Iwo Jima Significance

The sea invasion of Iwo Jima was and still is the largest of any in all the years of the United States Marine Corps history. This invasion was also the most devastating. More than 26,000 Marines lost their lives while when trying to take over this small volcanic island. Pretty much all of the twenty-one thousand Japanese soldiers protecting the island were killed only two thousand were

The battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa were two of the most important American operations in the Pacific Theatre against the Empire of Japan during World War Two. The goal of the two operations was to secure strategically important islands close to Japan to use for bombing campaigns. The battles for Iwo Jima(February-March 1945) and Okinawa f(April-June 1945) killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians and helped to win the war for the United States.

The taking of the island of Iwo Jima was one of the most difficult and costly campaigns for the U.S. during World War II. After the battle was over, the decision to take the island was heavily scrutinized by the public, military officials, and members of the press. Many people felt that the island’s advantages were not worth the blood that was shed taking it. There are a select few historians who believe that this campaign was not intended to be a strategic advantage against Japan but that it was a competition between the different branches of the armed forces. Historian Robert Burrell feels that this island was used as a testing ground for the various branches of the armed forces and as a test for new war tactics. Although the taking of the

he Battle of Iwo Jima was one of the bloodiest and fiercest battles of the Second World War in which the US Armed Forces captured the Iwo Jima Island from the Japanese. More than 6800 American servicemen lost their lives in the battle and thus the battle has come to known as the deadliest battle in Marine Corps history. Iwo Jima was an island strategically positioned and highly fortified as its three airfields were used to stage attacks on the US at the Pacific War. It was therefore Americas target to capture the island and use it to stage attacks on Japans mainland and use the airfields as emergency landing strips for the US Navy planes damaged during war. According to The Washington Post a small group gathered on Thursday February 18th

The purpose of this investigation is to go beyond the perceived thoughts and facts about Iwo Jima, but instead, looking at first person accounts and eyewitnesses. Iwo Jima is known as “Thirty Six Days of Hell” which takes place from the 19th of February in 1945 to the 26th of March, 1945. During these thirty six days the goal of this battle was to obtain the island because of the location and how they would be able to utilize it for a landing strip for damaged aircrafts and replenishment. The scope of the investigation will be understanding what life was like for the soldiers on both sides throughout the battle. The method of this investigation will be using interviews, secondary sources with eyewitness accounts,

There were 26,000 casualties and 6,800 dead Americans at Iwo Jima, with 20,000 casualties and 1083 dead Japanese. (1. "Battle for Iwo Jima, 1945." The Navy Department Library) At Okinawa there were 65,000 American casualties and 14,000 dead, while the Japanese lost 70,000 soldiers out of the 130,000 stationed on Okinawa. (2. "Battle of Okinawa." History.com) The bloodshed from these two battles gave the Americans a taste of the militaristic Japanese, and that a battle for the homeland of Japan would be astronomically worse. The Japanese were prepared to use any means necessary to stop the Americans because of “Yamato Damashii”, which was a virtue of the samurai that went hand in hand with the Bushido code, and it made the Japanese value the country and the emperor above all else, and that fighting to the death was greater than surrender. and it came in the form of Kamikaze attacks, suicide troops, and guerilla warfare. At Okinawa, 193 kamikaze attacks were launched at the Americans damaging 368 ships and destroying 36. (3. "The Battle of Okinawa." History Learning Site) The Japanese were prepared to sacrifice everything they had to destroy American ships and troops. The Japanese also used their own people to fight against the Americans.

Most Americans have never even heard of the place called Iwo Jima until the year of 1945 began. Iwo Jima is a tiny island in the Pacific Ocean. It is only about 5 miles long and 3 miles wide. It is located about 750 miles south of Japan. Iwo Jima means the “Sulfur Island” in Japanese. The island is formed entirely out of black volcanic rock. The beaches that run along parts of the island are coarse black volcanic sand. In 1945, there were very few small trees and bushes as the landscape. Iwo Jima was a small and dark place that smelled like sulfur. In 1945, it became an important part of the United States history.

This act of aggression from Japan mad America write a declaration of War against Japan and fellow allied countries (not ours). The Japanese called it the Hawaii Operation and was a strike against our naval fleet interfering with Japanese military actions. The attack happened early at 7:48 am when 353 Japanese fighter plane, bombers, and torpedo planes came in waves. The Japanese also sent six aircraft carriers and during their operation they damaged all of our Naval battleships, four actually sunk but six were put back into service. The USS Arizona was later raised and is still used and is in service today. They damaged three of our cruisers, and three destroyers, along with an anti aircraft training ship, and one minelayer. Many civilians were killed and many important military and civilian buildings. Franklin D. Roosevelt says that this action was a “a date which will live in infamy”. This is what made the US who at all cost wanted nothing to do with the World War and Japan's actions paid the ultimate

The battle for Iwo Jima was a bloody battle against the Japanese forces. The island took the heaviest and longest bombardment compared to any battles in the Pacific during the war ("Battle for Iwo Jima, 1945", 1960). The battle for Iwo Jima started in June of 1944 but the invasion of the island didn't start until February 19,

The Battle of Iwo Jima started on February 19, 1945 and ended on March 26, 1945. Iwo Jima was a small island about 750 miles away from Tokyo,

The battle of Iwo Jima is an iconic event in which the United States Marine Corps landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese imperial army during World War II. Over twenty thousand Japanese defenders were hiding out in bunkers, caves and tunnels to avoid the massive naval and air bombardment lasting several days covering the entire island. The Japanese were outnumbered five to one but put up no surrender. The United States won the battle five days after it began securing their win with the flag placed atop Mt. Suribachi.

The land that Iwo Jima offered was of great importance to the United States. The island helped provide for emergency landings for bombers that were in trouble (Sommerville). It saved an estimated of 24,000 U.S Airmen (Land). The Island of Iwo Jima saved American lives because it was a place they could land the aircrafts when in danger (World War ll Database). Iwo Jima was used as a fighter base for B-29’s bombing Japan (History Net). Also with conquering the island the Japanese could no longer interrupt the bomb runs

This battle started because the japanese were had been formulating a plan to sneak up on the US forces. They hoped to trap a number of the US aircraft

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a battle analysis of the Battle of Iwo Jima and present as alternate outcome of events based upon employment or misuse of military resources. If Japan was not a victim of its own success, they could have won the battle of Iwo Jima. By the time America had sought to invade Iwo Jima and use it as a key operational location for attacks on the Japanese mainland, Japan had already gained significant ground in Southwest Asia and the Pacific. Japan’s forces were over-worked and too spread out throughout the region to be able to back up the forces bogged down in the underground caves and tunnels of Iwo Jima. For this reason America would win a tough fight on this strategically important island.

While the allied forces finished off Germany the U.S. began to move their focus toward Japan. The Pacific war was now seeing the undivided attention of the United States. Virtually nonstop bombing claimed a number of civilian lives including non-Japanese people such as Korean and Chinese’s forced laborers, comfort women, and thousand of prisoners. Over 100 Japanese’s cities were firebombed leaving millions homeless in just one night. It was clear that Japans government had lied to its people about wartime success. Out of desperations Japans military