A Brown Shade of Hell: The Battle of Buna-Gona November 1942 - January 1943

In one of the most hellish battles of the Pacific War, a nightmare of swamp, bunkers and machineguns, Australian and American forces assault the final Japanese bastion in Papua; the fortress of Buna and Gona. Here, amongst the tangled mess of rotting Sago Palms and Mangroves, the elite South Seas Detachment would make its murderous final stand, bringing the Papuan Campaign to its violent end. This infernal country would give the final act of the Papuan Campaign its uniquely horrific character, its own brown shade of hell. 0:00 Strategic Context and Operational Overview 17:42 The 32nd Division's Baptism of Fire 44:36 The Sanananda Track 1:03:18 Gona 1:20:55 General Wootten's March to the Sea 1:37:02 Urbana Force's Ultimate Triumph 1:45:40 Withdrawal 1:52:11 Looking Back