Edson's Ridge - Hill 123 (Hill 2)

The Japanese ground army launched a serie of large scale assaults on the Lunga ridge between 11 and 14 September 1942, to retake Henderson Field. The ridge was defended by men of the 1st Raider and 1st Parachute Battalion under Lieutenant Colonel Merritt A. Edson. The U.S. Marines stood their ground and inflicted heavy casualties to the Japanese.

In total, 850 Japanese soldiers were killed in the battle. The U.S. Marines lost 104 men.

Hill 123
Hill 123 was the epicenter of the Battle of Edson's Ridge (12-14 September 1942), which was won by the Americans. The second picture show the Lunga River, the scene of many Marine Corps patrols and encounters with the Japanese. Looking down from Edson’s Ridge.

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Source

• Text: Matthew Stevenson
• Photos: Matthew Stevenson (1, 2), Guadalcanal, the Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle (3)
• Pacific Wrecks