page_title: Wendell Fertig
section_title: Fighting the Japanese
hierarchical_section_title: Wendell Fertig / World War II / Fighting the Japanese
caption_attribution_description: English: Philippine guerillas greet the crews of U.S. Marine Corps North American PBJ-1D Mitchell Bombers on Mindanao, 1945. Marine Bombing Squadron VMB-611 operated in the Philippines. Note the radar (Hose Nose) fitted to the nose of plane "MB-3" in the background.
context_page_description: Wendell Fertig was an American civil engineer, in the American-administered Commonwealth of the Philippines, who organized and commanded an American-Filipino guerrilla force on the Japanese-occupied, southern Philippine island of Mindanao during World War II.
  Fertig held a U.S. Army reserve commission and was called into military service before the war in the Pacific began. Ordered from Corregidor before its surrender to the Japanese, he was sent to Mindanao to assume command of engineer activities there. Almost as soon as he arrived, the U.S. Army forces on Mindanao surrendered, but Fertig refused to do so. Fertig used his knowledge of the Filipino people to organize them into a guerrilla army and civilian government. He also used his engineering knowledge to solve problems in supply and construction.
  Fertig led the guerrillas against the Japanese and their collaborators, mostly in hit-and-run raids and vital coast watching activities. After making contact with U.S. forces in the Pacific, the guerrillas began to receive supplies, but never enough to stage large-scale attacks.
context_section_description: Colonel Fertig slowly assumed control over more of the existing, rival 'guerrilla' units on Mindanao and turned them to harassing the Japanese. Over the next two and a half years, Fertig created and commanded the Mindanao segment of the "United States Forces in the Philippines" (USFIP), recruiting escaped prisoners-of-war, and soldiers and American civilians who had refused to surrender. However, his real strength came from the thousands of pro-American Filipinos, many of whom were enraged by Japanese atrocities, who now joined existing or formed new organizations under his command. The Japanese were not unaware of these activities, especially as they began to suffer losses in men and equipment and lose control of large areas.
  Between 1942 and 1944, USFIP conducted numerous raids against the Japanese Occupation Forces on Mindanao to both sustain Fertig's operation with captured supplies and to carry on harassing operations against the Japanese. This caused discord between Fertig and MacArthur's headquarters. The American South West Pacific Area command wanted Fertig to man coastwatcher units to report on Japanese movements, especially shipping, as its main effort. However, to retain the loyalty of his forces in the wake of Japanese atrocities, Fertig also had to wage an active campaign to kill Japanese and their collaborators, as well as disrupt activities aimed at civilians. Attacks against the Japanese often initiated terrible reprisals by the Japanese against local civilians, so Fertig issued orders that the guerrillas on Mindanao were to avoid situations that would result in such reprisals. However, due to the Japanese callousness toward the local populations, reprisals often still occurred.
  Initially, Fertig's forces were able to repel Japanese attempts to recapture territory held by the guerrillas. The Japanese could not take any major actions against USFIP on Mindanao as, not only were they dealing with other resistance movements in the Philippines, but most of their combat troops had been deployed to other areas of the Pacific. However, in late Spring 1943, the Japanese began military actions on a large scale on Mindanao. In those areas affected, USFIP forces had to retreat and give up land, established camps, and government infrastructure to the stronger Japanese forces.
  As the guerrilla units and government infrastructure fled before the Japanese forces, something occurred which Fertig had hoped for. He called it the "pillow effect." By providing no resistance to a stronger force, the guerrillas survived the Japanese blow. When the Japanese withdrew, the pillow expanded to its original shape. As the company-sized guerrilla units dissolved, the Japanese began breaking up their units into smaller groups—eventually into squads—to track down these smaller units. Then, without any orders from above, first two or three guerrillas, then 10 or more, then platoon and then company-sized units reorganized and struck back at the smaller Japanese units, causing the Japanese heavy casualties in hundreds of small fire fights. The Japanese responded by reforming into battalion-sized units that needed large towns to support them. Eventually, the Japanese, using 15,000 to 18,000 troops on Mindanao, held the large towns on the sea coast while the USFIP held the rest of the countryside, or approximately 95% of the island of Mindanao. The guerrillas were so effective in some areas, local Japanese commanders made separate truces with them. In exchange for the guerrillas not attacking Japanese troops, the Japanese agreed to stay out of those areas.
  In August 1943, based upon favorable reports to MacArthur by Parsons and Smith, Fertig was promoted to full Colonel by MacArthur and received the Distinguished Service Cross for his efforts. On August 23, Fertig received the following message:
  In recognition of your meritorious services as District Commander and extraordinary heroism in action during the period of 8 May 42 to 6 August 43, I have awarded you the Distinguished Service Cross, Announcement of your award is published in GO Hqs.
caption: Filipino guerrillas secured airstrips for U.S. planes on Mindanao.
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