Battle of Rennell Island - Pacific War #62 DOCUMENTARY

[@magellantv]

The passion and hard work that goes into each of these videos never ceases to amaze us.

[@Lawnmower737]

My great grandfather, Charles was an 8 inch gunner on the Louisville and took part in this battle. He always tells stories of his adventures out on the sea. Before his recent lapses of memory, he told me that he will never forget the day when they had to tow the Chicago and his fear that the Japanese would target his turret. The dud torpedo left some of the crew especially of the lower decks shaken a little and on edge. We have recently celebrated his 100th birthday, we’re very proud of him and his achievements in the navy and his time on the Louisville. He spent his 19th birthday on December 7th, 1941 on the Louisville when the Pearl Harbor attack happened. He might be the last crewman alive from his ship and quite possibly be the only living person who was a part of the battle who’s still with us.

[@davidnemoseck9007]

If you can ever get him to talk about it again, try and have it recorded for history, and that others, like us, can hear his story. Much respect for him.

[@Lawnmower737]

@@davidnemoseck9007 Unfortunately it’s almost certainly too late. His memory has started to deteriorate and it’s getting really hard for him to remember people. It has to be on a very good day for him to even remember the slightest of details of some stories. I wish my grandfather would’ve recorded some when he was still around.

[@Lawnmower737]

@@davidnemoseck9007 I am planning on giving a visit to a defunct Nevada test site at some time where Louisville’s turret no. 2 lies. It was damaged before the wars end in a kamikaze attack and afterwards it was used for testing nuclear bombs.

[@theawesomeman9821]

your great grandpa deserves his own biopic movie

[@michaelwilkinson2110]

You're proud of him? We're ALL proud of him. People like your grandfather put their lives on the line against the atrocities of the Axis. If I could hug or salute the man, I would.

[@khalidshoukri7364]

Thanks for all your hardwork writing, narrating, researching, drawing, and animating these :)

[@vlad23i]

Once this series is over, we desperately need the same series put together for the european and africa theaters. North africa, italy, western europe and eastern/russia fronts. Never have i enjoyed watching a series as i did this pacific theater documentation, phenominal work guys

[@manindisgiuze7780]

Agreed, I would love a Africa or Meditrainian area covered

[@scarletcrusade77]

Nah we need to get a Korean war series after this and more asian post WW2 conflicts like in Indonchina with France and Indonesia with Netherlands.

[@vlad23i]

@@scarletcrusade77 well keeping it in order would be the logical move. Full ww2 for all fronts. Korean war, vietnam, panama, gulf war, etc.

[@scarletcrusade77]

@@vlad23i Nah everyone knows about the war in europe its the wars in Asia that nobody knows about and should learn more about

[@vlad23i]

@@scarletcrusade77 when considering the amount of details this series has, nobody knows about any of the wars. People only know the surface information of all wars, so no id rather prefer to know all details of all wars in this faction, not just a series dedicated to asia

[@manindisgiuze7780]

MOVE, MOVE, OUT OF MY WAY Kings and Generals has posted again!

[@jeffmcdonald4225]

This is the best series on the Internet. My dad was a young corpman during the war, but he never talked about it.

[@larryyoung5757]

Marines love their ‘docs’. It’s the hardest job in the unit and they never waver.

[@theawesomeman9821]

I think "Kings and Generals" should be a consultant for historical movies and TV shows.

[@n1k2jfan96]

"Giffen was a rigid by-the-book commander." That is not an exaggeration. Among other things, Giffen took a dim view of Halsey’s relaxed uniform standards for the fleet, insisting on wearing his tie in the tropics, which may say something.

[@oldfrend]

someone that rigid so never be promoted outside of a desk job. combat is almost always a fluid and unpredictable environment.

[@gawdsuniverse3282]

That is a massive red flag. He should never have had a combat command.

[@jerryx3253]

He is just like Howard Bode if the former did not kill himself.

[@gawdsuniverse3282]

@@jerryx3253 very true.

[@n1k2jfan96]

@@jerryx3253 It is truly ironic that Bode saved Chicago at Savo Island, however dishonorably, only to have her wasted by Giffen at Rennell Island.

[@Idealdeath8304]

My Grandfathers ship The USS Chicago a Northampton Class Cruiser was sunk in this battle. He survived 🙏

[@bobbyearl60]

My great uncle Charlie was also on the Chicago and survived.

[@boo0005]

Maybe it's just me but a long series surely takes a toll on you just like how it happened to TiKHistory. I'm proud of what you guys are doing here and can't wait to tune in to future episodes!

[@shnobi441]

I just want to take a moment to congratulate you guys from Kings and Generals for the hard work and thank you for this amazing content. This is absolutely my favorite series, never thought I would be so engaged and interested in the Pacific Theatre. I've watched every single episode and wait anxiously for the tuesdays, when I get home and watch it on my TV. I can't help but think and wait for more of my favorite moments to show up, such as Tarawa, the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot and the very late stages with the outcome of the campaigns and the scary contemplation of the Operation Downfall. Thank you and please continue with this series in such great quality.

[@jonbaxter2254]

Can't believe how much I look forward to these vids every week.

[@Azultenshi]

I’m remembering this part with Battle 360.

[@VeiledVerities]

I used to be in the 1-163rd Inf out of Bozeman, MT - I think it's awesome you go down to battalion and company level!

[@MasterMalrubius]

I agree. It helps me understand that deployment plans much better.

[@williamromine5715]

Hello Bozeman, from Helena. Thank you for your service.

[@brokenbridge6316]

As soon as I heard that Giffin was a by the book commander I knew disaster would befall him. And subsequent events proved me right. Great video.

[@recoil53]

Yeah, it's pretty much like a movie where the cop says it's his last day on the job. He might not die, but it's going to be a bad day.

[@brokenbridge6316]

@@recoil53---I can see that

[@jayjohnson9996]

I love it. I’m a huge World War 2 historian and I love the The Pacific Campaigns that you air every week. Please keep up the good work!!!

[@fighter5583]

I remember this battle being the main subject during an episode of Battle 360. Little tug boats like the Navajo are unsung heroes in the Navy; I also didn't know that Chicago ended up being lost due to the ineptitude of the commanding officer. There's no point in keeping radio silence when the enemy knows of your location.

[@92Psyco]

Chigago at Savo Island: where are the Japanese coming from oh god oh fuc... oh my commander bravely ran away Chicago here: ah shit, here we go again

[@mihajlo961x]

Tuesdays have become one of my favorite days of the week because of you all and these uploads, thank you so much for this incredible series!

[@seanbrady6731]

Liking the graphics.

[@billbillson3129]

Incredible. I really appreciate these videos. My Great Uncle Charles was a decorated veteran of this campaign. It is truly priceless to understand such detail regarding the obstacles overcome on both sides. Thank you.

[@denniscleary7580]

Keep ‘em coming Kings 👍

[@jerryx3253]

Gyokusai or 玉碎 was not just a massed attack. But the expected complete annihilation of every participants in the attack. Standards were to be burned, radios destroyed and all wounded in capable of fighting any longer were to be put to the death.

[@SurvivethePoleShift]

K & G....Yr bloody magnificent Salute and Beer from Downunder.

[@bryanjames7528]

Never knew there was a USS Navajo. As a Navajo its pretty cool to know about it. All I know was that the US Navy new tugboat was designated as Navajo class. Can't wait for K&G to do a video on the Navajo Code Talkers and maybe another one on other Native American code talkers in both World Wars My great nali' (my dad's grandfather) fought in WWI. Just learned a couple of years ago that he was awarded a Silver Star. He and his platoon captured a group of 30 German soldiers. Unfortunately I don't remember most of the other details tho.

[@kirbyculp3449]

If you know his unit then you may be able to access the historical records from the Army.

[@apexnext]

I can relate. I live in Louisville. And I kinda love hearing the name of the ship! I want to know more about it's complete journey. This era of naming ships was very interesting. I know we think mostly states and cities. But there are others like Navajo!

[@siechamontillado]

This has been an amazing series and thank you KG for this. The Pacific front, while it does get attention, feels like it doesn't get enough and this has been eye opening.

[@adamhenderson6112]

Great series thank you for producing it

[@stevelebreton3489]

Thanks for the video 👍

[@CarlosianBigWang]

Fantastic as always thank you all for the time you put in!

[@jeffstaples347]

The thumbnail is amazing.

[@blockmasterscott]

Wow, Giffen committed an act of ineptitude of the first order. Geez. I'm not sure he could have done any worst.

[@CLNCJD94]

Honestly, like how did he choose the wrong option each and every single time.

[@cameronspence4977]

I know. Looking at some of the moronic, disastrous decisions some of the US admirals made in battles during 1943, I legitimately dont understand what they were thinking. I mean, these guys were supposed to be the cream of the crop officers who went to naval academies and everything, why were they making decisions a 6th grader would know not to do?

[@92Psyco]

@@cameronspence4977 Its what happens when promotions are handed out based not on warfighting capability, but on ass kissing and making the boss look good. Peacetime operations are very different from war, and extended periods of peace leads armed forces to dilute their fighting capabilities. Unfortunately its still true of the US Navy today. For us, we may see the same problems in the organizations we work for. Being aware of it, we then have an obligation to minimize the damage it may cause

[@craigkdillon]

@@cameronspence4977 Obviously -- They must have skipped 6th grade.

[@m_0714]

Quality work as usual. I can't wait to finally get to the episodes that will cover the battles here in the Philippines.

[@xpert_blue6443]

He already did the Fall of the Philippines, quite a long time till we get to the liberation.

[@xerex21212]

USS Chicago has some serious bad luck. Sydney Harbour, Savo Island and finally Rennel Island

[@paintingpanzers]

These are the most anticipated videos of my week, superb stuff as always!

[@acbgames1766]

Great series. Thumbs up from Japan.

[@maxswenson6605]

Great presentation, as usual

[@joselitostotomas8114]

Note: Giffen's career didn't suffer. Being a Naval Academy graduate helps. He was sent to the Caribbean in' 44 as a vice admiral.

[@Raptor747]

Fucking unbelievable that such an idiot who failed in battle for obviously dumb reasons somehow failed upwards in wartime.

[@ZoomZip]

he was a 3 star, of course he wouldnt face any real reprimand or punishment. I would say him being a 3 star than being a naval academy grad helps.

[@jerryx3253]

Take Bode for example, it took him at least with 2 fuckups that the navy finally decided they had enough of him.

[@92Psyco]

Promoted away to somewhere he cant do damage

[@TheLoneSniperPro]

He should’ve been court martialed for incompetence and if we were feeling bold, treason for refusing to alter course or do anything to lessen the attack on his ships and the sailors on them.

[@matthewhancock7424]

tried signing up for free 30 day trial at magellen and it didnt work, shame looked really good.

[@minoru-kk]

Brilliant as usual. Your suffers for this series weekly would be commendable. And every week, I'm made aware of myths that the term Pacific War leads to: war of the navies, advances without resist of US fleet, and Japanese only did banzai and harakiri.

[@extrahistory8956]

The War in the Pacific was as much, if not even more, a war of armies as it was of navies. And yes, naval battles were rarely as cleaned and organized as people depict them, since much often went wrong for either side. It wouldn't really be until early 1944 that the United States would become the unstoppable force that it's often depicted as being, since actions and territory gained during the first two years of the war were very slow and gradual.

[@joshua4960]

You guy's rock!! Thank you for being one of the most accurate and awesome History people on the planet

[@joeshmoe8345]

Thanky’all

[@KingsandGenerals]

To get access to our exclusive videos, become a channel member: kzbin.info/door/MmaBzfCCwZ2KqaBJjkj0fwjoin or patron: www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals - get early access to all videos, learn our schedule, join our private discord and much more! You can donate through Paypal paypal.me/kingsandgenerals as well!

[@scottkrater2131]

Love your channel, keep up the good work, especially on the war in Ukraine, great coverage. I know you won't listen to complaints that your covering it.

[@VanguardASO]

Terrific video thank you

[@christopherhanton6611]

very good video neat thing is this action. was last combat sortie, for Mitsubishi G3M nell bomber then after this given other rolls like glider tugs, aircrew and paratroop trainers, and transports .

[@nanderwinthant1655]

The war continues...

[@-RONNIE]

Thanks for another good video 👍🏻

[@ryaningalls6276]

Excellent series, so far, keep up the good work.

[@NameCannotBeBlank24]

I always love how you guys make your videos!! Thank you very for this

[@jamesforreal]

Wow. Rear Admiral Giffen, while he meant well as a dutiful admiral, seems to have broken the rule of "flexibility masters hardness" by being so rigid, and by not adapting to his situation. It makes me wonder what Giffen thought afterwards. Hindsight is always 20/20. Great video!

[@jerryx3253]

He was not fit for combat in the Pacific in any capacity. His mindset of the Pacific campaign was so out of place.(I bet his anti-submarine obsession comes from his time in the Mediterranean)

[@ronw5323]

I love your videos. Would love if you could do a series on the Eastern Front next. Thanks.

[@MrEnvirocat]

What a wonderful, hard researched, and easy to follow chronicle of the Pacific War. I look forward to every Tuesday for the next episode. I have read a lot about the WW2 Pacific War in my 61 years, but I continue to learn additional facets and details with every episode in chronological detail. Than you sirs/madams.

[@EPHZAM]

Great content bro 💯💯

[@IrishTechnicalThinker]

Magellan TV is brilliant, they're the Netflix of war and history documentaries. They even cover conspiracy theories, highly recommend to anyone.

[@michaelhegedus3021]

Love these... Now, where's this week's episode?

[@KingsandGenerals]

tomorrow!

[@MasterMalrubius]

Well, that was action packed!

[@davidshaon]

Another great and informative video 👍👍👍

[@tokysobukanla]

K&G, you should do the same for the Western and Eastern European fronts, as well as the African operations... the details and animations for the Pacific War are off the charts!!!!

[@KingsandGenerals]

Thanks! We'll go there eventually!

[@Mr.Fridaynight]

Good work please accept this sacrifice to the algorithm.. 🐐🔪🌋

[@wolfu597]

Once again, the Japanese pilots has shown that they are still the masters of aerial torpedo attacks. It was tactical victory, but at a high cost with 12 bombers shoot down along with about 84 highly skilled pilots killed.

[@ronaldwhite1730]

Thank you . ( 2023 / Jan / 27 )

[@adarkstarz]

What fabulous event will happen tomorrow ?? The NEW episode of the Pacific war series !!! ( looking forward to the Battle of the Bismark Sea.... fairly soon)

[@brainflash1]

What's with the American Navy constantly abandoning the ground forces? Even at fucking Omaha beach they couldn't be asked to do their preliminary bombardment properly, and they release the amphibious tanks so far out that only two of them made it to the beach. And then there was Halsey's disgraceful abandonment of the Marine's at Layette Gulf to go off glory hunting.

[@Matthew10950]

Halsey acted stupidly.

[@doctorgravel8572]

The world wonders...

[@coryhall7074]

Amphibious operations are one of if not the hardest ones to carry out. The real question is to marvel at how many of them the Allies got more or less right.

[@scarletcrusade77]

The ships and admirals are constantly worried about getting sunk by a sub or aircraft while relatively static off the store.

[@redaug4212]

Soldiers* at Leyte Gulf. The liberation of the Philippines was an Army operation, not Marines. In any case, the Navy's primary mission, at least in the Pacific, was to achieve naval superiority by destroying the enemy's naval power while at the same time preserving their own. That's why Halsey chased after Japanese carriers instead of protecting the Leyte beachhead and why Fletcher withdrew from Guadalcanal to protect his own carriers instead of supporting the supply ships. Not to say that their reasoning for doing so was correct, of course.

[@shingshongshamalama]

The first time the IJN responds to sinking a single cruiser with "holy shit we got a battleship, time to attack!" and then got their absolute shit wrecked would have been enough, but nope, they just keep doing it.

[@Briguy1027]

It's interesting that they called Guadalcanal the island of death. I knew it was the first American offensive move, but seeing how terrible the battle was for the Japanese, it probably was very tough on their morale as well, being a crushing slap in the face.

[@David-ey9jg]

27th regiment was brilliant!

[@catmate8358]

It took 6 torpedoes to sink Chicago. Those big ships are unbelievably hard to sink.

[@evanoktari2238]

And Japanese thought it was battleship lol

[@recoil53]

@@evanoktari2238 That was a common mistake by both sides.

[@jamesfagan9818]

This channel is amazing and I love your style of presentation. Why not list destroyers though? Are they too many? I feel like they're all very important though. Maybe your graphics would get too small.

[@KingsandGenerals]

Too many

[@jamesfagan9818]

@@KingsandGenerals Poor small boys

[@Natro166]

Average Vaushite video quality brilliant as always

[@chickenfist1554]

Giffen must have been on the side of the Japanese with leadership 'skills' like that!

[@firestorm1088]

The Japanese overestimating how many ships they sank seems to be becoming a theme.

[@markusskram4181]

Love The vid

[@scottkrater2131]

In Frank's book Tower of Skulls, or Downfall, the Emperor's orders were more like suggestions that the Military would ignore if they wished. He didn't have the same type of authority as Hitler did in Germany. Surprising that this order they did follow, if the above is accurate.

[@jerryx3253]

They do have to follow the Emperor’s order. (Though it would be highly unorthodox to do so) The Emperor would provide hints to the General Staff whether his wishes were to be strictly followed or merely suggesting.(His choice of wordings were always careful and meticulous) But yes, the Emperor has the legal power to assume command of the three armies as Grand Marshal of the military.

[@UnNuclear]

You always hate to see petty and spiteful commanders make poor tactical decisions that end up costing men their lives. Giffen absolutely deserves to be bashed by Nimitz for the loss of the Chicago. It was an entirely avoidable situation, but Giffen ran right into it because he wanted to make a point.

[@rts718]

Must have been scary conducting a torpedo run at night with those slow Japanese level bombers lol

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

It’s okay, Steiner will save the day by swooping his tanks from the sea.

[@jonbaxter2254]

Najavo, the little tug that could.

[@LoneWanderer727]

"Nimitz was furious, blaming Giffen for the defeat" Yeah, I'm gonna have to agree with him on that one

[@banikaritra5328]

Big fan of this great work. I would like your help in my research which I am doing on the US Fifth Army Air Force. Can you please tell me the order of battle of the 5th Air Force or tell me the source?

[@TheCobra114-o5e]

16:15 huh, there is a name that I never see. If I recall correctly, the USS Conway had 13 battle stars to its name, but most of it’s duty was naval bombardments

[@xe2594]

Great long series but also looking forward to something a bit different again soon!

[@tomz5704]

That Japanese major was an expert on rearguard actions and he landed his load.. I see man I see

[@surfdocer103]

Brittle inflexible officers are so dangerous.

[@recoil53]

So are managers, though only jobs and money are lost. And tempers.

[@raymondyee2008]

“Air Conflicts Pacific Carriers” has a mission based on this.

[@joelmccoy9969]

Misspeak at Minute 8:02 ! Fix and re-issue.

[@scarletcrusade77]

Why don't we see much news or parts coming from the china campaign? Surely during all this time its not just static front in that theater

[@extrahistory8956]

Trust me when I say that it largely was quiet. 1942 and 1943 were very slow years in the China campaign. That said, there will be some action there in May of 1943 during the Battle of West Hubei, and afterwards, no action until the battle of Changsa & Yunnan from November to December. Even then, dramatic changes in the frontline won't happen until 1944 with Operation Ichi-Go.

[@scarletcrusade77]

@@extrahistory8956 If that's the case it makes me a little sad that they started this series from the attack on Pearl Harbor basically properly and only dedicates a brief episode glossing over the fighting in china before Pearly harbour. Would have been cool to see in-depth battles for Wuhan, Changsha & the 100 regiments offensive

[@Mickybear89]

Can you do a video on how significant the new battle tanks on their way to Ukraine will be. Maybe based off any relevant historical events where tanks changed the tide of war.

[@beachboy0505]

Excellent video 📹 The Japanese make LUCK. By destroying a significant USA battleship and damaging others, they frightened off the USA navy. Wait for next week.

[@kylelee9474]

[@thestoryteller9140]

Even yo guy finish this series can you cover the European threater?

[@oe78922]

When is the next installment coming out ?

[@KingsandGenerals]

Tomorrow

[@pauloakwood9208]

And what happened to Giffen? I hope he was reassigned to commanding a barge on the Hudson River.

[@n1k2jfan96]

Well, not surprisingly Halsey would have no use for Giffen after this defeat, but Nimitz was less unforgiving and gave Giffen a second chance in the North Pacific. He continued to lead Allied battleship and cruiser task forces, participating in the Aleutians campaign, the invasions of the Gilbert and Marshall Islands, and raids against Japanese bases in the central Pacific. In May 1944 he was promoted to vice admiral and given command of the Caribbean Sea Frontier, with headquarters at San Juan, Puerto Rico. So the loss of Chicago did not affect Giffen's career, I am sorry so say.

[@wilhelmheinzerling5341]

Why is the Colonel of the 27th Regiment - 25th ID in USMC charlies? I think that is not the correct photo.

[@johnmcmickle5685]

It is curious they did not use submarines to mine the approach to the area where the Japanese destroyers were off loading. Then set back and watch the fun.

[@86that11]

Sorry is the Pacific war series not coming this week ??? January 31st?

[@KingsandGenerals]

tomorroü

[@5400bowen]

I always wonder, since the war turned into a battle for air superiority across the board, why didn't they all add lots more anti aircraft weaponry on all ships and in all installations? I know there is a balance, but just like the germans turned there 88s into cannons, it seems they all could have figured out ways to have better coverage against aircraft. And again, have ways to turn the anti aircraft guns on troops and naval vessels.

[@KingsandGenerals]

I think ammunition was a problem. The AA guns of the era were obviously less accurate and used tons of ammunition. As a result storage and logistics were problematic, especially on vessels.

[@5400bowen]

@@KingsandGenerals That does make sense, and this discussion could get pretty complicated. But there is also the trade off that you would need less of everything else if you could knock enough enemy planes down. I mean, aircraft carriers, fighter escorts, circling fighters at ship locations…that’s a lot of storage and logistics as well. They could have had designated AA ships in the fleets. Those AA guns are a lot easier to manufacture and supply than the extra planes needed. But again, this subject could be analyzed endlessly.

[@n1k2jfan96]

@@5400bowen The IJN did refit many of its warships with additional AA batteries (mostly the Type 96 25mm gun) during the war, but they simply weren't good enough to get the job done. The standard Type 96 in particular had a number of serious problems - slow training and elevating speed, excessive vibration, low overall rate of fire due to the 15-round fixed magazines having to be loaded by hand, etc. Moreover, Japan completely failed to develop certain "second-generation" technologies such as the VT fuse, which vastly improved the AA defense of American warships. As a result, the Japanese AA guns could not make up for what they lacked in accuracy, firing capacity and hitting power with sheer quantities. And ammunition was a huge problem too, as suggested by @KingsandGenerals in his reply.. Case in point - the two Tone-class heavy cruisers, Tone and Chikuma, had both been heavily enhanced with 25mm AA batteries (a total of 62 barrels in Tone's case) before they were committed to the Battle of Leyte Gulf as part of the Center Force. They could not save Musashi from being sunk by American carrier-based aircraft. Tone herself was hit by bombs, and Chikuma was sunk off Samar by TBMs from Taffy 2 and Taffy 3. Unfortunately for Chikuma, by the time she was attacked by five TBM-1Cs from Kitkun Bay, her AA ammunition was mostly exhausted; in fact, during the previous attack some gunners had resorted to using exercise rounds.

[@thecombatwombat7652]

So exactly how many times does the Chicago get sunk? XD

[@parveshsalwan8239]

Make series on mahabharat 18 days wars

[@craigkdillon]

What happened to Giffen after this battle?? Halsey was mad at him. So, was he reassigned to the rear? Or, assigned to patrol the Gulf of Mexico, maybe??

[@leedong4201]

Banzai

[@bloodyconstraint920]

Your picture Icon for Col. McCulloch is the wrong guy. You've got William Leonard McCulloch, USMC. You wanted William Alexander McCulloch, US Army.

[@zerog5580]

Did the Japanese and/or Americans take any prisoners and hold them in POW camps during all of these battles on Guadalcanal or was everyone fighting till they died?

[@ramonribascasasayas7877]

It was the Japanese that fought to the last, literally. Also, the GIs and Marines got tired of being cheated (=killed) with fake surrenders.