08/04/2022
DAY OF VALOR
The Day of Valor, officially known as Araw ng Kagitingan, is a national observance in the Philippines which commemorates the fall of Bataan to Japanese troops during World War II. It falls every April 9, although in 2009, its celebration was moved to April 6 to avoid it from coinciding with Maundy Thursday.
Due to Bataan's significance in World War II, the holiday was officially known as Bataan Day prior to the 2000s. In the United States, the holiday is celebrated in Maywood, Illinois, where it is referred to by its old name.
At dawn on April 9, 1942, against the orders of Generals Douglas MacArthur and Jonathan Wainwright, the commander of the Luzon Force, Bataan, Major General Edward P. King, Jr., surrendered more than 76,000 starving and disease-ridden soldiers (64,000 Filipinos, and 12,000 Americans) to Japanese troops.
The majority of these prisoners of war had their belongings confiscated before being forced to endure the infamous 140-kilometre (87 mi) Bataan Death March to Camp O'Donnell in Capas, Tarlac. En route, thousands died from dehydration, heat prostration, untreated wounds, and wanton ex*****on while walking in deep dust over vehicle-broken Macadam roads, and crammed into rail cars for transport to captivity.
The few who were lucky enough to travel by truck to San Fernando, Pampanga would still have to endure more than 25 miles (40 km) of additional marching. Prisoners were beaten randomly and often denied promised food and water. Those who fell behind were usually executed or left to die, with the sides of the roads becoming littered with dead bodies and those moaning for help.
Only 54,000 of the 76,000 prisoners (66,000 Filipinos and 10,000 Americans) reached their destination;[6] the exact death toll is difficult to assess because thousands of captives were able to escape from their guards. Approximately 3,000 prisoners may have died during the march, and 25–30,000 more while in captivity. Wikipedia
