81st Division (Philippines)

The 81st Infantry Division was a division of the Philippine Army under the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE). It was established in the prewar period and fought 1941-1942.

81st Division
81st Philippine Division Emblem 1941-42
Active	1941 - 10 May 1942
Country	Commonwealth of the Philippines
Branch	Philippine Army
Type	Infantry Division
Size	Division
Part of	Visayan-Mindanao Force
Engagements	World War II Philippines campaign (1941–1942)
Commanders
Notable commanders	Col. (later BGen.) Guy O. Fort

WWII Philippine Army Divisions
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71st Division (PA)	91st Division (PA)

Organization

• 81st Infantry Regiment (PA) (commander, Ruperto Kangleon)
• 82nd Infantry Regiment (PA)
• 83rd Infantry Regiment (PA)
• 84th Provisional Infantry Regiment (PA)
• 81st Field Artillery Regiment (PA) (LCol. Joh P. Woodbridge) (81st F.A. transferred to 102nd Division)
  • HQ Company
  • 1st Bn/81st FA Regt (PA) (75mm guns, 8x) (guns & ammunition never arrived; sunk on the SS Corregidor, 17 Dec 1941)
  • 2nd Bn/81st FA Regt (PA) (3-inch guns, 6x) (guns & ammunition never arrived; sunk on the SS Corregidor, 17 Dec 1941)
  • 3rd Bn/81st FA Regt (PA)
• 81st Engineer Battalion (PA)
• 81st Division Units (PA)
  • 81st Division Headquarters & HQ Company (PA)
  • 81st Medical Battalion (PA)
  • 81st Signal Company (PA)
  • 81st Quartermaster Company (Motorized) (PA)
  • 81st QM Transport Company (Truck) (PA)

History

It was active from 1941 to 10 May 1942, whereupon it surrendered after Corregidor fell. It was active in Mindanao. Colonel (later Brigadier General) Guy O. Fort (PA) was the division's commander, and was later tortured and executed by the Japanese, apparently because he would not comply with their frustrated attempts to use him for propaganda in Mindanao.

Combat Narrative

After the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in December 1941, it formed part of Visayan-Mindanao Force under Brigadier General (later Major General) William F. Sharp, HQ originally at Cebu City.

Sources

• Morton, Louis (1953). United States Army in World War II, The War in the Pacific: The Fall of the Philippines. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, United States Army.
• Whitman, John W. (1990). Bataan: Our Last Ditch : The Bataan Campaign, 1942. Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-87052-877-7.

References

Bibliography

• Morton, Louis. The Fall of the Philippines (Publication 5-2). Retrieved on 14 Feb 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.