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Why was the surrender at Bataan one of the largest in U.S. military history?

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Bataan Death March Prisoners during the Bataan Death March, 1942.

The surrender at Bataan is considered one of the largest in U.S. military history because it involved approximately 76,000 Filipino and American troops, marking it as the largest army under American command ever to surrender.1

Following a 99-day defense of the Bataan Peninsula against Japanese forces, U.S. commander Gen. Edward King surrendered his troops on April 9, 1942, due to severe shortages of food, medicine, and support. This event was a significant military defeat, representing the first major land battle for the United States during World War II. The scale of the surrender overwhelmed Japanese logistical capabilities, contributing to the subsequent atrocities of the Bataan Death March, where thousands of prisoners were subjected to brutal treatment, starvation, and disease.1