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| 45th Infantry (Philippine Scouts) | |
|---|---|
| Unit name | 45th Infantry (Philippine Scouts) |
| Dates | 1917–1942 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Regiment |
| Garrison | Fort William McKinley, Manila |
| Notable commanders | Colonel Lawrence G. Appley, Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Sprague |
45th Infantry (Philippine Scouts) The 45th Infantry (Philippine Scouts) was a regiment of the Philippine Scouts raised and officered under the United States Army to serve in the Philippine Islands during the interwar period and into World War II. Formed amid expansion of the Philippine Department (United States Army) and the establishment of the Philippine Commonwealth, the regiment saw garrison duties, field training, and ultimately combat during the Battle of Bataan and the early stages of the Japanese invasion of the Philippines (1941–42). Its personnel included Filipino enlisted men and American officers, contributing to the broader narrative of U.S.–Philippine relations and the Pacific War.
The 45th Infantry was constituted in 1917 within the framework of the Philippine Scouts and organized at Fort William McKinley near Manila during the aftermath of the Philippine Organic Act era and in the context of the World War I mobilization. Its structure followed United States Army infantry regimental tables with headquarters, line companies, and supporting elements similar to contemporaneous formations such as the 24th Infantry Regiment and the 31st Infantry Regiment (United States). The regiment was administratively part of the Philippine Department (United States Army) and later subordinated operationally to units including the 31st Division (Philippine Army) and provisional commands created as tensions with Imperial Japan increased. Recruitment drew from Luzon provinces with enlistments processed through stations in Manila, Baguio, and provincial posts, reflecting colonial-era recruitment patterns employed by the United States Army Philippine Department.
During the 1920s and 1930s the 45th Infantry conducted garrison duties at installations like Fort William McKinley and training rotations to field sites such as Fort Stotsenburg and the Cordillera Central range. The regiment participated in maneuvers alongside units of the Philippine Army, including the Philippine Constabulary and National Guard-type forces being organized under the Commonwealth of the Philippines. It was involved in internal security operations responding to civil disturbances and counterinsurgency tasks that had precedent in actions against the Moro Rebellion and in earlier phases of the Philippine–American War. The 45th also engaged in joint exercises with elements of the United States Asiatic Fleet, coordination that presaged the combined operations of 1941–42.
Following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and the simultaneous offensives across the Philippines in December 1941, the 45th Infantry was mobilized under the command of the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) led by General Douglas MacArthur. The regiment fought in delaying actions during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines (1941–42), conducting withdrawals to the Bataan Peninsula and defensive operations during the Battle of Bataan. Its companies held positions on the Abucay Line and the Pilar–Bagac line in coordination with formations such as the Philippine Army divisions and regular U.S. Army regiments. Shortages of ammunition, medical supplies, and food—compounded by Allied interdiction and shipping losses after the Battle of the Java Sea and Battle of the Philippines (1941–42)—affected the 45th's combat endurance. After months of attrition, surrender came with the fall of Bataan in April 1942; many members of the regiment endured the Bataan Death March and subsequent imprisonment under Imperial Japanese Army custody, paralleling the fates of personnel from units like the 26th Cavalry Regiment (Philippine Scouts) and the 57th Infantry (Philippine Scouts).
The regiment's ranks combined Filipino enlisted soldiers drawn from Luzon ethnic groups with American officers and selected non-commissioned officers, a model exemplified across the Philippine Scouts formations. Notable commanders and staff officers included American career officers who had served in the United States Army in the Philippines during peacetime and wartime; units frequently rotated company commanders among officers who had attended schools such as the United States Army Infantry School and staff courses at Fort Leavenworth. The 45th's leadership coordinated with higher echelons including USAFFE headquarters under Douglas MacArthur, the Philippine Department (United States Army), and subordinate commanders of the Bataan Defense Force.
Equipped primarily with standard issue United States Army small arms of the era—rifles like the M1903 Springfield, machine guns such as the Browning Automatic Rifle and M1917 Browning machine gun—the regiment also employed mortars, field artillery support from attached batteries, and transport assets relying on motor vehicles from Sewing Machine and Truck depots and horse-drawn wagons in earlier years. Training emphasized marksmanship, jungle warfare techniques adapted from the Philippine Scouts experience, field engineering, and combined-arms cooperation with units like the Philippine Army and the United States Asiatic Fleet. Logistical constraints accentuated during the 1941–42 campaign reflected global shortages experienced across the Allied powers and specific supply vulnerabilities in the Pacific Theater of Operations.
The 45th Infantry's service is commemorated alongside other Philippine Scouts units for their role in the defense of the Philippines and sacrifices during the Bataan Death March and imprisonment in Japanese prisoner of war camps. Survivors and descendants participated in postwar veterans' associations, reunions, and memorial efforts connected with sites such as the Mount Samat National Shrine and the Bataan Memorial Death March held in the United States. Historical treatments of the regiment appear in works covering the Philippine Scouts, the Battle of Bataan, and USAFFE campaigns, while archival collections in institutions like the National Archives and Records Administration and military museums preserve unit records, photographs, and personal papers. The 45th's story contributes to remembrance of the intertwined histories of the United States and the Philippines during the Pacific War.
Category:Philippine Scouts Category:Infantry regiments of the United States Army