Uncle Bill.”
This interview is the third part of a 3-part series with Dr Robert Lyman, the expert on the Burma Campaign and Field Marshall Sir William Slim.
Check out the show notes for all of the information that we cover in this episode as well as the images and other details that didn't make it into the podcast.