page_title: Jacob C. Vouza
section_title: World War II service
hierarchical_section_title: Jacob C. Vouza / World War II service
caption_attribution_description: English: Sir Jacob Vouza memorial at Rove, Honiara Solomon Islands
context_page_description: Sir Jacob Charles Vouza, KBE, GM was a native police officer of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate, who served with the United States Marine Corps in the Guadalcanal campaign during World War II.
context_section_description: In mid-1942, Japanese forces invaded Guadalcanal. Vouza returned to active duty with the British forces and volunteered to work with the Coastwatchers. A Scotsman, Major Martin Clemens, a former British Solomon Islands Protectorate District Officer, was the officer in charge of SgtMaj Vouza's brigade of native scouts. Vouza's ability as a scout had already been established when the US 1st Marine Division landed on Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942. That same day, Vouza rescued an aviator from USS Wasp who was shot down in Japanese-held territory. He guided the pilot to American lines, where he met the Marines for the first time.
  Vouza then volunteered to scout behind enemy lines. On 20 August, while scouting for suspected Japanese outposts, Vouza was captured by men of the Ichiki Detachment, a battalion-strength force of the Japanese 28th Infantry Regiment. Having found a small American flag in Vouza's loincloth, the Japanese tied him to a tree and tortured him for information about Allied forces. Vouza was questioned for hours, but refused to talk. He was then bayoneted in both of his arms, throat, shoulder, face, and stomach, and left to die.
  After his captors departed, he freed himself by chewing through the ropes with his teeth, and made his way through the miles of jungle to American lines. Before accepting medical attention from Lt. Col. Stanley Radzyminski MD, he gasped a warning to Martin Clemens and Lieutenant Colonel Edwin A. Pollock, whose 2nd Battalion 1st Marines held the defences at the Ilu River mouth. Vouza told him that an estimated 250 to 500 Japanese soldiers were coming to attack his position in any minute. This warning gave the Marines the brief but precious time of about 10 minutes to prepare their defences along the Ilu river. The subsequent Battle of the Tenaru was a clear victory for the Marines.
  After spending 12 days in the hospital and receiving 16 US pints (7.6 l) of blood, Vouza returned to duty as the chief scout for the Marines. He accompanied Lieutenant Colonel Evans F. Carlson and the 2nd Raider Battalion on their 30-day raid behind enemy lines.
caption: Sir Jacob Vouza memorial at Honiara, Solomon Islands.
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