Pacific TheatrePacific Theatre

1941-19451941-1945

Pearl Harbor: Dec. 7 1941Pearl Harbor: Dec. 7 1941

• Launched early in the morning on a Sunday• Consisted of 6 Japanese aircraft carriers, with

a total of 361 aircraft• The US lost 2 Battleships, 1 Minelayer, & 2

Destroyers and 188 aircraft• 2,388 were killed, and 1,178 were wounded• 29 Japanese aircraft were destroyed, and 69

Japanese were killed or wounded

Pearl HarbourPearl Harbour

• The surprise attack had a number of objectives

• Japan was suffering from trade embargoes from the US, the Dutch and French

• In 1940, the US halted shipping natural resources and aviation equipment to Japan

• After further expansion into Indochina in the summer of 1941, the US stopped exporting oil

Battle of BataanBattle of Bataan

• As the attack on Pearl Harbour began, Japan also attacked a US Naval base in the Philippines: Bataan Island

• The surprise attacked was very effective: the air defences were obliterated leaving only grounds troops to defend the base

• After months of intense fighting, the US General Edward King surrendered the weary US and Fillipino troops to Japanese General Nagano

Bataan MarchBataan March

• After surrendering on April 9 1942, 15,000 US and 60,000 Filipino troops were moved to prison camps

• Most prisoners were forced to march in excess of 25 miles with very little sleep, food or water

• Due to the harsh conditions, it is estimated that between 6,000 and 11,000 prisoners dies before reaching their POW camps

General YamamotoGeneral Yamamoto

• Isoroku Yamamoto became head of the Japanese naval prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor.

• He had argued for “a fatal blow” on the U.S. Pacific Fleet to produce a negotiated peace.

• However, as U.S. aircraft carriers survived the surprise attack, Yamamoto planned to draw U.S. naval forces into the Battle at Midway and destroy them there.

Battle of MidwayBattle of Midway

MidwayOkinawa

Iwo Jima

Pearl Harbor

.. ..

Wake Islands

Battle of Wake IslandBattle of Wake Island

• A strategic communication outpost for the US Navy and Marines

• The Japanese began their assault on Dec. 8 1941 (same day as attack on Pearl Harbour)

• The small group of US Marines and Navy personnell repelled the Japanese attack for 15 days

Battle of MidwayBattle of Midway

• June 4 1942 – June 7 1942• The Japanese fleet attacked the Midway

Islands, and the US Pacific Fleet counterattacked

• 127 Japanese ships vs. only 30 US ships• Even against those odds, 4 Japanese carriers

were destroyed, yet only 1 US carrier

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ0rxaEHZEo

Battle of MidwayBattle of Midway

• Midway proved to be a great boost to of morale for the USA

• By severely damaging the Japanese Navy, the USA flexed its industrial muscle and rebuilt much faster than the Japanese

• Midway also served as a training ground for subsequent attacks by the USA

The Battle for Iwo JimaThe Battle for Iwo Jima

Why Iwo Jima?Why Iwo Jima?

• Strategically the island was crucial to continue B-29 raids on mainland Japan.

• The island contained 3 airstrips that the Japanese had been using for their Kamikaze attacks.

• The airfields would provide a base for escort fighters for bombers flying to Japan.

• The island provided an emergency landing strip half way from the Marianas islands to Japan

Political ConsiderationsPolitical Considerations

• America is tiring of the war, but strongly supporting the effort with men and industrial backup.

• Iwo Jima serves as another stepping stone en route to Japan.

• Japan’s will to fight/resist is turning, but many loyal troops will fight to the death.

Strategic LocationStrategic Location

• Both Japan and the US valued the sulfurous island.

• Iwo was Japanese home soil, only 650 miles from Tokyo. It was administered by the Tokyo metropolitan government.

No foreign army in Japan’s 5000 year history had landed on Japanese soil.

U.S. StrategyU.S. Strategy

• Strategic timetable demanded that the island be secured in the early months of 1945.

• Continuous air and naval bombardment began 74 days before the scheduled invasion to prepare the way.

• Previous island assaults had taught the Americans the hard lesson that the Japanese would fight to the last man to defend their positions.

FORCE STRUCTUREFORCE STRUCTURE

• 1. American-Assault and supporting forces > 80,000

-800 naval vessels -220,000 sailors• 2. Japanese -22,000 army and naval

The Battle The Battle for Iwo Jimafor Iwo Jima

MountSuribachi

Airfield #2

Airfield #1

Airfield #3

5th MarDiv

4th MarDiv

3rd MarDiv

The Battle for Iwo JimaThe Battle for Iwo Jima

MountSuribachi

Airfield #2

Airfield #1

Airfield #3

5th 4th

3rd

The Beach AssaultThe Beach Assault

• D-day: 19 Feb 45• Naval assault fires

commenced at 0640.• Landing craft would take 30

minutes to race to shore.• Ship-to-shore movement

was no ferrying operation; it was a power-laden deployment.

The Capture of SuribachiThe Capture of Suribachi

Final AnalysisFinal Analysis

• The seizing of Iwo Jima enabled the direct attack on Japan.

• Ironically, the number of airmen lives saved by having airfields on Iwo Jima nearly matched the number of Marine casualties

• First time in history that the Marines suffered greater casualties than the island defenders.

• Fears of what lies ahead dominated/haunted the thoughts of all.

Manhattan ProjectManhattan Project

• Although work on a “new” weapon had begun as early as the 1920’s, the Manhattan Project refers to the time period of 1941-1945

• The program was initialled centred in Manhattan, with laboratories all over the USA

• Los Alamos and Oak Ridge were the 2 main research facilities

• The first nuclear test took place on July 16 1945

Hiroshima & NagasakiHiroshima & Nagasaki

• August 6 1945 – The world’s first atomic bomb attack strikes the Japanese city of Hiroshima

• An estimated 90,000 died instantly, with up to 200,000 perishing by 1950 due to health problems

• Immediately the US reiterated demands for the Japanese to surrender

Hiroshima & NagasakiHiroshima & Nagasaki

• August 9 1945 – For the 2nd, and most recent time in History, nuclear weapon was used on Nagasaki after the B-29 bomber’s main target was obscured with cloud cover

• The bomb fell off target, and the terrain around the city shielded part of the city

• An estimated 40,000 died instantly, and as many as 120,000 by 1950

End of Pacific WarEnd of Pacific War

• On August 15, 1945, Japan surrenders • On September 2, 1945, General MacArthur

and a Japanese delegation sign the official Instrument of Surrender onboard the USS Missouri

• Afterwards, MacArthur goes to Tokyo to oversee postwar development

• This is known as the Occupation in Japanese history