Armada!

If you’re anything like me, you enjoy spending your Christmas Eve remembering massive military offensives of years’ past:

Japan’s massive offensive to conquer Southeast Asia began to unfold seventy-five years ago this week. In territorial extent, it is among the largest, most successful series of military operations ever conducted. The Japanese offensive managed to destroy the front line naval assets of two peer competitors, sinking seven capital ships without loss. It also managed to capture the greater portion of what is now ASEAN, the most economically dynamic region in the world. Although Japan would only hold the territory for four years, the offensive helped end formal colonialism in East Asia.