Essay about Bataan Death March

hundred yards and end up marching back the next day. It sounds as though there

Martin describes the travel and the toll it took on men. “I had now to travel the rest of the day, after marching all the day and night before and fighting all the morning. I had eaten nothing since the noon of the preceding day, nor did I eat a morsel til the forenoon of the next day, and I needed rest as much as victuals. After the army had collected again and recovered from their panic, we were kept marching and countermarching, starving and freezing” (Martin

They had few provisions for food and shelter and little opportunity to rest. Many died on the route from starvation, cold, and exhaustion. For the Germans they were a means of moving a population from one place to another at a time of great scarcity and when the entire systems were breaking down. The ones who could not walk in the death marches were shot and killed and left on the side of the road. For the prisoners the death marches were an unending marathon testing their endurance and will to live and pushing them beyond exhaustion, the death rate was often more than fifty percent and sometimes one in ten survived. (encyclopedia judaica: death

During World War II, thousands of POWs experienced isolation and dehumanization in an Japanesethe attemptefforts of the Japanese to make them feel invisible. In Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, American POW and former Olympic runner Louis “Louie” Zamperini rwas just one of the many soldiers who was dehumanized while in Japanese

The army was undernourished and living in crowded quarters. They were also getting sick with disease such as typhoid, typhus, smallpox, dysentery, and pneumonia. These diseases contributed to the death of 2,500 soldiers by the end of winter. Women of enlisted men provided valuable services that the army needed,such as laundry and nursing.

Having a platoon of a couple hundred men to move through unknown territory is no easy task. Allen wrote, “One of the greatest trials was having to march gassed men when there was nothing else to be done, although sometimes it was fatal. We stirred up a lot of mustard gas getting out, and had the usual trouble of alarms and men getting lost when they put their masks on.” (pg. 57) Being gassed brought to many men the sensation of death, and for some the gas would be their cause of death. To avoid being threatened by the gas it was important for the platoon to keep moving, sitting around tended to make things distressing. Allen wrote, “Halts were the worst. After each one it was harder than ever to get the men on their feet. Some began to gag. Slightly gassed men showed symptoms of giving out, the young boys almost toppled over backward by their packs when they got up.” (pg. 105) The mustard gas was so harsh on the soldiers that it deprived them of their energy. In order to restore that energy the men needed to eat. Eating would eventually become a hardship the closer they got to the front lines, leaving the men to learn how to battle through the pains of hunger.

The soldiers continued to survive off of very little supplies, from having little to no food to survive off of or clothing that can not protect them and more. Due to such sever conditions, Dr Albigence Waldo, a Connecticut surgeon wrote down in his diary at the camp "A general cry thro' the Camp this Evening among the Soldiers, "No Meat! No Meat!" - the Distant vales Echo'd back the melancholy sound - "No Meat! No Meat!" (Document B). Because of the lack of supplies, some of these soldiers can not stay healthy enough to fight since they could have become incredibly malnourished. Others would say that even if they had less supplies, they still could have surivied with what items they had, even if it could cause them to be uncomfortable or even a possibly of getting sick. However, Along with Dr. Waldos diary,

Albigence Waldo, a surgeon from Connecticut, very detailedly explains the horrid conditions of the Army, “which had been surprisingly healthy hitherto, now begins to grow sickly from the continued fatigues they have suffered this Campaign.” Ranging from the poor/ lack of food, hard lodging, cold weather, fatigue, nasty clouds, nasty cookery, vomit, freezing temperatures, and poor/ lack of clothing , everything seemed almost not endurable. He himself heartily wished himself at home, and he was only the surgeon. The vomit and unhealthy conditions can all lead to diseases and to possible death. I would much rather not have to endure these things and be with my family instead; knowing they're safe and not having to worry whether someone got sick or

The disease was rampant in camp; in fact it killed 1,800 to 2,500 soldiers during encampment (Doc A). So many people died, that who would notice if I became more statistic number were to die with them? Especially with men sleeping in 16 ft. by 14 ft. quarters (BE) I am sure to contract some illness that is bound to kill me. In the beginning, the army was cheery and spirited, but now the soldiers are sickly and sullen from fatigue (Doc C).

The soldiers undertook many different diseases and sicknesses, mentally and physically. The faced outbreaks of measles, small pox, malaria, pneumonia, or camp itch. Soldiers would get malaria when camping in damp areas surrounded by mosquitos, while camp

In the most suitable cases, the soldiers had cabins, which were crude, small, and very unsturdy. In most instances, however, they got tents made out of canvas, which frequently ripped and did not help keep out cold in the dead winter. Because of this, many men got illnesses such as pneumonia, diarrhea, and dysentery. In fact, so many got sick that the hospitals were overflowing, even though each section had a hospital for itself. Some soldiers’ wives agreed to be nurses to help, but there were not enough medical supplies, so many died. Out of 12,000 men, 3,000 died and 2,000 left because they were sick.

If I were a soldier at Valley Forge I would quit because of the numerous amount of illnesses and death. Death estimates due to illness during encampment from December to June was about 2,500 people. “I am sick…”, Dr.Waldo says, “discontented… and out of humour.” The deaths are mainly caused by illnesses which are caused by the lack of food and by the harsh winters. These deaths and illnesses can spread easily

Conditions were terrible but there were still loyal soldiers who stayed with. In doc c Dr. Waldo states “ I am sick, discontented, and out of humor, poor food, hard lodging, cold weather, fatigue, nasty cloths, nasty cookery, vomit half my time, smoked out of my senses, I can’t endure it.”

The Japanese soldiers had no sense of remorse or sorrow for the prisoners instead they pushed them to their breaking point. Many prisoners collapsed which proved fatal because if you fell behind you became a practice dummy for the Japanese to sharpen their bayonet skills and techniques of killing on you. On one occasion, a prisoner was falling behind in the rear so tanks that followed lined themselves up to run over the victim and squish him into the pavement to make it look as if he were from a cartoon. Since the Japanese could

The book Fly Boys written by James Bradley gives us many different stories and viewpoints during WWII. During this time Japan was in the dark compared to china or the U.S. They didn't like outside influences and thought the gaizin were ruining their religious beliefs, but the Japanese reacted to this in a bad way. The Japanese army was at war with china and would not only captured chinese soldiers but would also take the women from china. They would rape the women and spread disease from soldier to soldier. The reason for the spread of disease is that “ 1 women for every 35 soldiers,”(Bradley 61) and they viewed the women as military supplies. They kept the women for months on end and would only give them one day off to be checked by doctors.