Remembering the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Their Commanding General, Jonathan M

Figure 1. "Skinny" (right) and son Jack In 1945 following liberation. Reprinted from the American Society of Arms Collectors Bulletin 76:2-18 Additional articles available at http://americansocietyofarmscollectors.org/resources/articles/ Remembering The Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Their Commanding General, Jonathan M. Wainwright IV, and His Weapons Peter S. Wainwright Thank you fellow members for letting me share this message with you from a platform that has over the years been graced with some momentous military and marvelous firearms history. As a World War I1 veteran and relative of General Wainwright's, I have previously shared these thoughts with others including at least half a hundred survivors who served with him. That, however, was preaching to the choir! Without, I hope, preaching, let me bring to you the story of one very professional American soldier and his brave troops who, as long as was humanly possible, stood between an unspeakably cn~elbut extremely capable aggressor and the near disaster to this our beloved country brought on in large measure by the false economies and political expedien- cies of the 1930s. Then, the "War to End All Wars" or "Great War" was General's" memory, he is not exclusively ours to claim. The over. Now the "Cold War'' has endcd and the politicians and citizens of Walla Walla, Washington, his birth place, by their public alike appear to be ignoring those lessons and the magnificent efirts culminating in a 1996 Veterans' Day's resulting sacrifices. Or as expressed by Gen. Wainwright: celebration of his Walla Walla origins, and most important, the values he stood for, hdve deservedly claimed him as their I hope that the story of what Americans suffered will always be , General. remembered in its practical significance-as a lesson which Others however, with far more claim than family or almost lost us this land we love. Remembcr Hataan! Remember Walka Wallans, are those who fought so bravely under his Corregidor! command and all who suffered the hopelessness and igno- General Wainwright's only son, Jonathan, or "Jack" as miny and brutality of Japanese captivity along with him. he preferred, pictured herr with his father in late 1345, As unassuming and modest a general as he was, many of (Figure I), assigned me to my ship early in 1944, and was all ranks, and fellow captives, virtually worshipped his carrying a similar message until his recent passing. It is now leadership, bravery, sense of duty, patriotism, care for his my pleasure, even my obligation, to carry it on. troops, and willingness to share their dangers and privation My Great Uncle Mayhew called him "Our General" in a (Figure 3). compilation of the family history. An example of his caring is illustrated at the deathbed of He, a colonel in the New York National Guard in World fellow prisoner of war Col. Paul D, Bunker, USA,* artiller)rd War I, an Assistant Secretary of War, and a congressman officer from his General's command on Corregidor. In "Skin- thereafter, was our future general's father image and mentor ny's" own words from Bunker's War: after Major Robert Powell Page Wainwright (Figure 2) died in I sat with him for a part ot the last two hours of his lifc He had the Philippines in 1902 while the U.S. Army was pacifying its moist beri-beri. His legs, feet, arms, and hand had swollen recently acquired colony, and his 19-year-old son was enter- incredibly from the water with which he had tried to assuage ing the U,S.Military Academy at West Point. Shave-tail 2nd Lt. his hunger He did not hiow mc Colonel Bunker died and was Wainwright was, 7 years later, fighting those same insurgents. cremated in the rags in which hc had carefully sewn a hit of The Army had by then switched from Krags to '03s, and his [he American flag he had had to pull down in Corregidor. smaller-statured Philippine Scouts had been issued Mod. '99 Krag carbines modified at the muzzle to accept a bayonet. *Cddct Hunker was the fincst fontball player fielded by West Point during As much as the family respects and embraces "Our the first decade of this century. Figure 3: Time magazine cover of May 3,1944, featuring en. Wainwright. fifiure 2. Msi. R P. P. Wainwright. father of Gen. Wainwright, in S anish-AmericanU'ar uniform ca 1990. IFoto courtesy C.S.M.A. where almost all but the tI1rt.e who had died in battle were captured. They had been the first to fire on attacking Stuffy, overage artillery colonel that Bunker was, he had Japanese aircraft and among the last cohesive units to volunteered, had insisted on being there rather than take the surrender on Bataan. Only half returned alive to the U.S. 3% s.de stateside assignn~enthe had been 0ffered.t years later.$ Many more died shortly after repatriation from 'The first such individual who expressed to me, in 1950, the aftermath of malnutrition and gratuitous maltreatment. his affection for this extraordinary leader was retired Dutch Regardless of their horrible ordeals, all survivors and families Maj. General Schilling, captured while defending Java. He had 1 met after moving to their state in 1955 until Veterans' Day in shared freezing prison qwarters during the harsh Manchurian Satita Fe ovcr 40 years later when hugging seven of those few winter with our General, His natural reserve was abandoned remaining, the name Wainwright was almost magic. New when he hrard my surname, Wainwright, and he poured out Mexicans' imiversal aEection for their General had encour- fond memories of and admiration for a fellow captive, his aged us to name our youngest son Jonathan Mayhew, born in senior Allied gened. New Mexico in Decernbcr 1961, 20 years after the Battle of In New Mexico of the economically depressed 1930s, Bataan began. virtually every town hacl family mernbcrs who were National The late Col. Harry Peck, commanding the New Mexico Guardsmen. After winning an all-Army antiaircraft contest, Guard's 515th, stated that his General was "a wonderful thrse weekend warriors, then only recently transfered from fellow . a right down-to-earth officer and considerate of horse cavalry, were Federalized, fleshed out with some everyone under him. IIe was always thinking of the welfare draftees, and almost 2,000 of thcir stale's tiny male popula- of the men, even in [POW] camp." tion were sent to serve in the 200t11, and its spun off 515th, AA Battalions at Clark Field and Manila, and finally Bataan, $A recent (1997) outstanding movie rrleasr which all should see depicts a World War I1 Japanese internment camp for women. The Lreatmcnt was +Wainwright suffered dry beri-beri, n vitamin tleficiency resulting Crom similar :uld the mortalily ratc about the sunr, 50%.The film is tilled Pumdisss their inadcquate diet. Korcd Fi~wre4. Wainwri It (center) inscribed for Dooley (left) this photopph in 1942. l'he inscription reads: "'1.0 Tom ~ooqe~from Rattling Bastards of Bataan. Wainwright. One very emotional inonlent came during February goes as follows: 1987 at a Kotary luncheon in the Manila Hotel. TJpon my Wc'rc thc !)allling introduction as a visiting Rotarian by a survivor of Santo bastards of Dataan Tomas (a notorious Japanese-run prison camp near Manila), No rnama, no papa, the name Wainwright broilglil over 200, niostly Philippine, no Ilncle Sam. business and profcssjonal leaders to their feet and a thunder- NO ~lncles,no :runts, ous applause for thc memory of their General. After all, the no ncpl~cwsno nieces, bulk of his army consisted of their people, and he had shared No pills, no planes, the samc dangers and privations leading the 26th U.S. Cavalry no :rrtillcry picces of Philippine Scouts, C;onstabula~y:and raw recruits arnied And nobody gives with too large (for their small stature) U.S. Pattern 1917 a damn. Enfields from Lingayan Gulf to the Rataan battle front,$ and General Wainwright regardcd himself as just another Corregidor and POW hcll-boles to follow. "Battling k~stard"-and was proud of it. I lrave talkecl several times wit11 retirecl Army Col. Tom Both he and his wife, Adele, were "Army brats" of nooley in Hopkinsville, Kealucky, his General's long-time modest financial resources, but in spite of that, in lhe late military aide-de-camp. 011 December 8, lC)dl, Pearl Harbor 1930s Col. Wainwright was Coninianclant of Fort Myers, Day in the Philippines, Maj. Gen. Wainwright awarded I st Lt. Virginia, right outside of Washington, D.C. This was consid- Dooley WWII's first Silver Star. Col. Dooley stated, "My time ered a most prestigious assignment, but the social obligations with him was marvelous, except of course the POW camp were extensive, extremely expensive, and beyond their ycars. He was a great person!" This from an officer who stuck income. Bccause of this drain, lie eventually asked for a by his horse-loving Cavally grner:ll even though, as Col. reassignment. In January 193C), he was promoted to Brigadier Dooley confessed to me, "I hated horses!" and after a sliort stint in Texas was, in September 1940, "Skinny ," though a general, was :ln ilnpretcntious guy. transferred to Fort Stotscnburg, Luzon, Philippines, as a Major He autographed a 1942 staff group picture to Dooley as one General (Figure 5) assisting Philipl>ine Marshal Douglas of the "Battling Rastards of Bataan" (Figure 4). That sad poem MacArtliur, retired U.S. Ariy Chief-of-Staff, in training that soon-to-be fully independent country's army. SWl~enfood for incn and fodder for mounts hcc:ame almost nonexistent, Skinny's wealthy replacement at Fort Myers, with a he ordered thc liorscs and nlules of his 26th (kvalry, which had dek~yedthe advance of theJapanese ;rlld caten, His wealthier wife, was none other tl~ana furious Col.

Load more