First Battle of Guam – Guam, a U.S. possession in the Mariana islands since the Spanish-American war of 1898, was captured by Imperial Japan in their initial Pacific offensive of December 1941. This first Battle of Guam resulted in 550 Allied and 5900 Japanese deaths.

Second Battle of Guam – From July-August 1944, the Allies waged a bloody campaign to recapture the island. Allied casualties included 1,747 killed and 6,053 wounded. ~ 18,000 Japanese soldiers died.

Although the island was declared secure in August 1945, a number of Japanese soldiers remained at large. In December 1945, several U.S. Marines were ambushed and killed by Japanese soldiers hiding in the jungle. In 1971  Imperial Japanese Army Sergeant Shoichi Yokoi was discovered by hunters after living alone in a cave for 28 years.