page_title: Battle of Manado
section_title: Landing on Manado (1st Force)
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Manado / The battle / Landing on Manado (1st Force)
caption_attribution_description: English: Japanese Landing on Manado, 11 January 1942
context_page_description: The Battle of Manado took place as part of the Japanese offensive to capture the Dutch East Indies. It occurred at Manado on the Minahasa Peninsula on the northern part of Celebes Island, from 11–12 January 1942. The battle was noted as the first time in Japanese history that the country had deployed paratroopers in a military operation.
context_section_description: Following the sighting of Japanese transport ships on 10 January, Schillmöller immediately garrisoned the troops in their quarters as planned. He also ordered Capt. Kroon's Combined Force (ca. 400 troops in total) to occupy the Manado coastlines and guard it against possible landings. On Kroon's left flank, in the Sario District, he placed Masselink's European Militia, while Lt. de Man's Stadswacht dig in on the right. Engineers are placed on standby, waiting for the order to destroy vital installations; NCOs and members of local government were also informed of the looming Japanese landing.
  Mori's 1st Sasebo Force landed on the northern and southern coast of Manado at 04:00 A.M on 11 January. Upon hearing reports about the landing, Kroon's Compagnie Menado immediately withdrew to the rear positions at Pineleng and Tinoör, without knowing what is happening on the beach, as Mori's troops overrun the 75 mm gun that was firing at the landing boats. Yet they also ran into stout opposition from Masselink's militias, forcing them to bring all their automatic fire to bear. Japanese pressure forced Masselink to withdraw to Pineleng, only to find that the 1st Force had bypassed them into the town at 05:00, pressing him to move further southward.
  When Kroon's troops arrived half an hour later, Mori's troops forced him to withdraw southward along the Manado-Tomohon road to Roeroekan (Rurukan). When Masselink reported his positions to Schillmöller, he ordered him occupy the bridge at Pineleng instead, even though Japanese troops had already occupied it. Masselink eventually continued the retreat, reaching Tinoör by 07:00. After battling the Combined Force, Mori's 1st Force occupied Manado by 08:30. As reports of the landing began to come in, Schillmöller sent 5 RK brigades under Lt. van de Laar in Tomohon to Tinoör to support the retreating Combined Force. Immediately after capturing Manado, Mori advance southward to Tomohon at 09:45, bypassing the Dutch line of retreat.  
  Soon, Schillmöller pulled three brigades from van de Laar's force back to Tomohon to reinforce the town against a false intelligence about Japanese landing in Tanahwangko, further west of Manado. Despite this withdrawal, van de Laar was reinforced by stragglers from Compagnie Menado and an overvalwagen as well as Stadswacht troops under Lt. de Man. To provide protection against Japanese tanks, Dutch troops swiftly cut down a heavy tree that will fall on the road the moment the tanks came. As Mori's vanguard of four Type 95 tanks approached the town at 10:30, the falling tree and concentrated machine gun fire knocked out three of them and repel Mori's troops. van de Laar's troops hold on to Tinoor until about noon, when the shortage of ammunition forced them back to Kakaskasen.   
  Now supported by overvalwagens, van de Laar set up a new defensive position just north of Kakaskasen.1st Force engaged them again at 16:00, but Dutch troops managed to stem their advance and caused substantial casualties before retreating again. Yet, since Mori continues to bypass them, once the Dutch arrived in Tomohon, they found themselves immediately fighting the 1st Force's. The Combined Force attempted a defense against the Japanese advance, but they could not stop Mori from seizing Tomohon by 19:30. van de Laar's troops moved eastwards to Roeroekan, arriving at 22:00. By morning of the 12th, Mori advanced to Langoan Airfield by way of Tomohon to Kawangkoan. By 12:30, his troops established contact with the 1st Yokosuka paras and arrived at Langoan and Kakas at 14:00. Dutch forces had, by then, retreated to Amoerang (Amurang) further west, while blowing up bridges and warehouses, making no attempts of counterattack in the meantime.
caption: 1st Sasebo Force Landing Route on Manado, 11 January 1942
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