The Guadalcanal campaign was the first major Allied land offensive against Japan and a turning point in the Pacific war

historyWikipedia1942–1943 · Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands

The Guadalcanal campaign was the first major Allied land offensive against Japan and a turning point in the Pacific war

the gist

The Guadalcanal campaign ran from 7 August 1942 to 9 February 1943 in the Solomon Islands. US Marines landed on Guadalcanal, Tulagi and Florida Island and found little initial resistance, but the fight for the island became prolonged as both sides reinforced. The Allies completed and defended Henderson Field, and the Japanese made repeated attempts to retake it. A series of naval battles, including Savo Island and the naval battle in mid-November, decided control of the surrounding seas. In December Japan decided to abandon the island and evacuated its last forces by 9 February 1943. The campaign followed Allied victories at the Coral Sea and Midway and marked the Allies' move from defence to offence in the Pacific.

so what

Guadalcanal showed that Allied forces could win a grinding, multi-front struggle against Japan and seize the strategic initiative in the Pacific. It set up the later island-hopping offensives that led to Japan's surrender in 1945.

fun fact

The Japanese abandoned Guadalcanal in December 1942, and their last troops were evacuated by early February 1943.

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗