When did the Allies liberate the Philippines?

The liberation of the Philippines from Japanese occupation by the Allied forces started on October 20, 1944, and culminated in the Battle of Leyte, which was a significant amphibious assault. General Douglas MacArthur, who had promised "I shall return" upon his departure in 1942, led American and Filipino forces in a series of battles that continued until the surrender of the Japanese forces in the Philippines on September 2, 1945.

The Philippines, a crucial archipelago in the Pacific, fell to the Japanese Empire shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The United States, along with Filipino forces, had to withdraw and General MacArthur famously vowed to come back to liberate the islands. The return to the Philippines was a key part of the island-hopping campaign, where Allied forces sought to recapture Pacific islands one by one from Japanese control as a strategy to approach Japan. The liberation involved severe and bloody fighting, with both sides suffering significant losses. The Battle of Leyte Gulf, which was part of the larger conflict, is often considered one of the largest naval battles in history. Leyte Gulf, along with other key battles like the Battle of Luzon, led to the eventual liberation of the Philippines and set the stage for closing in on Japan, which ultimately led to the end of World War II after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and Japan's subsequent surrender. Students studying World War II learn about these strategic battles as turning points in the Pacific theater and examine the impact of the war on various countries involved, including the significant toll on the civilian populations.