soc.history.war.world-war-ii

On Mar 30, 9:55 pm, Rich Rostrom wrote:
> http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-Midway.html
> has a transcription of the official monograph
> _Marines at Midway_ by Lieutenant Colonel R. D. Heinl.
>
> "The actual landing on Midway was to be accomplished
> by approximately 1,500 Special Naval Landing Force
> troops who would storm Sand Island; and by 1,000 Army
> troops of the Ikki Detachment, to land on Eastern Island."

Hi Rich,

With all due to Colonel Heinl, who is an excellent source, that is not
completely correct with regards to the IJA contingent. It was in fact
the Ichiki Detachment, not the "Ikki Detachment", he appears to have
had a transliteration problem there? In fact it was the same unit
commanded by Colonel Kiyonao Ichiki that was later committed to the
Japanese counterattack on the Marine landing at Guadalcanal in August
1942 that was destroyed on the Tenaru River. It comprised:

28th Infantry Regiment (-) (+)
HQ, Rgt Gun Co, Rgt AT Co
II Bn (4 Rifle Cos, 1 MG Co, 1 Bn Gun Plt)
8th Independent AT Co
1st Co/7th Engineer Regimen
Co/28th Engineer Regiment

As of 8 August it numbered 917 men and was probably not very different
from its strength in June, it had spent the intervening time since 16
June when they returned languishing on Guam. The rest of the regiment
numbered some 2,300 men, but was evidently scattered in detachments
and was not available.