The Bataan Death March (also known as The Death March of Bataan) was a Japanese war crime involving the forcible transfer of prisoners of war -- with wide-ranging abuse and high fatalities -- by Japanese forces in the Philippines in 1942. The march occurred after the three-month Battle of Bataan, part of the Battle of the Philippines (1941-42), during World War II. In Japanese, it is known as Batān Shi no Kōshin (バターン死の行進, Batān Shi no Kōshin), with the same meaning.
[Note on correct pronunciation. Filipino (Tagalog) speakers pronounce "Bataan" as (phonetically) "Bata-An".]

The Fall of Bataan
Although General Homma and Kawane had expected 25,000 prisoners of war, the Allied garrison at Bataan consisted of more than 75,000 (66,000 Filipinos and 11,796 Americans) starving and malaria-stricken men. During the battle, only 27,000 of these men were listed as "combat effective". Even then, three fourths of this number were still affected by malaria. As a result, the Japanese army met great difficulties in transporting these prisoners from the beginning. Distributing food was also almost impossible and many were fed nothing. 4,000 sick or wounded captives were in such bad condition that they had to stay behind to be treated by the Japanese at Bataan. A shortage of manpower and supplies on the part of the Japanese, who were now laying siege to Corregidor, raised confusion and irritation amongst the guards as many prisoners escaped. At most, only 4 Japanese soldiers could accompany each group of 300 prisoners. The march to Balanga, which was to take only one day, lasted three days for some soldiers.
After reaching Balanga, it became obvious to General Kawane that his trucks could not carry more than half of the prisoners to the rail center at San Fernando. Since most of the other vehicles the Japanese had brought to the Philippines were either in repair or being used for the Battle of Corregidor, those who could not get a ride were forced to continue marching for more than 30 miles on completely unshaded roads that were sometimes made of asphalt. The thick dust swirling in the air would make it difficult for the prisoners to see and breathe while those who were walking barefoot had their feet burned on the molten asphalt. Men who refused to abandon their belongings were the first to fall. The last nine miles of the march from the town of Lubao to San Fernando were among the hardest the men would ever walk.
Those who were able to reach San Fernando alive were then locked into makeshift prisons where they were finally able to receive some level of proper and adequate medical care, food, and rest. Soon after this, however, the prisoners were jammed into freight trains that took them to Capas. Vomiting was frequent during the ride as some were even crammed or suffocated to death. After the three hour trip, which included few stops for rest, the prisoners then marched the 8 mile road to Camp O'Donnell.
Through the duration of nine days, a majority of the disease and grief-stricken Filipino and American prisoners were forced to march as much as two-thirds of the 90 miles that separated Bataan from Camp O'Donnell. Those few who were lucky enough to travel to San Fernando on trucks still had to endure more than 25 miles of marching. Prisoners were beaten randomly, and were often denied the food and water they were promised. Those who fell behind were usually executed or left to die; the sides of the roads became littered with dead bodies and those begging for help. A number of prisoners were further diminished by malaria, heat, dehydration, and dysentery. It should be noted, however, that many of the soldiers who accompanied the prisoners of war were not only Japanese, but Korean. Since they were not trusted by the Japanese to fight on the battlefield, most Koreans in the Japanese army were forbidden to participate in combat roles and delegated to such service duties as guarding prisoners. As one prisoner recalled, "The Korean guards were the most abusive... the Koreans were anxious to get blood on their bayonets; and then they thought they were veterans."

The Death March
On June 6, 1942 the Filipino soldiers were granted amnesty by the Japanese military and released. The American prisoners continued to be held, eventually to be transferred to camps outside of the Philippines. The start of this process began with American prisoners moving from Camp O'Donnell to Cabanatuan. Acting as a staging camp, many of these American prisoners then were sent from Cabanatuan to prison camps in Japan, Korea, and Manchuria in transports known as "Hell Ships." The 511 prisoners-of-war who still resided at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp as of January 1945 were freed during an attack on the camp led by United States Army Rangers later known as The Great Raid.

War Crimes Trial

Commemorations

Every year on April 9, the captured soldiers are honored on Araw ng Kagitingan ("Day of Valor"), also known as the "Bataan Day", which is a national holiday in the Philippines.
In Capas, Tarlac there is the Capas National Shrine built in the grounds surrounding Camp O'Donnell.
There is also a shrine in Bataan named Dambana ng Kagitingan ("Shrine of Valor") commemorating this event. The shrine has a colonnade that houses an altar, esplanade, and a museum. There is also a Memorial Cross built towering 92 meters in height. The Philippines
The Bataan Death March is commemorated every year at White Sands Missile Range just outside of Las Cruces, New Mexico. The march, which covers 26.2 miles via paved road and sandy trails, allows 4000 entrants from both civilian and many military units both International and the United States armed services. Several of the few remaining Bataan prisoners await the competitors to congratulate them on their success of the grueling march.

New Mexico, USA
The 194th's Company A was deployed to the Philippines in the fall of 1941. To commemorate the military and civilian prisoners that were forced to march from Bataan to Camp O'Donnell, an annual Bataan Memorial March, organized by the 194th Armor Regiment of the Minnesota Army National Guard and is held in Brainerd, MN. The march is open to anyone who wishes to participate with ten and twenty mile distances. The march has different categories consisting of teams, individuals, light pack, or a heavy pack. A closing ceremony is held at the end to award the finishers and pay tribute to the survivors and their comrades who did not survive the death march.

Memorials

Battle of the Philippines (1941-42)
USS Bataan (LHD-5)
USS Bataan (CVL-29)
San Fernando City, Pampanga
List of Japanese war atrocities
Category:Bataan Death March prisoners
The March (1945)
The Great Raid (2005)
Ghost Soldiers