Post on 29-May-2018
CHAPTER 9 WORLD WAR II: THE PACIFIC WAR
1941 - 1945
Japan ~ 1930s
Leading to war with United States
1931
• Invades Manchuria
1932
• Prime Minister assassinated
• FDR elected
1933
• Resigns from League of Nations
Japan ~ 1930s
Leading to war with United States
1936
• Finance, Education, Interior
Ministers assassinated
• FDR reelected
1937
• Renews war against China
• Proposes quarantine on
“aggressor” nations
• Sends aid to China
Japan ~ 1930s
Leading to war with United States
1939
• Enters 6 month undeclared war
with Russia over border of
Mongolia-Manchuria
• Soundly defeated with heavy
losses
60,000 troops
18,000 killed
20,000 wounded
Used:
“blitzkrieg” tactics
massive armor
air superiority
Japan ~ 1930s
Leading to war with United States
1939
• Abandons “Northern” expansion,
adopts “Southern” expansion plan
in Asia
• French, British, and Dutch are
under attack in Europe and unable
to protect colonial assets in
Southeast Asia
1940
Japan ~ 1940s
Leading to war with United States
1940
• Joins Tripartite pact with Germany
and Italy
• Seizes Northern French Indochina
with Vichy government permission
• Cancels trade agreements
• Embargoes high grade metals
• Orders Pacific Fleet to remain in
Hawaii indefinitely
Japan ~ 1940s
Leading to war with United States
• Invades Southern French Indochina
1941-July
• Freezes Japanese assets in US
• Denies Japan use of Panama Canal
• Embargoes scrap metal, aviation
fuel, and oil
1941-October
• Demands release of assets in US
• Demands Japanese forces leave
Indochina and China
Because of
Japanese expansion
into Indochina, and U.S. embargo
of oil to Japan,
Japan must find
another source.
The only supply:
The Dutch East
Indies.
Dutch East Indies
Japan
Indochina
May of 1940
• FDR ordered the
Pacific Fleet to
remain stationed
in Hawaii.
• This was intended
as a deterrent to
the Japanese
expansion into
Indochina. President
Roosevelt
General
Hideki Tojo
October 1941
• Japanese civilian
government fell
• Military government
in control
• Headed by Army
Chief, General Tojo
The American Magic*
A Japanese envoy arrives in the U.S.
for negotiations toward resuming the
flow of Western oil.
Unknown to the Japanese, U.S. Naval
intelligence had broken their high-level
naval and diplomatic code “purple.”
* American code name given to the
breaking of the Japanese code
Intelligence
Efforts
Magic
revealed a
Japanese
deadline of
late Nov. for
negotiations.
Washington knew something
ominous was going to happen.
Japanese Task Force Sighted
• Late November
• Headed for the Malay Peninsula
Unknown and undetected behind foul
weather, another Japanese Task Force,
comprised of six large carriers and
numerous escort ships, was headed
for Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Oahu, Hawaii
(Pearl Harbor)
The Japanese task force included the
carriers: Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu, Soryu,
Shokaku, and Zuikaku, along with
numerous escort ships and advance
submarines.
December 7, 1941
The Japanese First Air Fleet Strike Force
is in position 200 miles north of Oahu.
Pacific
Ocean
Oahu,
Hawaii
Forces at Pearl Harbor
• Aircraft lined up due to possible threat
of subversive activity
• 8 battleships anchored at Ford Island
(battleship row)
Battleship Row
Sunday Liberty
Lexington and Enterprise
(CV-2) (CV-6)
• Had left Pearl Harbor to deliver planes
to Midway and Wake Islands
0600 - Japanese carriers turned into
the wind and launched over 180
planes.
December 7, 1941
Nakajima B5N ‘Kate’ (Torpedo Plane)
Destination: Pearl Harbor
Mitsubishi A6M ‘Zero’ (Fighter)
Destination: Pearl Harbor
Aichi D3A “Val” (Dive Bomber)
Tora! Tora! Tora!
Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!
• Japanese codeword indicating flight
achieved complete surprise
• Most Sailors and airmen finishing
breakfast, relaxing, readying for church
• Pearl Harbor, Ewa, Hickam, and
Kaneohe Bay struck simultaneously
• Japanese had pre-designated targets
Kaneohe Bay
Ewa Hickam
Ford Island
The Attack
Battleship Row
Ford Island
The Attack
Battleship Row
Ford Island
The Attack
The USS Arizona (BB-39)
• 1 torpedo
• 8 bombs
• hit in ammunition storage (magazine)
• explodes, sinks within minutes.
1,177 Sailors killed
The Attack
Hickam Field
Boeing B-17 “Flying Fortress”
The Attack
Ford Island patrol plane hangers
The Attack
Vought SB2U-3 “Vindicator”
Marine Corps Air Station, Ewa
The Attack
Kaneohe Bay
December 8, 1941
December 7, 1941
• 2,400 American servicemen killed
• 1,200 wounded
• 19 ships sunk or damaged
• 230 planes destroyed on the ground
0753 - The attack begins.
0945 - The attack is over.
In less than 2 hours, with 2 waves of
Japanese aircraft:
PEARL HARBOR
MOVIE!
QUESTIONS 1-6
Oil storage
tank farm
For some reason, this storage facility
was not targeted. This farm would
provide critical material 6 months later
in the Battle of Midway.
Other Missed Targets
Additionally, important repair yards and machine
shops were practically untouched.
Had this not been the case, 14 out of 19 damaged or
sunk U.S. warships would not have been repaired
and returned to service.
After the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor, the
United States assessed the damages and
immediately began salvage operations.
H09-0290.wmv
11 December 1941
In accordance with the “Axis” Tripartite
Pact signed on September 27, 1940,
Germany and Italy joined Japan in
declaring war on the United States.
Three Serious
Japanese Miscalculations
1. They counted too heavily on their
submarines, little to no training
in the Japanese Submarine Fleet.
Three Serious
Japanese Miscalculations
1. They counted too heavily on their
submarines, little to no training
in the Japanese Submarine Fleet.
•! Midget submarines were
ineffective
•! Attack submarines could not cut
California ~ Hawaii shipping lanes
Three Serious
Japanese Miscalculations
1. They counted too heavily on their
submarines, little to no training
in the Japanese Submarine Fleet.
2. The attack had roused the
American people, the Japanese
thought the attack would establish
superiority.
Three Serious
Japanese Miscalculations
1. They counted too heavily on their submarines,
little to no training in the Japanese Submarine
Fleet.
2. The attack had roused the American people, the
Japanese thought the attack would establish
superiority.
Unlike the:
• 1894 Chinese~Japanese war over Korea
• 1904 Russian~Japanese war over
Manchuria and Port Arthur
Admiral
Yamamoto Commander in Chief
Of Japan’s Combined Fleet Comment After
Pearl Harbor
"I fear that all we
have done is
awaken a sleeping
giant, and fill
it with a desire for
vengeance."
Three Serious
Japanese Miscalculations
1. They counted too heavily on their
submarines, little to no training
in the Japanese Submarine Fleet.
2. The attack had roused the
American people, the Japanese
thought the attack would establish
superiority.
3. The attack forcibly altered the
mindset of senior U.S. naval
leadership.
After Pearl Harbor
Changed and built offense
around aircraft carriers
vice the battleship
centered strategy
Held the belief of a superior
battleship-centered strategy
World War II in the
Pacific would show
carriers to be the
most dominant
naval weapon
in history.
USS Essex (CV-9)
Japanese Master Plan Landings on:
• The Malay Peninsula
• Singapore
• Thailand
• Philippines
• Wake Island
• Guam
• Hong Kong
All of these would fall to the Japanese
by year-end.
Japanese Plan November 1941
Nimitz Takes Command
Commander in Chief
Pacific Fleet
31 December 1941
Aboard the
USS Grayling (SS-209)
QUESTIONS 7-13
Admiral
Nimitz's
Mission
1. Cover and hold the Hawaii-Midway line,
and maintain communications with the
U.S. West Coast.
2. Maintain communications between the
West Coast and Australia.
Hold the Line Against
Further Japanese Advances
• Sacrifice available forces to delay
• Gain new forces as available
• Immediate primary effort in Atlantic
Short and Long-Term Plans
USS Arizona (BB-39)
December 10, 1941
War Plan Orange
• Philippines and Guam acquired as a
result of Spanish-American war, 1898
• Initially developed by Army-Navy
Joint Board as a plan to protect the
Philippines, 1908
• Not a complete war plan
• More of a conceptual guideline
War Plan Orange
Gained importance as Japan:
• Expressed strong anger over anti-Oriental
laws passed in US, particularly in California
1898-1914
• Gained Pacific Island territories from Germany
at the close of WW I (Marshalls, Marianas,
Carolines) (Japan was a WW I ally) 1918
• Became increasingly militaristic
1920s and 1930s
War Plan Orange (WPO-3)
• Revised and updated by Naval War College,
Newport, R.I.
• 1941 version was WPO-3 last updated in
1938
• Based on the premise of Japanese attack
and early successes
• Response would be a Navy led war island-
hopping to recover Philippines and force
Japanese surrender
War Plan Orange (WPO-3)
(3 phases)
1 - U.S. expected Japan to overtake
lightly-defended American outposts.
War Plan Orange (WPO-3)
(3 phases)
1 - U.S. expected Japan to overtake
lightly-defended American outposts.
2 - U.S. would advance to the West,
procuring Japanese-held islands.
Fleets would battle and the U.S.
would be victorious.
War Plan Orange (WPO-3)
(3 phases)
1 - U.S. expected Japan to overtake
lightly-defended American outposts.
2 - U.S. would advance to the West,
procuring Japanese-held islands.
Fleets would battle and the U.S.
would be victorious.
3 - U.S. blockade of Japan and air
bombardment would establish peace.
Fleet Admiral
Chester Nimitz
• Ordered to hold the line
of defense across mid-
Pacific and sea lanes to
Australia
• Mission would be
defense and delay with
smaller forces
Fleet Admiral
Chester Nimitz
• In the next stage, knew
the U.S. would have to
go on the offensive
The Japanese land in the Philippines
shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Objectives:
Protect sea lanes and communications
to oil fields in the Dutch East Indies
Java - especially rich
in natural resources
Dutch East Indies Celebes
Sea
Java Sea
J a v a
INDONESIA
B o r n e o
Headquarters
American, British,
Dutch, and Australian
(ABDA) Defense Command
American, British,
Dutch, and Australian
(ABDA) Defense Command
• The Dutch felt that ABDA primary goal should be
the defense of Java
• Java was the primary objective of the Japanese
• The Dutch felt that ABDA primary goal should be
the defense of Java
• Java was the primary objective of the
American, British,
Dutch, and Australian
(ABDA) Defense Command
• Never very effective:
~ Small forces at its disposal
~ Disagreements over mission/tactics
~ No time to train together
~ Superior Japanese torpedoes
~ Superior Japanese night operations
(Battles in Java Straits at night)
Japanese
Advances
• Methodically moved through the Indies
setting up airfields for land-based
support at each location they conquered
ABDA Headquarters
Admiral
Chuichi Nagumo
• Raids Darwin
• Aids Timor invasion
• Isolates Java
Dutch Admiral
Karel Doorman
Battle of Java Sea
Feb 27-Mar 1 1942
• ABDA naval force
commander
• Made several
attempts to stop
Japanese advance
• Defeated in most
encounters
• Killed in battle
Battle of Java Sea and
Sunda Straits
Feb 27-Mar 1, 1942
• No ABDA air cover-new British carrier
(HMS Indomitable) ran aground in
Jamaica en route to Java
• Fought at night
• Japanese invasion force of capital
ships plus troop transports
ABDA Losses
Force size: 5 Cruisers (2 Heavy, 3 Light)
9 Destroyers
Feb 27~2 Cruisers, 3 destroyers~sunk
Feb 28~2 Cruisers~sunk
Mar 01~1 Cruiser, 2 destroyers~sunk
Survived- 4 old US Destroyers
Japanese Losses
Force size: 4 Cruisers (2 Heavy, 2 Light)
14 Destroyers + transports
Feb 27~1 destroyers moderately damaged
Feb 28~1 minesweeper, 1 transport~sunk
3 transports damaged
(mostly Japanese friendly fire)
Mar 01~None
Java invasion only delayed by 24 hours.
28 February 1942
Japanese Land on Java
By 9 March, the island is forced
into an unconditional surrender.
J A V A
Java Sea
Indian
Ocean
Dutch East Indies
• All in the hands of the Japanese
• An inexhaustible supply of fuel and
other resources in half of expected time
Borneo
Java
Java Sea
Indian
Ocean
General Douglas
MacArthur
• Retired 1937
• Appointed Field
Marshal of
Philippine Army
• Recalled 1941
• Disagreed with WPO-3
• At eminent loss
of Philippines,
ordered out by FDR
QUESTIONS 14-19
General Douglas
MacArthur
• From Corregidor,
with wife and son,
he escaped and
flew to Australia
• Took command of
the defenses there
• In response to a
press question,
he promised in a
famous quote,
“…I shall return.”
By May of 1942,
the last Filipino and
American defenders were
overrun on the Bataan
Peninsula and Corregidor.
Corregidor
Island
Bataan Peninsula
The "Bataan Death March"
Extreme malnutrition and disease from
months of siege; Japanese bad planning
along with deliberate and arbitrary cruelty
killed thousands of the almost 75,000
American and Filipino prisoners of war.
The "Bataan Death March"
Only 54,000 reached the camp: 7,000 -
10,000 died on the way and the rest
escaped into the jungle.
The prisoners were force marched 65
miles without food, water, and
adequate rest. Those that fell behind
were brutally slain: bayoneted, shot,
buried alive, or unable to move, driven
over by passing trucks and tanks.
Japanese Defense Perimeter
Truk
Pacific Ocean
On the South, the Japanese perimeter
included the Dutch East Indies
The Japanese Headquarters in the Marshall
Islands were at Truk. Japan turned Truk
into their Pearl Harbor
In the Indian Ocean the permimeter was
anchored by Rangoon, Burma
Japan developed Rabaul into a major
forward base for further expansion
southwestward.
Rabaul
Australia
New
Britain
New Guinea
The Japanese
Empire
The Japanese hoped their Navy and defensive bases
would be sufficient to keep Americans at bay.
Even before the wartime build up, Japan’s
industrial capability was 1/7th of the United
States’. Japanese strategy was for a short
war with definitive sea battles before U.S.
industrial strength could build.
Japan hoped to defeat Americans in an
early war of attrition so the American
people would become disheartened and
receptive to a negotiated peace. This
would let Japan keep her newly acquired
territory and resources.
Admiral
Chester Nimitz
Admiral Nimitz,
the U.S. Navy, and
the American
people had other
plans.
The American “Magic”
• American code name given to the Japanese
message intercepts
Unknown to the Japanese, U.S. naval
intelligence had broken their high-level naval
and diplomatic code. This was the key to
America’s offense in the Pacific.
Japanese plans were often known ahead of
time. American leaders took advantage of
this.
Two views of the machine called Purple
that the U.S. used to crack Japan's code
purple encrypted diplomatic messages.
Admiral Nimitz
• Best defenses in
early days of WP
Orange-3 are
hit-and-run carrier
raids
• Keep Japanese
concerned and
off balance
• Yamamoto - afraid
of a raid on Tokyo
Vice Admiral
William Halsey
(a.k.a. "Bull" Halsey)
• Attack widely
separated
Japanese bases
• Have them think
forces are larger
than actual
• Cause the most
anxiety
USS Hornet (CV-12)
April, 1942
Halsey’s carrier task
force sails into
Japanese home
waters.
B-25 Mitchell bombers take
off from the deck with only
450 feet of 'runway.'
Doolittle’s Raid
B-25 Mitchell Bombers
aboard USS Hornet (CV-12)
LTCOL
James Doolittle
• First to takeoff
• Led the attack on
Tokyo, Yokohama;
and Yokosuka
• Aircraft lost over
Japan: 0
Doolittle’s Raid
April 18, 1942
• Daring one-way mission
• Planned landings in China
• Radio signals detected from Japanese
fishing boats
• Departed 170 miles early to protect
ships
Doolittle’s Raid
April 18, 1942
• Japanese holding practice air raid
• Real air raid unthinkable
• All planes lost (ran out of gas)
• Most crews survived, 8 captured,
3 executed
This raid electrified the world and gave
America's war hopes a terrific lift.
QUESTIONS 20-25
H09-0825.wmv!
Q. What carrier did LtCol Doolittle’s
B-25s takeoff from to bomb
Japan?
Q. What carrier did LtCol Doolittle’s
B-25s takeoff from to bomb
Japan?
A. The USS Hornet (CV-12)
Admiral
Yamamoto
Japanese military
humiliated ~ lost
face
Yamamoto’s plans
to attack Midway
were now revived,
in addition to the
planned Coral Sea
and Solomon
Island operations.
“Magic”
and
“Purple”
Thanks to the American code-breaking
efforts, Admiral Nimitz was aware of
these Japanese intentions.
He planned his actions very carefully.
Battle of the Coral Sea
8 May 1942
The Battle of the Coral Sea took place
completely in and from the air.
Dive bombers and torpedo planes
dropped their weapons on enemy ships
while defensive planes and support ships
fired on the enemy.
It was the first Naval battle in which no
ship on either side ever sighted the other.
New
Guinea
Australia
Pacific
Ocean
Port
Moresby
Coral
Sea
Battle of the
Coral Sea
Japanese
Advantages
• Combat-experienced pilots
• Better torpedoes
• A storm front that partly concealed
their movements
Battle of the
Coral Sea
American
Advantages
• “Magic” in knowing the enemy’s
intentions
Battle of the Coral Sea
The light carrier Shoho is sunk.
The Japanese carrier Shokaku was
severely damaged. The Japanese
carrier Zuikaku’ s air group was
depleted.
USS Lexington (CV-2)
USS Yorktown (CV-5)
Both U.S. carriers are hit.
USS Lexington (CV-2)
• Struck by two torpedoes
• Had to be abandoned
• Later sunk by USS Phelps (DD-360)
Battle of the Coral Sea Losses
66 planes
543 men
1 carrier
1 destroyer
1 tanker
144 planes
5,100 men
1 carrier
2 destroyers
1 cruiser
3 cargo ships
various small craft
Sinking of the
Japanese carrier Shoho
With carriers Shoho sunk,
Shokaku damaged and
Zuikaku’s loss of so many
pilots, the Japanese are
weakened.
The Battle of Midway is next.
Battle of the Coral Sea
While a tactical victory for the Japanese,
Coral Sea is a strategic victory for U.S.
• The invasion of Port Moresby is
cancelled
• The end of all Japanese expansion
southward
• No more threats against Australia and
New Zealand
H09-0965.wmv!
1305 miles
Pacific Ocean
Pearl
Harbor
Midway Island
The Battle of Midway • Japan's immense numerical superiority
• A curious Yamamoto battle plan that
spread the huge Combined Fleet into
10 groups across the Pacific (4 groups
near Midway)
Combined Fleet
~ 11 battleships
~ 8 carriers
~ 23 cruisers
~ 65 destroyers
The Battle of
Midway
Admiral Nimitz
• A small force of:
~ 3 carriers
~ 8 cruisers
~ 14 destroyers
Once again, the key to the impending
action at Midway would be intelligence.
“Magic”
Code breakers were monitoring increasing
messages about an upcoming attack on
“AF” but did not know where “AF” was.
Naval intelligence directed Midway to
radio a fake message about a water shortage.
When Japanese messages appeared
reporting that “AF” was short of water,
Naval intelligence confirmed it was Midway.
Japanese
Diversionary Attack
(3 June 1942) During World War II the Japanese occupied
American Territory in the Aleutian Islands
Pacific Ocean
Midway
Honolulu
Dutch
Harbor
Alaska
Scout Plane
Typically, a long-range plane used
for reconnaissance activities
The PBY shown here was successfully
used for this purpose during WW II in
the Pacific.
Admiral Frank
Jack Fletcher
• Moves two task
forces (16 & 17)
to within 200 miles
northeast of Midway
• Waits; ready for
action
Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher Task Force 17
USS Yorktown (CV-5)
In a remarkable effort, Pearl Harbor repairs the
Yorktown from the Coral Sea damages in May. It
departs with TF-17.
RADM Spruance relieved an ill ADM Halsey
upon return from the Doolittle raid.
Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance
Task Force 16
USS Enterprise (CV-6)~USS Hornet (CV-8)
Battle of Midway
4 June 1942
Admiral Nagumo launches 108
planes for the attack on Midway.
Rear Admiral
Raymond Spruance
• Fletcher’s patrols
find Japanese fleet
• Yorktown will
recover search
planes
• Spruance will
attack using
Enterprise
Japanese Zero
All available (and outdated) U.S. aircraft
from Midway attacked.
However, the American planes were no
match for the maneuverable Zero fighters,
and most were shot down.
Round #1: The Japanese
The Japanese carriers were repeatedly
attacked but U.S. aircraft scored no hits,
and most were shot down.
A U.S. submarine fired its torpedoes, all of
which missed.
Another attack was scheduled to destroy
Midway's airfields. (Bombs were loaded
on Japanese planes for the second attack
- a key factor.)
Admiral
Chuichi Nagumo
• Learns of U.S.
carrier presence
and changes course
• Orders bombs be
replaced by
torpedoes to attack
U.S. carriers
• Bombs remain
on carriers’ decks
(critical)
• First attack wave
returns
• Orders recovery
before second
wave is launched
Admiral
Chuichi Nagumo
U.S. Carrier Torpedo Planes
Three waves of low and slow U.S. planes
attack Nagumo's carriers.
• All shot down • No hits
• Drew Japanese air protection down
Round #2: The Japanese
Admiral Nagumo has now repelled
8 attacks in 3 hours from U.S.
forces without a scratch.
Ready to launch his counterattack,
he turns the carriers into the wind.
Nagumo’s luck has run out. As the
carriers are turning into the wind,
another wave of planes from Enterprise
and Yorktown arrive on a high-altitude
dive-bombing attack.
The dive-bombers
meet almost no
resistance, the air
cover is low,
protecting from the
earlier torpedo plane
attack.
• Planes on deck
• Bombs on deck
• Refueling in process
Within minutes, 3 of Nogumo’s 4 carriers
(Soryo, Kaga, Akagi) are flaming torches.
Further North, the only Japanese
carrier not yet damaged.
The Hiryu's dive bombers follow
Yorktown's planes back and attack.
Hiryu
USS Yorktown (CV-5)
The just repaired (emergency repairs)
Yorktown takes three hits from Hiryu’s
dive bombers and is dead in the water.
USS Yorktown (CV-5)
Further attacks from torpedo planes put
the Yorktown at a severe list to port.
ADM Fletcher transfers flag and turns
tactical command to RADM Spruance.
USS Yorktown (CV-5)
Too damaged to continue the battle,
the order is given to abandoned ship.
The Hiryu
Meanwhile, the Yorktown's planes,
still in the air, locate and report
position and course of the Hiryu.
The Hiryu
Shortly, a wave of dive bombers
from the Lexington score four
direct hits and set her on fire.
Admiral
Isoroku
Yamamoto
With no carriers
left to provide air
cover for warships
or landing forces,
Yamamoto:
• Cancels Midway
operations
• Orders his entire
force to retreat to
the west
Cruisers
Mogami
and
Mikuma
• Japanese force
now under U.S.
submarine attack
• Evading torpedoes,
2 cruisers collide
Spruance forces locate
and sink the Mikuma.
Midway Final Action
Abandoned and being towed, a
Japanese submarine sank the
Yorktown and an escorting destroyer.
Round #3: USA - Knockout Punch
• 4 Japanese carriers lost
• 1 cruiser lost
• Many experienced Japanese pilots lost
which led to the primary cause of
Japan’s defeat
• New Japanese pilots suffer against
increasing number of well-trained
U.S. pilots
H09-1255.wmv
Battle of Midway
Turning Point of the Pacific War
Major Japanese defeat at Midway
Limited Japanese success in Aleutians
• Only diversionary forces successful
• Occupied Kiska and Attu Islands
• Never able to launch another major
offensive
QUESTIONS 26-30
After the Battles of Coral Sea and Midway,
Admiral Nimitz and General MacArthur
thought an Allied counteroffensive was in
order while the Japanese were off balance.
The Japanese thought they needed to
extend and reinforce their land bases for
air cover.
Guadalcanal
This brought the plans of both forces to
Guadalcanal, east of Australia and the
Coral Sea.
The Solomon Islands became the
objective of both the U.S. and Japan.
Pacific
Ocean
Coral
Sea
Guadalcanal Objectives
Launch an operation to protect
New Guinea, and establish a
forward base to attack the
Japanese base at Rabaul.
Build an airfield so their aircraft
could cover their flank as they
completed the conquest of New
Guinea.
Airstrip Discovered
• U.S. scout plane discovers Japanese are
constructing an airstrip
• Becomes the focal point for a series of
naval battles
• A prolonged struggle between U.S.
Marines and Japanese troops for next 6
months
• Marines land Aug 7 on Guadalcanal and
Tulagi
Name given for the many ships sunk
there during the Battle for Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Ironbottom
Sound
With heavy fighter losses and the need
to refuel, U.S. carriers Saratoga, Wasp,
and Enterprise retired.
Guadalcanal
The Allies didn't know a major Japanese
naval force of cruisers was heading for the
amphibious ships.
They were coming from Rabaul, the major
Japanese base in the Pacific, on the
northern tip of New Guinea, down “The
Slot,” the passage between the major
Solomon Islands.
Solomon Islands
Tugali
Bouganville Pacific
Ocean
Coral
Sea
Guadalcanal
Vice Admiral
Gunichi Mikawa
Savo Island
• Worst defeat in
U.S. Naval History
• 4 Cruisers sunk:
USS Astoria
USS Vincennes
USS Quincy
HMAS Canberra
• 1 Cruiser and
2 Destroyers hit
• 1,000 Allied sailors
killed
Allied naval forces had to withdraw,
leaving 16,000 U.S. Marines without
support and supplies.
Henderson Field
The airfield was
captured and
renamed.
Defense perimeter
was set up.
The Seabees turned
to and developed
Henderson Field.
First planes arrived,
bringing in supplies.
The "Tokyo Express"
Term used for the steady stream of fast
Japanese transports and destroyers
bringing troops to Guadalcanal to
recapture Henderson Field
QUESTIONS 31-36
By early September, Japanese subs
stationed near Guadalcanal sank the
USS Wasp (CV-7), damaged the USS
Saratoga (CV-3), and torpedoed the
USS North Carolina (BB-55).
Japanese Troops
• Experienced
terrible casualties
• Continued heavy
reinforcements
• By the middle
of October had
22,000 troops on
the island
Battle of Santa Cruz Islands
24 October 1942
Guadalcanal:
Marines held on
to Henderson Field
Pacific
Ocean
Admiral Halsey gambled his carriers and lost.
USS Hornet (CV-8)
~Sunk
The U.S. had lost all of its operational
carriers in the Pacific.
The Japanese had 2 more carriers
damaged and lost 100 planes and pilots.
USS Enterprise (CV-6)
~Heavily Damaged
Naval Battle for Guadalcanal
12-14 November 1942
• 11,000 Japanese troops
• 11 transports
• 2 battleships
• Many cruisers and destroyers
• All coming down "The Slot" - at night
American losses were heavy as well, one
cruiser and seven destroyers sunk, but
Guadalcanal and Henderson Field held.
The Japanese gave up efforts to reinforce
and the remaining naval battles occurred
while trying to supply or withdraw ground
forces.
Two close range night battles cost the
Japanese two battleships, three destroyers
and thousands of ground reinforcements
aboard transports.
USS Juneau (CL-52)
Meanwhile, five brothers, Joseph,
Francis, Albert, Madison, and George,
had enlisted in the U.S. Navy.
These were the Sullivan brothers and all
were serving aboard the light cruiser
Juneau.
The Sullivans
Joseph
Francis
Albert Madison
George
All were killed in the naval battle of
Guadalcanal when the USS Juneau was
hit and sunk by enemy torpedoes.
USS The Sullivans (DD-537)
(Destroyer - 1943)
The only U.S. Navy ship
named after more than
one person
USS The Sullivans (DDG-68)
(Guided Missile Destroyer - 1995)
Battle of Tassaforonga
30 November 1942
"Long-lance" torpedoes – an
oxygen-powered weapon that could deliver
a 1,000 pound warhead at 49 knots over 11
miles (very long range)
Admiral
Raizo Tanaka
Despite vastly superior
forces, the U.S. lost 1
cruiser with 3 more
badly damaged by 8
Japanese transport
destroyers using:
However, the Japanese could not win a
war of ship attrition and U.S. destroyers
and PT boats were inflicting heavy
losses on Japanese troop reinforcements
and transports.
To the Marines’
satisfaction, “The
Tokyo Express”
was slowing down.
The Marines continued their assault,
pushing the Japanese troops back.
9 February 1943
The first U.S. offensive was secured.
12,000 Japanese troops fled the island
Coral
Sea
Pacific
Ocean
Guadalcanal
It would mainly be up to U.S.
forces, and when possible,
Australian and New Zealand
Army Corps (ANZAC)
forces, to prosecute
the war against Japan.
Australia
Guadalcanal
Japan
Casablanca Conference
January 1943
The Allies’ Plan of Attack
“CASABLANCA CONFERENCE”
• Eliminate Japanese outposts in the
Aleutian Islands.
• Intensify submarine attacks.
• Isolate Rabaul, with MacArthur’s
forces assisted by the South Pacific
naval forces.
Allied
Two-Pronged
Attack Chiang Kai-shek
????
MacArthur
Nimitz
General
Chiang Kai-shek
The Allies had hoped
that his forces could
fight their way
through
Burma to the Chinese
coast.
But the Chinese army
was poorly equipped
and badly organized.
Japan’s resistance
was too great.
By recapturing Attu and Kiska, the
Aleutians returned to American control.
Ground forces redeployed to the central
Pacific.
Asia Alaska
Attu
Kiska
Pacific
Ocean
Submarine Warfare
A mirror image of the Atlantic
German goal: to interdict
Allied shipping
U.S. goal: to interdict
Japanese shipping
Atlantic -
Pacific -
Pacific geography made interdiction of
narrow shipping lanes easier.
Philippine
Sea
PHILIPPINES
JAVA
BORNEO INDONESIA
Bigger Subs - Mass Produced
• Almost twice the size of the German U-boat.
• Developed to carry more fuel and torpedoes
for long-distance patrols in a much larger
ocean.
Japanese Submarines
• Little emphasis placed on their
submarine fleet
• Mainly targeted warships
• Underestimated submarine potential
Japan's Convoy Techniques
• Not effective due to lack of escort ships
• Never developed radar
Because of this ...
..., by mid-1943, Japanese merchant
shipping losses to submarine attacks
were very heavy.
The Japanese
could not obtain
needed supplies
from occupied
territories to
support their
war industry or
military forces.
U.S. Submarines
in the Pacific
• Sank over 1,100 merchant ships
(over 5 million tons)
• Sank some 200 naval ships
• Critical point in winning the war in
the Pacific
Results of the
Casablanca Conference
The push will be
on toward Rabaul.
Rabaul
Admiral
Isoroku
Yamamoto
• Realizes the
importance of
Melanesian and
Australasian
approaches to
Rabaul
• Reinforces his
airfields with
carrier wings
• Launches major
raids on Iron-
bottom Sound
• Inflicts heavy losses on U.S. ships
• Greater losses for Japanese carrier
air wings
Admiral
Isoroku Yamamoto
• Plans a morale-
boosting visit to
Japanese bases in
the Solomons
• Message broken,
again, by Magic
• Exact itinerary
forwarded to
Admiral Nimitz
Admiral
Chester W. Nimitz
Yamamoto was
Nimitz’s ablest
adversary and
planned the attack
on Pearl Harbor.
Nimitz directed
Halsey, commander
of the Central
Solomons area, to
take over the
planning of an
ambush.
Army P-38 Lightning fighters from
Henderson Field got the assignment
because of their long range.
Japanese
G4M - "Betty" Bomber
Sixteen P-38s intercepted and shot down
Yamamoto’s plane over Bougainville
Island (northwest of Guadalcanal).
Admiral Yamamoto was killed - a major
blow to Japanese war planning.
The U.S. Fleet conducted many battles
and invasions in the Solomons and
surrounding areas over the next year.
Because Japan could not concentrate
on all fronts at the same time, the Allies
were able to steadily continue toward
the Philippines.
Bypassing Rabaul
• 125,000 Japanese troops surrounded
• No hope of relief or escape
• No need for Allies to capture Rabaul
and incur casualties
The Allied forces continued westward
along the northern New Guinea coast,
then northward toward the Philippines.
A Developing Plan
• Avoid frontal attacks if possible
• Not capture every island
• Advance in greater leaps limited by
available air cover/support
• Bypass and isolate enemy strong-holds,
strangling the supply line
The Allies would:
MacArthur's forces ran westward,
leapfrogging along the northern
New Guinea coast.
Units of Fifth Fleet’s Task Force 58
assisted the amphibious landings.
New
Guinea
Pacific
Ocean
When MacArthur’s forces threaten Biak,
Japan decided to stop this advance.
• Two Japanese invasion attempts
cancelled
• A third attempt planned
Biak
Wakde
MacArthur’s Forces
New Guinea
Admiral
Thomas Kinkaid
• Commander of
Seventh Fleet
11 June 1944
U.S. Fifth Fleet attacked the Marianas,
preparing for an invasion of Saipan.
This operation disrupted the Japanese
Biak attack planning.
Biak
Vice Admiral
Jisaburo Ozawa
• Admiral Toyoda orders
him to suspend Biak
operations and join the
Mobile Fleet east of the
Philippines
• MacArthur now wraps
up New Guinea without
major enemy opposition
• New Guinea operation
is complete by the end
of July
June 1944 - Saipan
• Arguably, the greatest military effort in history
~ Same time as D-day in Normandy
~ A huge force being sent over longer
distances to the Central Pacific
~ 127,000 troops
~ 535 ships
~ 3,000 miles from Pearl Harbor
~ Fast carrier task force support
Army and Task Force 58 carrier
planes hit bases in the Marianas
and Caroline Islands.
C a r o l i n e I s l a n d s
Saipan
Guam
Mariana
Islands
Two days of Naval Bombardment by
U.S. Battleships
USS New Jersey
(BB-62)
Two Marine
divisions hit the
beaches on Saipan.
Heavy Marine Casualties
Saipan
The main airfield was
captured, and the
enemy was being
pushed back.
Admiral Mitscher
placed his forces
between Saipan and
the approaching
Japanese Combined
Fleet.
Admiral
Marc A. Mitscher
Task Force 58
Commander
Mitscher's
Primary Orders
“Capture, occupy,
and defend Saipan,
Tinian, and Guam.”
Admiral Ozawa's scout
planes discovered Task
Force 58 on 18 June.
History records that he
had a total of 32 scout
planes in the air!
Vice Admiral
Jisaburo Ozawa
Ozawa's Forces
6 carriers
surrounded by
cruisers and
destroyers
Vice Admiral
Takeo Kurita
• 100 miles ahead of
Ozawa commanding
main Japanese
surface forces of
battleships and
cruisers in addition
to 3 carriers
Japanese Mobile Force
The Japanese Mobile Force is the combined
forces of Admirals Ozawa and Kurita.
Admiral
Ozawa
Admiral
Kurita
Battle of the Philippine Sea
The stage was set.
Carriers
Battleships
Cruisers
Destroyers
Aircraft
9
5
13
28
430
15
7
21
69
891
As he moved to close with
Task Force 58:
• Counted on support from
the Marianas
He was unaware:
• Only 30 operational
planes there
• Many carrier pilots sick
with malaria from earlier
Biak combined air missions
Vice Admiral
Jisaburo Ozawa
Grumman
F6F Hellcat
Admirals Mitscher and Spruance put
more than 450 planes in the air. New
combat information centers guided the
planes to best advantage.
The American pilots were trained,
experienced, and ready for battle.
"Marianas
Turkey Shoot"
During 8 hours of
furious air warfare,
American pilots
downed 330 aircraft.
H09-2045.wmv!
American submarines Albacore and Cavalla
torpedoed carriers Taiho and Shokaku.
Both exploded hours later.
Admiral Ozawa survived and transferred to
the carrier Zuikaku.
Intending to return the
next day,
• Ordered retirement to
refuel the fleet
• Had only 100 planes left
• Believed erroneous
reports from returning
pilots that TF-58 had
been crippled
Vice Admiral
Jisaburo Ozawa
Admiral
Mitscher
Taking a calculated
risk, he launched 200
planes late in the
afternoon close to
maximum operating
range.
Calculated Risk
A chance of failure, weighted against
the value of success, the probability
of which is estimated before some
action is undertaken
Admiral
Mitscher
The targets are actually
60 miles farther than
anticipated. He had the
aircraft continue and
steamed to close the
gap.
U.S. flyers
find the
Japanese
Fleet and sink
2 oilers and a
carrier.
Two other carriers, a battleship, and a
cruiser are damaged.
Only 10 out of 75 launched Japanese
planes survive.
Japanese naval air capability
is destroyed.
The Marianas invasion is able to
continue with minor opposition.
A Risky Maneuver
Admiral Mitscher turned on carrier lights
at night to guide pilots back to the ship.
Out of a total of 209 aviators, 160 were
recovered.
TF-58 could now provide full assistance
(bombardment) to invading U.S. troops
on Saipan, Tinian, and Guam.
This greatly reduced casualties.
Both Saipan and
Tinian were secured
by the end of July.
Organized
resistance
ceased on Guam by
10 August.
Guam
Tinian
Saipan
New U.S.
Acquisitions
• Logistic bases
• Forward submarine bases
• Air bases for B-29s to
reach cities in Japan
H09-2135.wmv
Premier
Hideki Tojo
The Beginning
of the End
He knew Japan would
have to surrender.
The new cabinet could
not/would not initiate
steps to end the war
for yet another year.
Planning the
Return to the Philippines (WPO-3)
Return to Pearl Harbor to rest
and plan future operations
Admiral
Spruance Admiral
Turner
Gen. “Howling
Mad” Smith
Fleet
Reorganized and
Redesignated
OLD NEW
Fifth Fleet
Fast Carrier
Task Force
U.S. Third Fleet
(ADM Halsey)
TF-38
(VADM Mitscher)
Military Principles
• Maneuver
• Economy of force
• Surprise
• Massing of force
Nimitz's forces had
advanced 4,500
miles from Hawaii to
the Palau Islands.
MacArthur's forces had
moved 1,500 miles to
Morotai, some 300 miles
south of Nimitz's group.
Morotai - one of
the easiest Allied
conquests of the war
Philippines
Palau Islands
Admiral Halsey joins TF-38 in his flag-ship,
the USS New Jersey, and orders air strikes
on the central Philippines.
The results were outstanding!
TF-38 Air Strikes
• 200 enemy airplanes destroyed
• 12 freighters sunk
• 1 tanker sunk
Halsey is convinced the Philippines
are weakly defended.
Halsey recommends to Nimitz:
Bypass Palau Islands and Yap.
Turn ground forces over to MacArthur
for a Leyte Island invasion.
Next Objectives Decided
The central Philippines’ weak defenses lead the
Allies to choose the Philippines over Formosa
(now Taiwan).
Leyte Island would be first, followed by Luzon.
After Peleliu, Nimitz and MacArthur joined
forces on 20 October 1944 for the Philippine
invasion.
Nimitz invaded Iwo Jima and Okinawa early the
following year.
Operation Stalemate
Invasion of Peleliu
These ships conducted the preassault
"softening up" of Peleliu.
Three large carriers and five light carriers
Battleships Hvy Cruisers Lt Cruisers
Pennsylvania
Mississippi
Tennessee
Maryland
Idaho
Minneapolis
Indianapolis
Columbus
Louisville
Portland
Cleveland
Denver
Honolulu
Marine casualty
rate was the
highest of any
amphibious assault
in history. (40%)
The "softening up“
Bombardment
worked somewhat,
but ...
New Japanese
Strategy
• "Defense in depth"
• Fighting the enemy
from fortifications
not "on" the beach
but from behind
the beach
• No useless banzai
charges
Peleliu
September 1944 The Marines quickly secure the beachhead
and capture the airfield.
Marines
Advance
Japanese interior defenses hinder the
Marine attack; advancement is slow
and costly.
February 1945
The island is
secure, but at
a terrible loss.
The Marines suffer 10,000 casualties,
including nearly 2,000 dead.
Airfields and Anchorages
Had the Americans not secured the
Palaus, they would have been a threat
to the Leyte invasion and subsequent
operations in Luzon.
QUESTIONS 37-42
Prior to the invasion of Leyte, elements of
the Third Fleet heavily bombard Okinawa
and Formosa to take out land-based
Japanese air support.
Formosa
(Taiwan)
Okinawa
Over 350 Japanese land-based aircraft are
destroyed ensuring U.S. air superiority over
Leyte beaches.
October 11-15, 1944
20 October 1944
D-day
More than 60,000 troops land on
Leyte’s beaches in one day.
From then on, the island’s interior
fighting is tougher.
Leyte
20 October 1944
D-day
Accompanied by President Osmena,
MacArthur wades ashore and urges the
Philippine people, in a radio address, to rise
and strike the Japanese. “I have returned.”
By late December, 1944 most
areas needed for air and
logistical bases are secure.
In the mountainous
areas though, organized
Japanese resistance
continues into spring, 1945.
Only slightly behind schedule,
Sixth Army moves on to
Luzon while some troops
continue fighting on Leyte.
Leyte
Invasion of Luzon
9 January 1945
Four Army divisions
land on the shores of
Lingayen Gulf.
Japanese naval forces
are unable to intervene.
Invasion of Luzon
The most significant defense the
Japanese can muster are Kamikaze
attacks against Admiral Kinkaid's
supporting naval force and Admiral
Mitscher’s carrier force (TF-58).
It took a month of bitter building-to-building
fighting to dislodge Japanese troops.
Manila - 3 February 1945
• Mid-March
• Open for shipping
• After immense salvage
and repair
Manila
Bay
Similar to the
mountainous
resistance on Leyte,
Luzon has
strong pockets of
resistance in the
mountains.
With that exception,
Luzon resistance
ends by late June
1945.
The Battles for
Leyte Gulf
23-26 October 1944
Just days after
MacArthur and
Osmena waded
ashore on D-Day,
came the greatest
Japanese challenge
to the invasion.
Leyte
Gulf
Admiral
Soemu Toyoda
Things He Knew
• Lose Philippines, lose
everything
• No access to Dutch
East Indies resource
(reason war started)
• No fuel or ammo
• Blockade of Japan
possible
• Outnumbered but
last chance
The Japanese Fleet’s primary objective
was to destroy the Amphibious Task
Force.
Admiral Toyoda directed nearly every
Japanese warship still afloat to attack the
enemy at Leyte.
Battle of the Sibuyan Sea
Battle of Surigao Strait
Battle off Cape Engaño
Battle off Samar
The largest and most
complex naval battles in
history ending with most
of Japan’s carriers and
surface forces eliminated.
Major Battles
A new Japanese weapon
appears in the final
assaults on the
Philippines in early 1945.
the "kamikaze"
suicide plane.
Panay
Mindanao
"Kamikaze"
Suicide Plane
• Means divine wind
• Refers to a typhoon
that saved Japan
from an invading
Mongol fleet in 1281
U.S. naval forces suffer increasing
damage and sinkings from these until
the Philippines are secure.
"Kamikaze"
But the worst of this type of
attack was yet to come.
The conquest of the Marianas provided
bases for the large B-29 bombers to
make devastating air raids on Japan's
industrial cities.
QUESTIONS 43-48
Iwo Jima
• A volcanic island between the
Marianas and Japan
• Controlled by the Japanese
As long as Japan held this island, the
home islands' defenses were alerted
when bombers were en route.
Japanese fighters would scramble to
intercept the B-29s.
B-29 "Superfortress"
• 3,000 miles roundtrip
• Too far for fighters to accompany
and defend the bombers
The airfields at
Iwo Jima could
be used as an
emergency landing
base for the B-29s
and as a fighter base
for escort planes.
Tokyo
Iwo Jima
Saipan B-29 Base
The Japanese
knew the value
of Iwo Jima and
expected an
assault.
• Increased garrison to 23,000 troops
• Transformed Iwo Jima into the
strongest fortress in the Pacific
Iwo Jima
• An 8-square mile island of lava cut into
hills and ravines, overlooked by 550-
foot Mount Suribachi, an extinct volcano
Iwo Jima
Japanese
Fortifications
(pillboxes)
• Many interconnecting passageways
between 400 concealed pillboxes and
concrete blockhouses
Invasion
Force
Arrives
• Only 3 days of bombardment instead
of the 10 Marines requested
• Would prove to be grossly inadequate
Iwo Jima
D-day
19 Feb 1945
• 500 landing craft
• 8 battalions of Marines
• Hundreds of planes from TF-58
• Use of rockets, machine guns, general
purpose and napalm bombs
Assault
Waves
As troops approach the beach, gunfire
support provides barrage of fire ahead
and on the flanks of advancing Marines.
Assault waves
quickly pile up
on the beach.
Amphibious tractors are unable to climb
the crumbling volcanic ash.
Landing craft broach (turn sideways) or
run into earlier boat waves.
Marines
On the
Beach
• Hit by withering machine gun, mortar,
and heavy gunfire that waited until
targets were packed together.
Mount Suribachi was isolated, but
at a high cost. Of 30,000 Marines
who hit the beach the first day,
2,400 were casualties.
Assault on Mount Suribachi
• 3 days of attacking pillboxes with
grenades, flamethrowers, rockets,
and demolition charges
H09-2665.wmv
Mount Suribachi
is surrounded
by U.S. Marines.
IWO JIMA
The second
American flag
is raised.
The photo
immortalized
the moment
and has
inspired the
American
people.
H09-2685.wmv
QUESTIONS 49-50
USS Saratoga (CV-3)
• Badly damaged by kamikaze attacks
The USS Bismarck
Sea (CVE-95) sank
after her stern
blew off.
Iwo Jima
It took over a month instead of 5 days.
Only 200 Japanese were captured. All
the rest (nearly 22,000) were killed.
Over 19,000 Marines and Sailors were
wounded. Almost 7,000 were killed.
First time assault force casualties
exceeded Japanese defender’s
casualties.
Iwo Jima
Historians have described U.S. forces‘
attack against the Japanese defense
as "throwing human flesh against
reinforced concrete."
There were no front lines. The Marines
were above ground and the Japanese
underground.
The Marines rarely saw a live Japanese
soldier but they could see the Marines.
"Among the
Americans serving
on Iwo island,
uncommon valor was
a common virtue."
Admiral
Chester Nimitz
The Battle of Okinawa
The war was closing in on Japan.
U.S. carrier aircraft began striking cities
in Japan.
The Battle of Okinawa
TF-58 supports 200 B-29s in a massive
raid on Tokyo.
• 150 Japanese aircraft destroyed
Weeks of heavy raids and softening-up
attacks on Japanese bases on Kyushu
and Okinawa preceeded the assault
landings on Okinawa.
The Battle of Okinawa
Korea JAPAN Tokyo
Okinawa
Assault Landings on Okinawa
• 1,300 ships
• 182,000 assault troops
Japanese troops are
well-entrenched and
prepared.
Last-ditch Effort
The Japanese troops on Okinawa know
they are the last obstacle to an Allied
invasion of their home islands.
Many pledge to fight to the death to
prevent the island from falling and their
homeland being invaded.
Kamikaze Attacks
All elements of the invasion fleet
were subject to these fierce attacks.
Fighting the Kamikaze Attacks
The Japanese began their last major
counterattack of the war.
Over 350 Japanese kamikazes came
to strike U.S. forces.
H09-2855.wmv
Japanese Battleship Yamato
Last Surviving Japanese
Surface Force
• Battleship Yamato
• Light cruiser Yahagi
• 8 destroyers
• 2,500 tons of
Japanese fuel
oil (last of it)
Last Surviving Japanese
Surface Force
• A one-way trip for ships and planes
• Not enough fuel to return to Japan
Mission
Drive through the invasion fleet.
Cause as much damage as possible.
Beach themselves at the invasion site.
Fire until all ammunition was expended
or until they were destroyed.
Combat air patrols from TF-58 shoot down
150 kamikazes.
Two hundred make it to Okinawa.
Most of these are shot down by U.S. fighters
or antiaircraft fire.
Admiral
Marc A. Mitscher
Once the Yamato
force is in the best
position and cannot
retreat, Admiral
Mitscher unleashes
the full force of his
carrier planes.
Only two Japanese
destroyers survive
and make it back to
base.
Over the next 3 months of the Okinawa
operation, hundreds of kamikazes
attack the U.S. Fifth and Third Fleets.
Lt. General
Mitsuru Ushijima
He and his chief of
staff acknowledge
defeat on Okinawa
by committing
suicide.
U.S. Navy
Losses on
Okinawa
• 68 warships
• Over 4,000 Sailors
• More than either the Marines or the Army
The end of organized fighting for the
Japanese.
Japanese
Losses on
Okinawa
• 100,000 troops
• 7,000 airplanes
Emperor
Hirohito
• Told his Supreme
War Council that
they must find a
way to end the war
• Japanese cities in
ashes due to fire-
bombing raids
• No navy or air force
left
Fire-bomb
• An explosive device having
incendiary effects
• To attack with a fire-bomb or
fire-bombs
• Napalm, gasoline, kerosene,
flame-thrower
Soviet Intentions
In April, the Soviet Union had informed
the Japanese that they would not renew
their Neutrality Pact. Since Germany had
surrendered in May, by June Soviet
entry into the Pacific War was imminent.
Bringing the war to an
end was not an easy
task.
• Powerful factions
remained in the
military
• No surrender unless
the emperor and the
imperial system
were preserved Emperor
Hirohito
Japan made peace feelers to the Soviets
during negotiations for an extension of
the Neutrality Pact.
The Soviets remained silent. At the
Potsdam, Germany meeting in late July
Stalin told neither the U.S. nor Britain.
U.S. intelligence was reading radio
traffic (being sent) between the Foreign
Ministry in Tokyo and the Japanese
ambassador in Moscow.
U.S. Intelligence
However, U.S.
intelligence came
into play again.
Potsdam Declaration - July 1945
Prime Minister
Churchill
President
Truman
Premier
Stalin
Potsdam Declaration
Unconditional surrender pertained only
to military forces.
All possessions were to be given up
with the exception of the four main
Japanese islands - Hokkaido, Honshu,
Shikoku, and Kyushu.
No decision about preserving the
Emperor.
The Final Days
With unhampered movement all along
the Japanese coasts, the Americans and
British were planning an invasion of the
home islands code-named Operation
Downfall.
But events were moving faster than
governments.
16 July 1945
The first atomic device is exploded
at Alamogordo, New Mexico.
USS Indianapolis (CA-35)
Carried bomb parts and enriched nuclear
fuel to the island of Tinian in the Marianas
Sunk while returning to Guam. Secret
mission left Sailors in the water for 5 days
with oil and sharks, 317 survivors of 1200.
President
Harry S. Truman
Projection of
Casualties
Invasion
vs.
Bomb
President Truman
opted to use the A-
bomb in order to end
the war and avoid the
massive casualties of
a homeland invasion.
6 August 1945
A B-29, the Enola Gay, left Tinian to
bomb the Japanese industrial city of
Hiroshima.
The bomb utterly destroyed the city.
“Little Boy”
The First
A-bomb
Length: 10! feet
Diameter: 29"
Weight: 9,700 pounds
Yield: 12.5 kilotons
• Ended the war in Europe 3 months
earlier with assault on Berlin
• The end of the Pacific war was near
• 8 August 1945 - Declared war on Japan
• Moved forces into Manchuria and Korea
Soviet
Union
Despite its destruction, Japanese
military elements still refused to
consider unconditional surrender.
Hiroshima
Hiroshima
9 August 1945
Another B-29 bomber dropped a second
atomic bomb on the city of Nagasaki.
The Second
A-bomb
Length: 10' 8"
Diameter: 5'
Weight: 10,000 pounds
Yield: 22 kilotons
“Fat Man”
Atomic Bomb Data
Date
Target
Plane
Pilot
Bomb
6 Aug 1945
Hiroshima
B-29
"Enola Gay"
Col. Tibbetts
"Little Boy"
9 Aug 1945
Nagasaki
B-29
"Bock's Car"
Maj. Sweeney
"Fat Man"
Emperor
Hirohito
• Faced with an
ultimate decision
• Advised his Supreme
Council to accept the
Potsdam Declaration
His cabinet agreed, but
only upon the condition
that the imperial
system remain.
U.S. Secretary of State
Statement in August 1945
The imperial system would remain.
The Emperor must submit to the Allied
commander's authority during the
occupation of Japan.
The Emperor's final status would rest
on free elections at a later date.
Allies Converge on Tokyo Bay
2 September 1945
The Japanese foreign minister and the
representatives of the Imperial General
Staff board USS Missouri (BB-63).
Signing the Surrender Document
Japanese Foreign Minister
Mamoru Shigemitsu
Signing the Surrender Document
General Yoshijiro Umezu
Chief of the Army
General Staff
Signing the Surrender Document
Gen. Douglas
MacArthur
Signing the Surrender Document
Admiral
Nimitz
Representatives Signing
the Surrender Document
• United States
• Japan
• United Kingdom
• China
• Soviet Union
• Australia
• Canada
• France
• The Netherlands
• New Zealand
V-J Day!!
(Victory in Japan)
• Treaty signed
onboard USS
Missouri in
Tokyo Bay
2 Sep 1945
World War II: The Pacific War
1941-1945
Jul 1941
7 Dec 1941
11 Mar 1942
18 Apr 1942
8 May 1942
4 Jun 1942
7 Aug 1942
9 Feb 1943
Aug 1943
~ U.S. halted oil sales to Japan
~ Japan bombed Pearl Harbor
~ MacArthur left Philippines
~ Doolittle raided Japan
~ Battle of Coral Sea
~ Battle of Midway
~ Marines landed on
Guadalcanal
~ Guadalcanal secured
~ Aleutians recaptured
World War II: The Pacific War
1941-1945
Mar 1944
15 Jun 1944
18 Jun 1944
Jul 1944
20 Oct 1944
23-26 Oct 1944
19 Feb 1945
~ Rabaul bypassed
~ Saipan landing
~ Battle of the Philippine
Sea
~ New Guinea secured
~ MacArthur invaded
Philippines
~ Battle for Leyte Gulf
~ Iwo Jima landing
World War II: The Pacific War
1941-1945
1 Apr-21 Jun 1945
6 Aug 1945
8 Aug 1945
2 Sep 1945
~ Battle of Okinawa
~ Atomic bomb dropped
on Hiroshima
~ Soviets declared war on
Japan
~ Japan surrendered