Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV (23 August 1883 – 2 September 1953) was a United States Army general, the commander of Allied forces in the Philippines, and prisoner of war during World War II.

Wainwright commanded American and Filipino forces during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, for which he received a Medal of Honor. He oversaw the largest-ever surrender of American armed forces in May 1942, on the island stronghold of Corregidor. At the time of his capture, Wainwright was the highest-ranking American prisoner of war. He spent three years in Japanese prison camps, during which he suffered from malnutrition and mistreatment. Americans viewed him as a hero during his ordeal. In August 1945, he was escorted from Manchuria by the Red Army. Shortly after Japan's surrender, Wainwright was promoted to four-star general.

Early life and training Jonathan Wainwright was born at Fort Walla Walla on 23 August 1883 to Josephine and Robert Powell Page Wainwright. Josephine's father was civil engineer Edward W. Serrell. Robert was the third generation of a prominent family. His grandfather was Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright, an episcopal bishop in New York City. Robert's father was Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright II, a lieutenant in the United States Navy, who was killed in action during the 1 January 1863, Battle of Galveston in the American Civil War. Congressman J. Mayhew Wainwright was the younger Jonathan's cousin.

Robert Wainwright was a United States Army officer who was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 1st Cavalry in 1875, rose to the rank of major, and commanded a squadron of the 5th Cavalry Regiment in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish–American War. He was posted at Walla Walla, Washington Territory, when Jonathan was born. Robert gave his father's name to his son, emphasizing the family tradition of military service. The family called him by his middle name. In 1902, Robert died of disease in the Philippines.

Jonathan Wainwright graduated from Highland Park High School in Illinois in 1901 and from the United States Military Academy in 1906. He was 6 ft, 2 in, but weighed only 125 pounds when he arrived at West Point, which gave rise to the nickname "Skinny". He served as first captain of the Corps of Cadets.

Wainwright was commissioned in the cavalry. Like his father, he served with the 1st Cavalry Regiment. In 1906, he was stationed in Texas. In 1908, the regiment transferred to the Philippines. Wainwright saw combat on Jolo during the Moro Rebellion.

In 1912, Wainwright attended the Mounted Service School in Fort Riley, Kansas. He broke his leg when a horse kicked him, and he was unable to finish the basic course until 1916. When he was back with the 1st Cavalry on Mexican border patrol in 1916, Wainwright was promoted to captain. By 1917, he was on the staff of the first officer training camp at Plattsburgh, New York.

In 1911, Wainwright married Adele "Kitty" Holley. They had one son, Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright V (1913–1996).

World War I During World War I, Wainwright was promoted to major in August 1917 and sent to Camp Devens to serve with the 76th Division. In February 1918, he was ordered to France. In June, he became assistant chief of staff of the U.S. 82nd Infantry Division, with which he took part in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. During the latter battle, an explosion permanently damaged Wainwright's hearing. He was breveted to lieutenant colonel in October 1918. After the war, Wainwright remained in Europe on occupation duty with the 3rd Army at Koblenz, Germany.

Inter-war period

After a year as an instructor at the Cavalry School at Fort Riley, Wainwright was attached to the general staff from 1921 to 1923 and assigned to the 3rd Cavalry Regiment at Fort Myer, Virginia, from 1923–25. His service during the war delayed his professional training. In 1929, he joined the second class at the newly re-established Command and General Staff School in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. On 29 December, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel, over a decade after he first attained the rank during WWI.

Wainwright went to the United States Army War College in 1933. His classmates there included Omar Bradley and William Halsey Jr. During his studies, Wainwright repeatedly focused on War Plan Orange, which was the strategy for combatting the Empire of Japan.

Wainwright was promoted to colonel in 1935. He served as commander of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment until 1938, when he was promoted to brigadier general in command of the 1st Cavalry Brigade at Fort Clark, Texas.

In September 1940, Wainwright was assigned to command the Philippine Division, a force of Philippine Scouts led by American officers. On 1 October, just after transiting the Panama Canal on his way back to the Philippines, he was notified of his promotion to major general.

World War II Combat

On 8 December 1941, just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan launched their invasion of the Philippines. When their first bombs started to drop on Clarke Field, Wainwright was at Fort Stotsenburg, where he spent the previous day enjoying a polo match and watching a movie.Cave, Dorothy. Beyond Courage: One Regiment Against Japan, 1941-1945. Yucca Tree Press, 1992.

War Plan Orange anticipated the most likely point of attack to be Lingayen Gulf on Luzon.Miller, Edward S. War Plan Orange: The U.S. Strategy to Defeat Japan, 1897–1945. United States Naval Institute Press, 1991. That is precisely where the Japanese established a beachhead on 22 December. The area was defended by Wainwright's North Luzon Force, consisting of three reserve Filipino divisions and the 26th Cavalry Regiment.Niehorster, Leo. "North Luzon Force, U.S. Army Forces in the Far East". Order of Battle, 8 December 1941. Niehorster.org. Accessed 20 December 2025.

The strategy in War Plan Orange was to create a redoubt on the Bataan Peninsula and Corregidor, where the U.S. could defend the entrance to Manila Bay. Instead of withdrawing to a defensive position, MacArthur preferred an offensive strategy. He spread materiel throughout the Philippines to attack an invading force. On 23 December, MacArthur reverted to War Plan Orange, charging Wainwright with protecting the retreat to Bataan. MacArthur evacuated his command to Corregidor.

By January 1942, most of the Allied forces had withdrawn to Bataan without sufficient supplies.Morton, Louis. The Fall of the Philippines. 2016 update. Washington: Center of Military History, United States Army, 1953. MacArthur relentlessly lobbied Washington for reinforcements, hoping to go on the offensive. By 27 January, Wainwright's position on Bataan was insecure enough that he requested permission from MacArthur to shorten the front he had to defend.Beck, John Jacob. MacArthur and Wainwright: Sacrifice of the Philippines. University of New Mexico Press, 1974. His men were starving on less than half rations. They slaughtered carabao for meat, and eventually the cavalry had to eat their horses.

On 22 February, President Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to evacuate to Australia to serve as Allied Supreme Commander, South West Pacific Area. MacArthur split the command structure of the Philippines into four sections, leaving Wainwright in charge of Luzon. Uninformed of the change, the President assumed Wainwright was in charge of all the islands. On 19 March, Wainwright was promoted to lieutenant general. A much skinnier Wainwright transferred to Corregidor.

Major General Edward P. King was left in control on Bataan as the situation grew hopeless. Wainwright warned Washington that the troops would be starved into submission by 15 April. MacArthur insisted they attack the Japanese to break out of Bataan. On 8 April, Wainwright gave King a modified version of MacArthur's order, knowing it was an impossible task. The following day, King surrendered the 72,000 troops under his command, the largest American force ever defeated.Comello, Jerome J. Jonathan M. Wainwright: Planning and Executing the Defense of the Philippines. Temple University, 1999.

Japanese General Masaharu Homma was irate King's surrender did not include Corregidor. He spent the next month denuding Corregidor by bomb. Wainwright had no real ability to fight back when Homma's forces landed on 5 May.

Hoping to reduce the number of surrendered troops, Wainwright relinquished his command of all but the forces in Manila Bay. Major General William F. Sharp on Mindanao now commanded America's military presence in the Philippines.Schultz, Duane P. Hero of Bataan: The Story of General Jonathan M. Wainwright. United States, St Martin's Press, 1981. Wainwright surrendered at noon on 6 May.Hearn, Chester G. Marines. Zenith Press, 2007. 64. War Plan Orange estimated the positions on Bataan and Corregidor could be held for six months at most. Wainwright nearly managed to last that long.

Captivity

General Homma refused to accept Wainwright's surrender unless it included all of the forces in the Philippines. Having disarmed and fearing a slaughter on Corregidor, Wainwright agreed to order the surrender of all forces under American command. He was taken to Manila and forced to broadcast his order on the radio. Wainwright reclaimed his command and ordered American forces to surrender.

General Sharp consulted with MacArthur on how to proceed. MacArthur felt Wainwright had taken leave of his senses and urged Sharp to fight on. Wainwright sent an officer to Mindinao to make clear Japan would slaughter their prisoners unless Sharp surrendered. He agreed to surrender on 10 May. Many of Sharp's Filipino soldiers refused to surrender and joined the guerrilla movement led by Colonel Wendell Fertig.

Wainwright was initially held at the University Club in Manila. On 9 June, he was transferred to a converted Philippine Army barracks in Tarlac. He was held there until the following summer. When Americans landed on Guadalcanal, Japan decided to move their high-value prisoner north and transferred Wainwright to Karenkō on Formosa. Many other British, Dutch, and American officers were held there, including General Sharp. By the fall of 1942, Wainwright's treatment had devolved into starvation and abuse.

Wainwright's captivity was a national fixation. In 1942, Wainwright was nominated for the Medal of Honor. General MacArthur shocked his superiors by formally opposing the nomination for a variety of reasons, one of which was Wainwright's surrender. Wainwright agonized over his surrender while in prison, repeatedly re-evaluating the decision in his diary, where he also documented his plummeting weight.Murphy, Edward F. Heroes of WW II. Ballantine Books, 1990. 32ff. Time depicted him behind barbed wire on the cover of the 8 May 1944 issue.Time. 8 May 1944. (Cover).

Wainwright was transferred two more times on Formosa, and his treatment improved as the Japanese needed propaganda victories in the face of the Allies' island-hopping advances. When America's B-29s were in position to begin bombing Japan, Wainwright was finally moved to camps in Manchuria. He was imprisoned in brutal, freezing conditions at Xi'an until he was freed.

Freedom

On 19 August, Wainwright's captors informed the prisoners that the war was over. The first allies to reach him were two agents from the Office of Strategic Services, who secured his release. The Russian Red Army escorted him from a POW camp in Manchuria on 24 August 1945.Horn, Jonathan. The Fate of the Generals: MacArthur, Wainwright, and the Epic Battle for the Philippines. e-book. Scribner, 2025.