Historic Map : American Progress in The Pacific War During WWII, Chapin, 1944, Vintage Wall Art
The 1944 Robert M. Chapin Jr. map is a depiction of the Pacific Theater during World War II, illustrating the then-current situation in the region. The map covers a vast area, from Burma and China to the Gilbert Islands and from Japan to northern Australia. The individual islands and archipelagos are labeled throughout the Pacific, including the Gilbert Islands, Marshall Islands, and Marianas Islands. The map also highlights the individual islands and atolls in the Southwest Pacific, such as New Guinea, Celebes, Timor Borneo, Java, and Sumatra, which are part of several different nations today. The map shows the major cities such as Hong Kong, Shanghai, Saigon, Singapore, Manila, Batavia, and Surabaya, among others.
The map highlights the locations of the Allied and Japanese forces, with General Douglas MacArthur commanding forces in the Southwest Pacific, Admiral Chester Nimitz commanding the Navy’s charge across the Central and Northern Pacific, and Claire Chennault commanding the 14th U.S. Army Air Force. The map also illustrates the ‘leapfrogging’ strategy adopted by the Allies, showing the islands that the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps invaded amphibiously, much like would happen in June 1944 on D-Day in Normandy, France. The map shows the islands that were bypassed by the Allies and the ones where the fighting was fierce and bloody, setting the tone for the rest of the Pacific War. This map was drawn by Robert M. Chapin Jr. to accompany an article in TIME Magazine and was subsequently published separately.
