Iwo Jima Research Papers

World war two, is said to be the deadliest six years in the twentieth century. This war caused sixty million men to die and helped the United States to get out of the Great Depression.

the last stages of the World War II Pacific Theater.13 During the Battle of Iwo Jima, the United

Patriotism can be defined as devoted love, support, and defense against one’s country. John F. Kennedy, in his inaugural address stated, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” The soldiers at Iwo Jima were patriots that fought wars and lost men for our country. They were devoted to America and this is evident because the remaining soldiers raised the Flag in awareness. The citizens that died on September 11, 2001 were not soldiers, however, they did lose their lives for our country. That is why the firemen raised the flag in the wake of this horrible tragedy. Patriotism takes on many aspects and this is evident within the photographs for these two events. The raising of the flag at Iwo Jima and at Ground Zero have striking similarities such as valor, fearlessness, and unwavering loyalty for our country.

“Thank you, thank you. As you all know that it is 1945 and there are still high tensions in the war that is going on but, I have devised a plan that will further help us. After Weeks of tough decisions me a the Generals beside me have come to a solution of over taking the Japanese island of Iwo Jima. From previous attempts to bomb Japan or take over smaller islands, some how the Japanese are prepared and we become defeated. More recent, yet very significant information has been said that the island of Iwo Jima is used as a pre warning station when our military is spotted. This is hard cold proof on why we keep losing to the Japanese. On other attempts many of our B-29 bombers have been shot down and more have been badly damaged, To many.

Ivo Jima is less than 10 square miles size 8 km long 4.5 wide island in Japan

There was no questioning the Japanese anticipated to succeed in protecting Iwo Jima. But, without the assurance of any natural harbors for the Japanese, “...an abundance of supplies and necessary reinforcements never made it through the Allied armada in the coastal waters of Iwo Jima,” (“The Battle of Okinawa”). The Japanese were slowly defeated in Iwo Jima and lost many forces. With this loss, the Japanese were weakened and the forces defending Okinawa were lessened and awaiting the impending invasion. The Japanese forces were divided among many fronts. Their forces appeared throughout the eastern Chinese front in addition to the western U.S. and British front. There was also the possibility of the third front against the Russians coming back from the victory over the weakening Germans.

The struggle to capture what sometimes amounted to only a few square miles of coral atoll was essential to a grand strategy that had evolved by 1943. Because most American resources were being stockpiled in Europe in anticipation of D-Day, the Pacific had secondary priority. General MacArthur wanted to push from the south through Indonesia to the Philippines, but his campaigns of 1942 in New Guinea and the Solomons were slow. Therefore, it was decided that the major American offensive would strike directly across the Pacific to the Marshall Islands and then to the Marianas, to penetrate the Japanese “Inner Empire.”

Iwo Jima: Important to US because if we captured the airstrips then Bombers could reach mainland Japan, 21,000 Japanese defenders (PBS 1). Took over a month

Imagine a tiny, rocky island. You’ve been preparing to fight for over two months, digging out a cave along with thousands of similar soldiers. On D-Day, you see the American ships, each carrying hundreds of American soldiers. No one says it, but everyone knows that it’s hopeless. Not even the general believes that victory is possible, but he defends the island anyway. All is quiet, until you’re given the order to fire. Hundreds of guns shoot their rounds right at the enemy. However, more and more Americans are getting closer. Soon they’ll reach the caves. That was the Battle for Iwo Jima. It took place on an island sandwiched between Japan and the Marianas island. It is one of the bloodiest battles of the entire Pacific theater occurred there

After taking the islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, Japan was now vulnerable and weak enough for a direct attack.

June 8th, 1942, Japanese soldiers arrive at the Solomon Islands to begin construction of an airfield staged in an area that would gain them air superiority against US Forces in World War II. Dubbed “Henderson Airfield”, Japanese troops would use this location to close off sea lines between Australia and the US. The campaign of the Solomon Islands would set a stage for the first American Amphibious Assault, and allow an experimental unit with no combat experience to test their capabilities. August 7th, 1942 US Marines of the 1st Raider Battalion, 1st Marine Division would set foot on the beach of a 2,500 square

In the exhibit on World War II, I learned about the battles that took place on the Pacific islands. Often referred to as the “Pacific War”, the series of island fighting took place between 1942-1945. I was able to directly observe soldiers’ possessions such as weapons, canteens, and documents. Also, I was able to better understand the strategy of “Island Hopping”, employed by the US military, because of the maps that clarified the term by depicting the movement of troops. Moreover, there were many data tables and charts that illustrate the numbers of soldiers on each side and the number of naval ships, which helped me gain a better understanding of the full extent of the war. Photographs and films captured by war-journalists were also presented to depict the extreme brutality and fierceness of war on those islands. The warfare

There are countless depictions of The Battle of Iwo Jima from the standpoint of Veterans and military historians. All of which are vivid interpretations of how monumental this battle was for the Marine Corp and 1944 American moral. The Battle of Iwo Jima was the single most contested piece of land that the Marine Corp had ever fought. In fact, the Marines lost more soldiers in this battle than any other battle they had fought, in their 238-year history. It was tough terrain with an enemy instructed to, “Kill 10 Americans before you will be killed”. (Smith, Iwo Jima, 2008) Paying respect to the veterans, I will attempt to tell the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima. “We built strength among us. We strengthened each other. That’s how we

This battle was a turning point in Japanese military Strategy. The Japanese practice is to meet the invaders beachhead, and if unsuccessful, they proceed to launch suicidal Banzai charges at the enemy’s position in an attempt to drive them back to sea. The Americans started producing new planes; one of them was the Hellcat, which was one of the strongest planes made. The development of a new aircraft was not limited to fighters alone, there were other aircraft manufactured like the B – 29 which was the largest plane ever built. For self defense the plane was armed with a .50 caliber machine gun and a 20mm cannon. During 1943 Admiral Nimitz was prepared to take the next step in his planned recon quest of the islands leading to Japan, The first of these landings, called, Operation Galvanic, which was to take place in the Gilbert Island Chain, a former, New Zealand colony. The islands of Betio and Makin were designated as necessary to control the Gilberts, which stood directly athwart the American supplyroute to Australia. Galvanic was to be the first of the navy’s central pacific drives but the Japanese had begun reinforcement of the islands long before the

Thesis Statement: Island hopping, a strategy developed by Douglas MacArthur, was one of the most effective ways America won the Pacific War.