MacArthur Memorial Podcast

In this latest episode, MacArthur Memorial historians Jim Zobel and Amanda Williams answer some of the more popular and/or unique questions about General MacArthur we have received from MacArthur Memorial Podcast listeners and on social media.

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On June 18, 1945, one month shy of his 59th birthday, Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. became the most senior US military officer to be killed by enemy fire in World War II. At the time, he was leading the Tenth Army on Okinawa. Buckner kept a diary from January 1, 1944, to June 17, 1945. That diary has only recently been fully published. It is an important addition to our understanding of Buckner and the Pacific War. T...

In 1942, John D. Bulkeley, commander of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 and skipper of PT-41, spirited MacArthur and his family off Corregidor. Bulkeley received a Silver Star for his role in MacArthur's escape and was later awarded the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty in Philippine waters from 7 December 1941 to 10 April 1942. His service did not end in the Pacific though. Bulkeley went...

The Occupation of Japan after World War II is often considered a masterclass in civil affairs. It was not perfect, but it was successful. General Douglas MacArthur’s primary mission was to demilitarize Japan. Before he even arrived in Japan however, he was convinced that a sustainable peace would require significant legal and social changes – particularly in terms of the status of Japanese women. The MacArthur Memorial Podcast has ...

On September 11, 1940, the SS Quanza arrived in Norfolk, VA. She was carrying a number of Jewish refugees who were fleeing the Nazi war machine. While they would ultimately find safety through the efforts of the Jewish community in Hampton Roads, this small humanitarian victory would be the catalyst for the virtual elimination of similar opportunities for future refugees. To discuss the story of the SS Quanza, the MacArthur Memoria...

In April 1944, General Douglas MacArthur’s forces made a 580-mile amphibious leap to seize airfields at Hollandia and Aitape in New Guinea. It was a bold plan that meant making two simultaneous amphibious landings deep in enemy territory and it was the first time Admiral Chester Nimitz’s aircraft carriers supported a MacArthur assault.

Join MacArthur Memorial historians Jim Zobel and Amanda Williams for a discussion of th...

Part II of a two part interview.

From 1942-1945, Ernie Pyle was the most famous American war correspondent. In 1942, his columns were featured in 42 newspapers. By 1945, they were featured in 400 daily and 300 weekly newspapers. He covered the war from the Blitz to North Africa, to Italy, to Normandy, and then the Pacific. The American public found his writing human and accessible. Those in combat found him a particular al...

General MacArthur's multi-city state funeral concluded in Norfolk, VA on April 11, 1964. Join MacArthur Memorial historians Amanda Williams and Jim Zobel for a discussion of the events and logistics associated with this final salute to General MacArthur.

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Twitter: @MacArthur1880; @AEWilliamsCla...

From 1942-1945, Ernie Pyle was the most famous American war correspondent. In 1942, his columns were featured in 42 newspapers. By 1945, they were featured in 400 daily and 300 weekly newspapers. He covered the war from the Blitz to North Africa, to Italy, to Normandy, and then the Pacific. The American public found his writing human and accessible. Those in combat found him a particular ally – someone who understood suffering, som...

In February 2024, the MacArthur Memorial hosted an event to mark the 125th anniversary of the Philippine American War. This event was in partnership with the Hampton Roads chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society and the Council of United Filipino Organizations of Tidewater. The event featured presentations by several scholars on different aspects of the war. This episode features a lecture on the capture of Emi...

In February 2024, the MacArthur Memorial hosted an event to mark the 125th anniversary of the Philippine American War. This event was in partnership with the Hampton Roads chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society and the Council of United Filipino Organizations of Tidewater. The event featured presentations by several scholars on different aspects of the war. This episode features a lecture by Dr. David O. Lozad...

In February 2024, the MacArthur Memorial hosted an event to mark the 125th anniversary of the Philippine American War. This event was in partnership with the Hampton Roads Chapter of the Filipino American National Historical Society and the Council of United Filipino Organizations of Tidewater. The event featured presentations by several scholars on different aspects of the war. Dr. Brian Linn, author of The U.S. Army and Counterin...

From February 29 – May 18, 1944, a thousand troopers of the First Cavalry Division, a few United States Navy destroyers and a handful of “Fighting Seabees” defied the odds and seized the Admiralty Islands, making it possible for General MacArthur to keep his promise to return to the Philippines. The Admiralty Island Campaign was the boldest action of MacArthur’s forces in World War II. Some contemporaries called it reckless, others...

Former paratrooper, James M. Fenelon, author of Angels Against the Sun: A WWII Saga of Grunts, Grit, and Brotherhood, joined the MacArthur Memorial Podcast to discuss the story of the 11th Airborne and the liberation of the Philippines during World War II. 

Have a comment about this episode? Send us a text message! (Note: we can only read the texts, we can't reply)

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The Philippine-American War (1899-1902) was a controversial war. Many Americans did not support it, including anti-imperialists like Mark Twain. Others did. In response to the war, the English writer Rudyard Kipling wrote the poem The White Man’s Burden, in which he encouraged the United States to “take up the White Man’s burden” to maintain colonial control of the Philippines as a way to bring progress to the Filipino people. The ...

The Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939 and then the 1941 invasion of Soviet occupied-Poland brought an almost unimaginable scale of suffering to the people of Poland. And yet, in the midst of such terror, there were people who risked their lives to help those targeted for extermination. One of those was a woman posing as a Polish countess. Her real name was Dr. Josephine Janina Mehlberg. She was Jewish AND she was operating in Lublin,...

In this MacArthur Q&A Part II, MacArthur Memorial historians Jim Zobel and Amanda Williams answer questions posed by MacArthur Memorial Podcast listeners. 

•  When did the MacArthur family settle in America?
• What battles was General MacArthur directly involved in during the New Guinea campaign?
• How involved was MacArthur with the United States Army Military Government in Korea during the occupation period from 1945-1948?
• What was...

In 1901, during the Philippine-American War, the Governor-General of the Philippines, Brigadier General Arthur MacArthur Jr., father of Douglas MacArthur, approved a daring plan by Frederick Funston to capture General Aguinaldo. Once Aguinaldo was in custody, Arthur MacArthur persuaded him to swear allegiance to the United States and to use his influence to help end the war. What do we know about the discussions between the two men...

During World War II thousands of British cadets learned to fly at six civilian training schools across the southern United States. The first and largest of the schools was in Terrell, Texas. More than 2,200 Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Corps cadets earned their wings at the No. 1 British Flying Training School Museum in Terrell between 1941 and 1945. To explore the history of this flying school in Terrell, the MacArth...