Battle of Pearl Ridge

Battle of Pearl Ridge
Part of the Bougainville Campaign of the Pacific Theater (World War II)
An aerial view of Pearl Ridge after the battle
Date 30–31 December 1944 Location Bougainville, New Guinea Result Australian victory
Belligerents
Australia	Japan
Commanders and leaders
John Field John McKinna	Kesao Kijima
Units involved
25th Infantry Battalion	38th Independent Mixed Brigade 81st Infantry Regiment
Strength
~800	~550
Casualties and losses
10 killed 25 wounded	34 killed 1 captured

The Battle of Pearl Ridge (30–31 December 1944) was an engagement of the Second World War fought between Australian and Japanese forces on Bougainville Island. Part of the wider Bougainville Campaign, the battle took place in the central sector of the island, shortly after the Australians had taken over responsibility from the Americans. Believing that the ridge was held by less than a company of Japanese, on 30 December the Australian 25th Infantry Battalion launched a four-pronged attacked the ridge. The defending force, however, had been greatly reinforced by elements of the 38th Independent Mixed Brigade and was closer to a battalion in strength. After being held up on the right of their advance, the Australians dug in overnight and repulsed a strong Japanese counterattack before resuming the attack on 31 December. By late in the afternoon, the Japanese had been swept off the ridge. The Australians later established an observation post on the ridge, which had commanding views of the whole island, and throughout the remainder of the campaign used it to control artillery fire as they advanced towards Japanese enclaves in the north and south of the island.