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NEVER FORGET The Bataan Death March of WWII April 10th marks a very dark day in US History: Yes, today marks a somber anniversary in history. April 9, 1942, U.S. and Filipino forces on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines surrendered to the Japanese Imperial Army after a grueling 99-day defense—the largest surrender in American military history (around 76,000 troops: roughly 12,000 Americans and 64,000 Filipinos). They were already exhausted, starving, diseased, and low on supplies from months of fighting without adequate reinforcements. The Bataan Death March itself began the next day, April 10, 1942, as the prisoners were forced to march northward from places like Mariveles and Bagac. Some sources note the gathering and initial movement starting on the 10th, while the surrender and beginning of the ordeal is tied to April 9 (now observed as the Day of Valor in the Philippines). What happened during the march - The prisoners—weakened from the siege—were compelled to walk roughly 65–85 miles (depending on starting points) over 5–10 days in brutal tropical heat, with little to no food or water (some got just one meal of rice). - Japanese guards subjected them to random beatings with rifle butts, bayoneting, shootings, and beheadings. Stragglers were often killed on the spot. - Many collapsed from exhaustion, dysentery, malaria, or dehydration. Estimates of deaths during the march itself range from 7,000–10,000 (about 500–1,000 Americans and far more Filipinos). - Survivors were then crammed into overcrowded boxcars for part of the journey (100 men in cars meant for 40), leading to more deaths from suffocation and heat, before a final march to Camp O'Donnell. Thousands more perished there from disease and starvation in the following months. Overall, a huge portion of the prisoners did not survive captivity. It remains one of the most infamous Japanese war crimes of World War II, highlighting the extreme brutality and disregard for POWs under the Imperial Japanese Army at that time. The defenders of Bataan had bought critical time for the Allies in the Pacific, delaying the Japanese advance. Today, it's remembered through memorials, the annual Bataan Memorial Death March (a tough ruck event in New Mexico honoring the New Mexico National Guard units that served there), and as a stark reminder of the human cost of war. In the Philippines, April 9 is a national holiday honoring the valor and sacrifice. A truly dark chapter— Never forget captures the sentiment well. Several of these soldiers were from the areas of Kentucky that I research, many did not make it back home. Those that did, suffered for the rest of their lives from that march and would not talk about it.