Map of the Kokoda Trail, Territory of Papua

In February of 1942, during the Second World War, Singapore fell to the Japanese Army and the focus of the war in the Pacific moved closer to Australia. Japan bombed Darwin and tried to capture the city of Port Moresby in Papua. On the Kokoda Trail, Australian troops battled for seven months to protect Port Moresby. By January 1943, Australian troops had helped to defeat the Japanese forces on Papua and stop Japan’s advance across the Pacific.

More than 10,000 Japanese soldiers died. Troops on both sides suffered from disease and exhaustion in the muddy and steep conditions.