Bataan Peninsula
Bataan is a province of the Philippines occupying the whole of Bataan Peninsula on Luzon. The province is part of the Central Luzon region. The capital of Bataan is Balanga City and is bordered by the provinces of Zambales and Pampanga to the north. The peninsula faces South China Sea to the west and encloses its arm, Manila Bay, to the east.
Bataan is famous in history as one of the last stands of American and Filipino soldiers before they were overwhelmed by the Japanese forces in World War II. The Bataan Death March was named for this province, where the infamous march started.
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
Province of Bataan
Founded: XXX XX, XXX
Population:
2000 census—557,659 (46th largest).
Density—406 per km² (12th highest).
Area: 1,373.0 km² (12th smallest)
Governor: Leonardo B. Roman (2001-2004)
People and Culture
Economy
Geography
Political
Bataan is subdivided into 11 municipalities and 1 city.
City
Municipalities
Physical
The Bataan Peninsula is a rocky extension of the Zambales Mountains, on Luzon in the Philippines. It separates the Manila Bay from the South China Sea. The peninsula features Mount Natib (1,253 m) in the north and the Mariveles Mountains in the south, which includes Mount Samat, the location of the historical marker for the Bataan Death March.
History
Early History
The province of Bataan was established in 1754 by Governor-General Pedro Manuel Arandia out of territories belonging to Pampanga and the corregimiento of Mariveles which, at the time, included Maragondon, Cavite across the Manila Bay.
In 1647, Dutch naval forces landed in country in an attempt to seize the islands from Spain. The forces massacred the people of Abucay in Bataan. In the late 1700s, Limahong, a Chinese pirate used Bataan as the launching point for his conquest of Luzon, which was unsuccessful.
World War II
Bataan featured prominently during World War II. Prior to the 1941 Japanese invasion, the US Army stored nearly 1,000,000 gallons of gasoline here.
Shortly after the Japanese Army invaded the country in December 1941, the combined forces of Filipino and American forces were overrun and General Douglas MacArthur, was forced to retreat leaving behind tens of thousands of soldiers to make a last stand in Bataan. On January 7, 1942, the Japanese started the siege on the peninsula. On April 3 the Japanese forces began an all-out assault on the American and Filipino troops left on the peninsula. Bataan fell several days later on April 9 and the Bataan Death March began (see Fall of Bataan). About 70,000 captured American and Filipino soldiers were forced to march more than a hundred kilometers from Bataan to Tarlac.
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1942 | 24th Field Artillery Regiment | 24th Field Artillery Regiment (PS) | 24th Philippine Scout Artillery Regiment | 26th Cavalry Regiment | 26th Cavalry Regiment (PS) | 3 April | 3rd April | 60th Coast Artillery (AA) | 60th Coast Artillery (AA) Regiment | 7 January | 7th January | 9 April | 9th April | April 3 | April 3rd | April 9 | April 9th | Bataan Death March | January 07 | January 7 | January 7th | Jonathan Mahew Wainwright IV | Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV | Jonathan Wainwright | Jonathan Wainwright IV | List of Philippine-related topics | List of Philippines-related topics | Luzon | Luzon Island | Manila Bay | Mariveles Naval Base | Mariveles Naval Section Base | Military History of the Philippines | Peninsula | Peninsular | Peninsulas | Post of Limay | USS Bataan | Zambales Mountains
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