Battle For Kokoda Essay

The Battle for Kokoda, as a campaign overall, was a disaster to a large extent. This can be seen in the lack of preparation by the Australian troops, such as the supply drops and the AIF troops being sent to an unnecessary location. In addition to this, the terrain and conditions of the track had not been taken into account, which made the battle much harder both physically and strategically. However, possibly the worst mistake was the rivalry between commanders, and the way they treated the Battle for Kokoda like a game, instead of a real battle where people were dying because of their errors.
Firstly, the unprepared state of affairs did not aid the campaign in any way, including the choice of uniforms and the catastrophic supply drops, and

This is formidable in writing, while in reality the terrain is so difficult to traverse that there is still no road to this day. You can imagine that this did nothing to help the poorly trained militia, and made Port Moresby and Kokoda vital areas because of the supply lines they created. Because the militia had very little training, they would not have been at the physical fitness of the AIF, which also impeded their progress against the Japanese. Despite the difficult situation, High Command still did not think through their strategic approach. For example, at the Battle of Eora Creek, the land was so steep that a man was shot through the ear to the foot while standing. Even so, while the commander of the unit suggested going around the sides so that the Australians were not in an exposed position, High Command stubbornly ordered them to continue attacking directly uphill. This would not have been as severe a mistake if it was on more forgiving terrain; a statement that is applicable to many of the mistakes made during the campaign. Be that as it may, not much could be done about this. On the other hand, many of the mistakes could have been easily avoided, such as the illogical decisions made by High