Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV (23 August 1883 – 2 September 1953) was a United States Army general, the Commander of Allied forces in the Philippines, and prisoner of war during World War II.
Wainwright commanded American and Filipino forces during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, for which he received a Medal of Honor. He oversaw the largest ever surrender of American armed forces in May 1942, on the island stronghold of Corregidor. At the time of his capture, Wainwright was the highest-ranking American prisoner of war. He spent three years in Japanese prison camps, during which he suffered from malnutrition and mistreatment. Americans viewed him as a hero during his ordeal. In August 1945, he was escorted from Manchuria by the Red Army. Shortly after Japan’s surrender, Wainwright was promoted to four-star General.
Published book:
General Wainwright’s Story: The Account of Four Years of Humiliating Defeat, Surrender, and Captivity by General Jonathan M. Wainwright, Who Paid the Price of His Country’s Unpreparedness – 1946
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