Editing Guadalcanal campaign (section)

==Aftermath==
[[File:The High Command Assembled on Guadalcanal in 1943.jpg|thumb|Allied commanders assemble on Guadalcanal in August 1943 to plan the next Allied offensive against the Japanese in the Solomons as part of Operation Cartwheel.]]

After the Japanese defeat, Guadalcanal and Tulagi were developed into major bases supporting the Allied advance further up the Solomon Islands chain. Besides Henderson Field, two additional fighter runways were constructed at [[Kukum Field|Lunga Point]], and a bomber airfield was built at [[Carney Airfield|Koli Point]]. Extensive naval port and logistics facilities were established at Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida. The anchorage around Tulagi became an important forward base for Allied warships and transport ships supporting the Solomon Islands campaign. Major ground units were staged through large encampments and barracks on Guadalcanal before deployment further up the Solomons.<ref>U.S. Navy, ''Building the Navy's Bases in World War II'', pp. 246–256.</ref>

After Guadalcanal the Japanese were clearly on the defensive in the Pacific. The constant pressure to reinforce Guadalcanal had weakened Japanese efforts in other theaters, contributing to a successful Australian and American counteroffensive in New Guinea which culminated in the capture of the key bases of [[Battle of Buna–Gona|Buna and Gona]] in early 1943. The Allies had gained a strategic initiative which they never relinquished. In June, the Allies launched [[Operation Cartwheel]] which, after modification in August 1943, formalized the strategy of isolating Rabaul and cutting its [[sea lines of communication]]. The subsequent successful neutralization of Rabaul and the forces centered there facilitated the [[South West Pacific theatre of World War II|South West Pacific]] campaign under MacArthur and [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Central Pacific]] [[Leapfrogging (strategy)|island-hopping]] campaign under Nimitz, with both efforts successfully advancing toward Japan. The remaining Japanese defenses in the South Pacific Area were then either destroyed or bypassed by Allied forces as the war progressed.<ref>Hough, p. 374; Zimmerman, p. 166.</ref>

===Medal of Honor recipients===
'''Marine Corps'''
* [[Kenneth D. Bailey]], Major – 12-13 September 1942 (posth.)
* [[Merritt A. Edson]], Colonel – 13-14 September 1942
* [[John Basilone]], Sergeant – 24-25 October 1942
* [[Mitchell Paige]], Platoon Sergeant – 26 October 1942
* [[Joseph J. Foss]], Captain (pilot) – 9 October - 19 November 1942, Jan 1943
* [[Alexander A. Vandegrift]], Major General – 7 August - 9 December 1942
'''Army'''
* [[William G. Fournier]], Sergeant – 10 January 1943 (posth.)
* [[Lewis Hall (soldier)|Lewis Hall]], Technician 5th Grade – 10 January 1943 (posth.)
* [[Charles W. Davis]], Captain – 12 January 1943
'''Navy'''
* [[Daniel J. Callaghan]], Rear Admiral – 12-13 September 1942 (posth.)
'''Coast Guard'''
* [[Douglas A. Munro]], Signalman First class – 27 September 1942 (posth.)