Cairns and the Battle of the Coral Sea

We’re sometimes asked about the history of Cairns and FNQ in the ‘front line’ of World War II.

Now obviously we at FNQ Apartments weren’t around at the time! Even so, we know something of the history. So, if you’re a history buff, here’s a quick summary.

If you look at the map, you’ll see that this part of Australia branches up towards New Guinea.  Back in 1942, The Imperial Japanese Army and Navy were advancing rapidly towards Australia’s northern coast and New Guinea was very much in their sights, as potentially were the New Hebrides.

In order to try and forestall an invasion of Port Moresby, a combined US/Australian fleet fought a desperate naval battle against Japanese invasion forces in what later became known as the Battle of the Coral Sea - just off the coast

The battle is generally regarded as a tactical Japanese victory in spite of much allied propaganda claiming to the contrary and the battle monument at Kuranda likewise. That’s because in purely military material terms, the Japanese destroyed and damaged more Allied shipping than the reverse.  

However, it proved to be a strategic victory because the Japanese fleet sustained sufficient damage for it to be forced to withdraw and cancel the invasion plans.

The battle is famous in military history for being the first time a major fleet engagement was fought without the two fleets ever sighting each other or firing a single direct shot at the enemy. All the fighting was done ship-to-aircraft with the planes being launched by each side’s aircraft carriers.

Today you’ll see very little evidence of the battle and luxury accommodation in Port Douglas and elsewhere looks out over peaceful and tranquil waters.

As a related aside, it’s not commonly known that Townsville and Mossman in Queensland were bombed by the Japanese during the war. They were small-scale raids that led to no fatalities and today little visible evidence of them remains.