1942 1st May
Battle of Coral Sea
Ordered by Yamamoto to sieze bases in the southern Solomons & capture Port Moresby
Second World War · permanent subject timeline
Battle of the Coral Sea
The May 1942 carrier battle that checked the move toward Port Moresby. This page combines historical context with 9 matching records drawn directly from the World History Database World War II battle archive.
Historical context
Battle of the Coral Sea: overview and significance
What happened?
American and Japanese carrier forces fought in the Coral Sea in May 1942. Aircraft from opposing carriers attacked ships without the main surface fleets directly sighting one another.
Why was it important?
The battle prevented the immediate Japanese seaborne capture of Port Moresby and reduced carrier strength available for the subsequent Midway operation. It was a major step in the transition to carrier-centred naval warfare.
World History Database records
Battle of the Coral Sea timeline
The records below are selected from the 797-record World War II battles archive and rendered as static HTML in chronological order.
1942
1942 1st May
Battle of Coral Sea
Orders Inouye to sieze bases in the southern Solomons & capture Port Moresby
1942 3rd May
Battle of Coral Sea
Captures the Island of Tulagi in the Coral Sea
1942 7th May
Battle of Coral Sea
The Shoho is sunk
1942 8th May
Battle of Coral Sea
Inouye is forced to call off his planned capture of Port Moresby in the Solomons
1942 8th May
Battle of Coral Sea
The air-sea Battle of the Coral Sea comes out as an tactical victory but strategical defeat for Japan
1942 8th May
Battle of Coral Sea
Calls off the plan to sieze bases in the southern Solomons & capture Port Moresby
1942 8th May
Battle of Coral Sea
Japanese expansion in the Pacific is stopped off New Guinea
1942 8th May
Battle of Coral Sea
Japanese expansion is stopped at New Guinea
Editorial provenance
Sources and editorial review
Compiled and edited by World History Database.
Historical context is editorial material; the chronology is generated from World History Database Second World War records.
Last reviewed: September 2026.
Imperial War Museums · National WWII Museum · Australian War Memorial
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