Mortar and artillery shells from vantage points in Mariveles poured steadily on Corregidor. Thousands of bombs from unmolested bombers rained down with devastating effect, leveling buildings located at topside - the cinema house, the Army barracks, the small church, small houses. Every square foot of the tadpole shaped island must have been hit by the sheer volume of projectiles unleashed by the Japanese. The hospital inside the Malinta tunnel shook constantly from the pounding, explosions reverberating in men's ears, in men's hearts - a mind gripping thumping and thudding from which there was no escape. Still, the inhabitants of the rock resisted and held, stubbornly fought back with mortars and 6 and 3 inch guns beyond the limits of courage and human endurance.
Before Bataan fell, President Roosevelt, realizing the importance of MacArthur, ordered him off the Rock. America needed his genius and valuable experience. The general would have preferred to die with his troops, wanted to, but an order of the Commander in Chief must be obeyed. He turned over his command to General Wainwright
In a flotilla of 4 PT boats, MacArthur with his wife Jean and son Arthur left Corregidor for Davao in southern Mindanao where the entourage which included Manuel Quezon boarded a submarine which took them to Darwin, Australia. Immediately after landing in Darwin he made a broadcast for the Filpino people : " ... I shall return!"
He was expecting to lead an expeditionary force to retake the Philippines. To his chagrin and consternation, there was no such army. Whatever priority the General Staff had was earmarked for operations in the European theater and the defeat of Adolf Hitler.
Finally, on May 6, 1942, General Wainwright could no longer hold the Rock. He surrendered ..."with head bowed but not in shame ..." He apologized for his failure to hold; little did he realize that in defeat he had gained greater glory. The prolonged resistance at Bataan and Corregidor delayed the Japanese time table and gained valuable time for the United States to build its military and industrial capacity.
