The Battle of Manila from 3 February to 3 March 1945, fought by American, Filipino and Japanese forces, was part of the Philippines' 1945 campaign. The one-month battle, which culminated in a terrible bloodbath and total devastation of the city, was the scene of the worst urban fighting in the Pacific theater, and ended almost three years of Japanese military occupation in the Philippines (1942–1945). The city's capture was marked as General Douglas MacArthur's key to victory in the campaign of reconquest. Released prisoners in makeshift shantytown built in courtyard of Santo Tomas University, formerly used as a Japanese internment camp until its liberation by Allied forces entering the city, Manila, Luzon, Philippines, February 05, 1945