Iwo Jima Significance

"Victory was never in doubt. Its cost was. What was in doubt was whether there would be any of us left to dedicate our cemetery at the end, or whether the last Marine would die knocking out the last Japanese gunner," Major General Graves Erskine, dedicating his 3rd Marine Division cemetery at Iwo Jima just after the battle.(Alexander 207)

Why was the battle of Midway so crucial? On the 4th of June in 1942 started the victorious win of the Americans that was soon to begin World War II! It was quite an amazing battle because the Japanese should have won, but the Americans out smarted them, hacking naval codes, being ready, and being where they needed to be at the right time. The Americans took down the Japanese keeping control of Midway. The battle of Midway between the Americans and the Japanese was the most decisive naval battle in history it was the turning point because it brought the Americans into the forefront of the war that eventually helped defeat Hitler.

Last and biggest of the Pacific island battles of World War II, the Okinawa campaign (April 1—June 22, 1945) involved the 287,000 troops of the U.S. Tenth Army against 130,000 soldiers of the Japanese Thirty-second Army. At stake were air bases vital to the projected invasion of Japan ("Battle of Okinawa," 1996). The Battle of Okinawa remembered more for its iconic photograph of US Marines raising the US flag on Okinawa more so than any other war or battle ever fought. Okinawa the largest of the Ryukus islands played a major role in the American forces overall strategic efforts to advance to the mainland’s of Japan. Because it was the last major battle of WWII, the battle of Okinawa used lessons learned and TTP’s from all previous

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima is a historic photograph by Joe Rosenthal taken on February 23, 1945. The photograph depicts six men, five United States Marines and one United States Navy corpsman, raising the United States flag on Mount Suribachi, during the battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. Raising the flag on Iwo Jima was the second flag-raising of the day, the first being raised early in the morning after the area was secure. Joe Rosenthal's photo was printed thousands of times, won the Pulitzer Prize for Photography, and has been made into stamps and statutes. Rosenthal uses color, lines, and structure to convey the message that the United States won the war.

The Battle of Iwo Jima or Operation Detachment began on February 19th and ended March 26, 1945. A picture taken of the soldiers raising the flag on Iwo Jima is an iconic symbol of the War in the Pacific. More marines sent into this battle than any other battle. It was also the largest armada invasion up to this time in the war. It is regarded as the “classic amphibious assault of World War II. “ (Iwo Jima)� The new U.S. B-29 bombers were able to reach Japanese Home Islands from Saipan and other neighboring islands under their control. The problem was that the Japanese fighters on Iwo Jima were able to intercept them. Having Iwo Jima under U.S. control would allow the U.S. a place to land damaged B-29s.

The fight for control of Iwo Jima lasted thirty eight days. Over that course of time the U.S. lost almost six thousand Marines with another eighteen thousand men wounded. The Japanese however lost around twenty one thousand men. This was the only battle during the war with Japan when the U.S. suffered more casualties than the Japanese. Being one of the bloodiest battles of the war, the taking of Iwo Jima served as a valuable lesson for the upcoming Okinawa campaign. In the weeks following, the battle fell under heavy scrutiny from the press and the public. Many viewed it as an unnecessary fight and loss of

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

Iwo Jima remains the Marine Corps’s deadliest campaign. February 19, 1945 was the day of the initial assault on Iwo Jima. That morning nearly eight hundred vessels, ranging from battleships, cruisers, and destroyers to

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.

The American forces plan consisted of a “divide and conquer” methodology. The U.S. focused on landing its assault force expediently and quickly and securing Mt. Suribachi and dominant high ground of the island. The Americans expected victory in less than a week. Their forces consisted of the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Divisions. The 4th and 5th Marine Divisions were to land on the eastern beaches the 4th on the right and the 5th on the left. The 3rd Marines would either land on the eastern beaches or assume a defensive role, which ever was called (Planning for the Battle of Iwo Jima, n.d.).

The boys made heroes were, John “Doc” Bradley, Rene Gagnon, Harlon Block, Franklin Sousley, Mike Strank and Ira Hayes. When the war ended and John Bradley left the island back to his home, he did not want to talk about Iwo Jima, the boys, the war or the raising of the flag. Much less of the circus that was created around the picture that became

Some of the bloodiest fight of World War II came in the Pacific. Much of that fighting came at the Battle of Guadalcanal. A remote island in the Solomons Island chain, Guadalcanal was not thought of as important, prior to 1942. For several reasons, Guadalcanal was the most significant battle of the war in the Pacific. The Battle of Guadalcanal was the first offensive the United States took in World War II. Because of its location, Guadalcanal pushed back the Japanese defensive ring, and put the U.S. in an aggressive mindset. As an intangible factor, the victory at Guadalcanal provided a much needed morale boost to U.S. servicemen, who had not had a decisive triumph against the Japanese. Most importantly, the U.S. gained control of an important airstrip on Guadalcanal that the Japanese had been trying to utilize.

The Battle of Guadalcanal was a very important battleground that ended the Japanese ground advancement in the Pacific area of operations. Also, after they were defeated and removed from the island it showed that they were not an unstoppable foe that resulted in boasting the confidence of the United States and its allies. The amphibious assault that occurred on Guadalcanal was the first amphibious counteroffensive for the United States after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. The Japanese were attempting to build an airfield on the island and gain a foothold that would help to protect their flanks as they continued their offensive campaign through the Pacific. Having an established foothold on Guadalcanal would also give the

Hello, Josh. I too believe that artworks like Iwo Jima should continue in contemporary art. The artistic trend passed down from the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans is beautiful and beneficial to society. The type of art you described is an ode to our history and culture. Sadly, this type of art does not seem to be prevalent as many artists choose to use their talent for digital art. However, art like the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans still continues and will continue on especially in Washington D.C. our nations capitol.

In April 1, 1945 – June 22, 1945, the battle of Okinawa took place on the Island of Okinawa located 350 miles from southern Japan. It was known as the “last and biggest of the Pacific island battles of World War II.” There were around 100,00 Japanese killed, 12,000 American casualties and 4,000 kamikazes, or suicide pilots died trying to blow up ships. At the end the result was an Allied victory. The three main reason the Americans needed Okinawa was first to secure a station area and second they had to complete an air base in order to bomb Japan.