America and WWII:The War for the Pacific

Allies Stem the Japanese TideNote: The war in the

Pacific was extremely brutal and savage a lot of up-close, hand-to-hand combat

6 months after Pearl Harbor Japan controlled:Hong KongFrench IndochinaMalaya

BurmaThailandMuch of ChinaDutch East IndiesGuamWake IslandSolomon IslandMany other small

islandsBattling the

Americans/Filipinos for the Philippines

Allies Stem the Japanese TideJapan invaded the Philippines in December

1941Allied forces in the Pacific were led by Gen.

Douglas MacArthurMarch 11, 1942 Allied forces were forced to

leave MacArthur pledged to those who did not make

it out : “I shall return”

Allies Stem the Japanese TideSpring 1942 Allies

began to turn the tideDoolittle Raid

April 18, 1942 Lt. Co. James Doolittle

Led 16 bombers on an air raid over Tokyo and other Japanese cities

This lifted America’s spirits and dampened the Japanese

Battle of the Coral SeaMain Allied forces in the

Pacific were American and Australian

May 1942 5 day battleSucceeded in stopping

the Japanese drive towards Australia

1st time Japanese invasion had been stopped and turned back

Allies Stem the Japanese TideThe Battle of Midway – Turing Point of the War!

Japan’s next move was to the strategic island of Midway (northwest of Hawaii)

Allies succeeded in stopping the Japanese able to break Japanese code

Led by Admiral Nimitz, scout planes found the Japanese fleet torpedo planes and dive bombers attacked

Japanese were caught with aircrafts still on the ships total devastation Lost 4 aircraft carriers, 1 cruiser 250 planes

Allies began “island hopping” and moving towards Japan

Frustrated by the Japanese code-breakers, the US Navy and Marines use Navajo Indians as radio men in the Pacific

Navajo language was very complex Japanese were never able to understand it

Allies Go on the OffensiveFirst Offensive August

1942Guadalcanal (Solomon

Islands) 19,000 troops Nicknamed the “Island of

Death”First Japanese defeat on

land!Continued leapfrogging

across the Pacific

Leyte Island October 1944

178,000 ships, 738 ships converged on the Philippine island

General MacArthur after two years declared “People of the Philippines: I have returned”

The Japanese DefenseThe Japanese threw their entire fleet into the

Battle of Leyte Gulf Tested a new tactic kamikaze (divine wind)

suicide-plane attack In the Philippines, 424 kamikaze pilots sunk 16

ships and damaged another 80After Leyte Gulf, Japan lost 3 battleships, 4 aircraft

carriers, 13 cruisers, almost 500 planes Imperial Navy only played a minor role afterwards

The Japanese DefenseAmericans had taken much of the Philippines and

liberated American POWs turned to Iwo Jima (1945)

Critical to the U.S. as a base from which heavily loaded bombers might reach Japan

20,000+ Japanese in tunnels and caves 18,800+ died

6,821 Marines died taking this island35 days of horrific fighting

Treatment of U.S. POWs

The Japanese DefenseThe Battle for Okinawa (April – June 21, 1945)1,900 kamikaze attacks sunk 30 ships, 300

damaged, 5,000 soldiers diedEven fiercer opposition than on Iwo Jima 7,600

American dead, 110,000 deadTwo generals committed ritual suicide over the

shame of their surrenderThis forecasted the potential opposition they could

face on the island of Japan

The Atomic Bomb Ends the War

Japan still had a huge army that would defend Japan their homeland

President Truman decided the only way to avoid an invasion of Japan was to use the new atomic bomb

July 25, 1945 Truman made final plans for dropping two atomic bombs

Warned Japan that it faced “prompt and utter destruction”

Truman stated that he “regarded the bomb as a military weapon and never had any doubt that it should be used”

The Atomic Bomb Ends the WarAugust 6, 1945 B-29 Bomber Enola Gay dropped “Little Boy” over

Hiroshima (Japanese military center) In 43 second the entire city collapsed into dust

Japanese leaders still hesitated to surrenderAugust 9, 1945 “Fat Man” was dropped on Nagasaki

Half the city was leveled

By the end of 1945 200,000 people died from injuries and radiation poisoning

The Atomic Bomb Ends the War

September 2, 1945 formal surrender ceremonies took place on U.S. battleship USS Missouri

Rebuilding BeginsYalta Conference –

Feb. 1945 “Big Three” – FDR,

Churchill, Stalin

Stalin favored a harsh treatment of Germany divide Germany into occupation zones

FDR disagreed, Churchill mediated

Compromises:Temporary division of

Germany into four zonesStalin promised “free and

unfettered elections” in Poland and other Soviet occupied European countries

Stalin agreed to help with Japan

Agreed to participate in an international conference FDR’s dream of the UN would become a reality there

Rebuilding BeginsThe Nuremburg Trials24 Nazi officials tried

12 sentenced to death200 more Nazis were

found guilty of war crimes in lesser trials

Many went free but set up the idea that individuals are responsible for their actions in war

Occupation of JapanU.S. forces under Gen.

MacArthur occupied Japan

1,100+ Japanese were arrested and put on trial 7, including Tojo, were sentenced to death

7 year occupation reshaped Japan’s economy and government (with a new constitution)

Total CasualtiesBattle Deaths: 15,000,000Battle Wounded: 25,000,000Civilian Deaths: 45,000,000*

* China alone might be 50,000,000 civilian deaths