#43, Battle of Leyte Gulf: The Largest Naval Battle Ever Fought
The Battle of Leyte Gulf from October 23 to 26, 1944, killed approximately 12,500 Japanese sailors and airmen against 3,000 Americans, the deadliest naval engagement in history by raw numbers. Over 280 warships clashed across four separate engagements spanning 100,000 square miles of the Philippine Sea, making it the largest naval battle ever fought by tonnage, number of ships, and geographic scope.
Japan committed its entire remaining fleet in a desperate gamble to destroy the American invasion of the Philippines. Admiral Kurita's Center Force, including the super-battleships Yamato and Musashi, nearly broke through to the vulnerable transport ships off Leyte. The Musashi absorbed 17 bombs and 19 torpedoes before sinking, a testament to Japanese naval engineering. At Surigao Strait, U.S. battleships achieved the last crossing of the T in naval history. Off Samar, the destroyer escorts of Taffy 3 charged Japanese battleships in a suicidal defense that became one of the U.S. Navy's most celebrated actions. Leyte Gulf destroyed the Imperial Japanese Navy as a fighting force and introduced kamikaze attacks as Japan's last desperate weapon.
