Battle of Bita Paka

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Battle of Bita Paka
Part of Asian and Pacific theatre of World War I
Date September 11, 1914 Location Outside Rabaul, New Guinea Result Allied Victory
Combatants
Image:Flag of Australia.svg Australia	Image:Flag of the German Empire.svg German Empire
Strength
3000 men	50 German Officers 240 Native Police
Casualties
6 KIA 4 WIA	1 German KIA 30 Native Police KIA 11 Native Police WIA

v • d • e Asian and Pacific theatre of World War I
Samoa–Bita Paka – Toma – Tsingtao – Micronesia

The Battle of Bita Paka was fought in World War I in German New Guinea in 1914. Australian troops landed six miles from the German wireless station and encountered three lines of defenses facing stiff opposition. Upon being fired upon with an artillery piece the Natives and Germans fled the first line of trenches and regrouped at the second line, but this to was overrun after a fierce fight and several dozen natives where captured. The third line of defense proved the hardest for the Australians with the Germans mounting a counter attack during the night. The Germans soon gave up hope and after destroying the wireless station fled to Toma where they then encountered another Australian task force. After a brief standoff surrendered leaving no effective opposition to Allied occupation of the territory

[edit] Sources

http://www.firstworldwar.com/battles/bitapaka.htm http://www.nla.gov.au/openpublish/index.php/ras/article/viewFile/417/449

v • d • e Theatres of World War I
European Balkans – Western Front – Eastern Front – Italian Front Middle Eastern Caucasus – Mesopotamia – Sinai and Palestine – Gallipoli – Persia African South-West Africa – West Africa – East Africa Asian and Pacific German Samoa and New Guinea – Tsingtao Other Atlantic Ocean – Mediterranean – Naval – Aerial