1942 5th May
Battle of Midway
Japan must now concentrate on defending the Southern Resources Area. Japan loses its initiative in the Pacific
Second World War · permanent subject timeline
Battle of Midway
The decisive June 1942 carrier battle in the central Pacific. This page combines historical context with 15 matching records drawn directly from the World History Database World War II battle archive.
Historical context
Battle of Midway: overview and significance
What happened?
American naval intelligence helped identify the Japanese objective at Midway. U.S. carrier aircraft struck the Japanese fleet on 4 June 1942 and destroyed four fleet carriers, while USS Yorktown was lost.
Why was it important?
Midway sharply altered the carrier balance in the Pacific and ended the sequence of rapid Japanese strategic advances. Japan retained substantial naval power, but its carrier aviation suffered losses that were difficult to replace.
World History Database records
Battle of Midway 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 May
Battle of Midway
Ordered to make diversionary strikes against US Alaskan bases before the Midway strike
1942 3rd June
Battle of Midway
Bombards Dutch Harbour in the Aleutians to divert the Japanese from the Midway Islands
1942 4th June
Battle of Midway
Spruance & Fletcher sink 4 Japanese carriers with the loss of the Yorktown
1942 4th June
Battle of Midway
Orders a 2nd attack when the Japanes are caught with their decks crowded with planes. Launches the Midway invasion believing there are no US carriers in the central Pacific. By 5:00PM Japan had lost her entire carrier force
1942 4th June
Battle of Midway
Provides the Japanese code which inform the Americans of the Japanese plans
1942 4th June
Battle of Midway
Attacks Japanese carriers heading for Midway, lulls Nagumo into false sense of victory
1942 4th June
Battle of Midway
The Americans retreat & he gives up the battle. All the Japanese carriers are lost at Midway
1942 6th June
Battle of Midway
Turns away from Yamamoto & frustrates the his plan for trapping US forces
1942 13th November
Battle of Midway
Abes "Tokyo Express" is stopped at Ironbottom Sound & Abe is removed from command
1942 13th November
Battle of Midway
Leads the bomardment at Midway & Wake Island
1942
Battle of Midway
Fights at the Battle of Midway
1942
Battle of Midway
Commands the battleship Kirishima
1942
Battle of Midway
Commands the Midway Occupation Force
1942
Battle of Midway
Commands the Enterprise-Hornet force
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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