The Battle of Midway Did you know that the Battle of Midway was a crucial turning point in the Pacific Theater? Midway was just a 2.4 square mile island, but it was deemed the second most important island for defending the U.S west coast. The U.S quickly built the Naval Air Station Midway, erecting guns emplacements and airstrips on the tiny island. “They had no right to win. Yet they did, and doing so they changed the course of a war…Even against the greatest of odds, there is something in the human spirit, a magic blend of skill, faith, and valor, that can lift men from certain defeat to incredible victory,” said Walter Lord, author of the book A Night to Remember. The Battle of Midway was very important and had long lasting and far reaching effects. …show more content…
The Japanese carrier Kaga sustained multiple direct hits causing severe damage and multiple fires. The carrier Akagi only sustained one hit, but it was a fatal one, also causing severe damage. Finally, the carrier Soryu sustained three direct hits. All three carriers were later abandoned and scuttled (purposely abandoned and sunk). The final Japanese carrier, the Hiryu, was able to counter-attack and badly damage the American carrier Yorktown (Yorktown was later sunk by a submarine). As stated in Shattered Sword, The Untold story of the Battle of Midway, the Hiryu was finally sunk by four or five direct hits by an American squadron of about 24 aircraft. So how important was the Battle of Midway? If the U.S had lost the battle, the U.S would have been left with one remaining aircraft carrier. The Japanese then may have been able to conquer the Alaskan islands or even try to invade Hawaii! The Americans only lost 1 carrier, 1 destroyer, and 150 aircraft while the Japanese Navy lost 4 carriers, 1 heavy cruiser, and almost 250 aircraft (1 heavy cruiser was also
“The war correspondent is responsible for most of the ideas of battle which the public possesses … I can’t write that it occurred if I know that it did not, even if by painting it that way I can rouse the blood and make the pulse beat faster – and undoubtedly these men here deserve that people’s pulses shall beat for them. But War Correspondents have so habitually exaggerated the heroism of battles that people don’t realise that real actions are heroic.”
Midway itself was not that important in the larger scheme of Japan's intentions. Japan was concentrating on the Samoa Islands, Fiji and Australia to expand their newly acquired SE Pacific territory than Midway. Midway was the closest remaining US base to Japan, and would therefore be heavily defended by the US. Admiral Yamamoto's battle plan was bold. Like most Imperial Japanese Navy strategies, it was designed to lure major parts of the US Fleet into a fatal situation. Yamamoto's main force trailed his carriers and was intended to take out whatever part of the US Fleet that might come to Midway's support. The plan was complicated because it was put together very rapidly in the wake of the Tokyo Air Raid by US Army B-25's flying...
To begin, the attack on Pearl Harbour was devastating to U.S. naval capabilities in the Pacific at the onset of their entry into the war. Japanese officials had grown tired of the U.S. oil embargo, which was meant to limit their territorial expansion and aggression in South-East Asia as well as China, and as negotiations weren’t reaching any conclusions they decided that the only course of action was a first strike on the aircraft carriers at Pearl Harbour to cripple U.S. naval capability in the Pacific (Rosenberg 1). The attack, which lasted about two hours, had resulted in the sinking of four battleships, among ...
Where Men Win Glory is an ironic euphemism for war. The title is ironic because there is nothing glorious about war or the way it ended Pat Tillman’s beautiful life. Jon Krakauer orchestrates this masterpiece with his diligently, articulated descriptions and with a timeline sewn together from the threads of two worlds. The author’s style can best be characterized by his challenging, precise diction and his ability to fluently intervene pertinent quotes and facts that further persuade the reader toward his cause. Throughout the book, the author’s tone harnesses resentment towards the militant hierarchy; for through its ingenuousness, deceit, and manipulation, the military uses Pat’s death as propaganda to bolster the war’s support. Furthermore, the military covers up the fact that Tillman was a victim of fratricide, and it deceives the nation into believing Tillman’s end was a valiant fight against insurgents. When the truth is exposed and pursued by Dannie - Pat’s mother - the army destroys evidence and pleads guilty to ignorance as a rebuttal. This book is molded by three prodigious aspects that help to illustrate Pat’s life story. The carelessness of war, importance of family, and enhancement through change were all important ingredients that created a virtuous life. Each theme, in addition, challenges me personally to reassess the facts I have been fed and the reality that I have been presented. By doing so, I can achieve a sound base of knowledge and an intellectual prowess capable of challenging all facts presented.
World War II, along with its numerous battles, brought great tension between two of the strongest countries during the 1940s: the United States and Japan. Conflict between these two countries started with Japan’s push past Chinese borders into Manchuria in search of the natural resources Japan lacks. At first, the United States avoided military action with Japan by waging economic warfare on them. This economic pressure included the passing of the Neutrality Act, which prohibited the sale of weapons to nations at war (Nash 513). Additionally, the United States placed oil embargoes on Japan hoping it would force Japan to shut down military operations in China. Japan, at a critical decision point, decided to bomb the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. On December 7th, 1941 at 6 a.m., Japan pilots bombed the naval base at Pearl Harbor, taking out the United States’ strongest battleships, killing thousands of people, and destroying hundreds of planes (Sherman). The day after Pearl Harbor, the United States declared war on Japan. Over the next few years, the United States and Japan fought fierce battles for dominance in the Pacific Ocean. One of the most important battles during the United States and Japanese war was the Battle of Midway. Japan was destroying the United States at sea, until the Battle of Midway gave the United States Pacific Fleet an edge on Japanese forces. The Battle of Midway was the most important naval engagement of World War II: it was a decisive battle that allowed the United States to be the dominant naval power in the Pacific and it marked a turning point in World War II for the United States.
Japanese stood their ground and on December 7,1941.The surprise attack on the Americans that destroyed or damage nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight battleships, and over 300 airplanes. More than 2,400 Americans died in the attack, including civilians, and another 1,000 people were wounded at Pearl Harbor(document
bombers initiated the first bombing of the island. The bombings by the Japanese continued until December 23, when under continuous shelling, the Americans, under U.S. Navy Commander Winfield Scott Cunningham, were finally forced to surrender. Although the Japanese finally took the island, they incurred heavy losses. Three cruisers and one transport sustained heavy damage, two destroyers and one patrol boat were sunk, while 820 Japanese soldiers were killed, with another 333 wounded. In contrast, American military casualties included 120 killed, 49 wounded, with two missing in action.
The island of Iwo Jima is just one of the many islands in the pacific that make up the island chain of Ogasawara. The Ogasawara chain of islands are located approximately 750 miles south of Tokyo. In comparison to most of the other islands in the pacific Iwo Jima is relatively small, in fact it is only four and a half miles long by two and a half miles wide. The geographic layout of Iwo Jima consists of a dormant volcano on the northern side called Mount Suribachi and a flat stretch of land to the south. So why is such a small island so important? After the surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor America needed a place to stage aircraft for conducting bombing runs on Tokyo, Iwo Jima provided the best place to host our fleet of bombers.
The Significance of The Battle of Midway On June 4th, a legendary battle took place over the Pacific Sea. The battle of Midway was the turning point for America in World War 2. The air attacks on Japan and America would continue for many days. America won the battle and took out half of Japan's carriers. The battle was a great victory for America, considering the fact that Japan had much greater forces.
...whereas the U.S only lost 1, the USS Yorktown which was already heavily damaged from previous conflicts in the Coral Sea. Had the U.S lost at Midway, the Japanese would have achieved their goal, and finished what Pearl Harbor started by permanently crippling the U.S Navy. In a Preface from an excerpt by Japanese Airman Fushida Mituso (Who famously Shouted “Tora, tora, tora”) the Japanese loss at Midway did the exact opposite of crippling the Navy. “During the Next two years while Japan’s Shipyards Splashed out six new heavy carriers, America’s turned out 17” (Mituso).
The oppression and invasion of the conquerors arouse, instead of crush, the desire of the defeated for freedom. These people, who have lived with the idea of a free rule of democracy, refuse to be chained down under the oppressive rule of the conquerors. It is for this reason that they strike back at their invaders. As said by Mayor Orden to Colonel Lanser of the aggressors, “ ‘The people don’t like to be conquered, sir, and so they will not be. Free men cannot start a war, but once it is started, they can fight on in defeat.
Because of the desperation felt by the Japanese forces leading up to the battle and American forces making steady advances toward Japan, the Japanese forces felt the battle could not be won. They were ordered to by time for Japan to build its defenses around the homeland. Japanese were not only dying for their county but taking their own lives as ... ... middle of paper ... ... 6 wounded.
I think that the war at sea in some ways important to the outcome of
...ings by then, whose memories, fears, and enthusiasms should not be remembered." Thus, unlike the title suggests, this remarkable war memoir is not about one soldier. Instead it refers to the entire German army who were defeated by the Allies. Although the German cause was very controversial, these gentlemen bravely fought for their country. Many men died, many were mutilated, and many more had to forever live with the atrocities they encountered. At war's end, however, they were merely "forgotten" for their failure of success. And although The Forgotten Soldier is an astonishing account of the horrors of infantry warfare, it serves a much greater purpose. It allows the historian to glance into the German experience and realize they too were young men fighting because their nation called upon them, and they deserve to be remembered for such a courageous act.
On June 21, all the loose ends were tied up, and America had won Okinawa. Okinawa was needed by the Allies to attack mainland Japan. After obtaining it, Okinawa would be used as a staging ground for the attack. The several airfields that were on it made it vital if Japan were to be conquered. Before the troops landed on the island, 13,000 rounds were fired at it.