HISTORY ESSAY DRAFT
the outcome of the Kokoda campaign was influenced a great deal by the context of the war going on in the pacific.
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941, Japan started an aggressive campaign of expansion across the Pacific Ocean. First Manchuria was invaded, then China itself. When France falls to Nazi Germany in 1940, Japan seize control of French Indochina.
On December 26, 1941 prime minister Curtin reached out and made a powerful ally in America.
Japan invaded Papua on the 21st July, 1942 There were a few major factors that contributed to the allied victory on the Kokoda track these being. Supply lines and the ability of both sides to get equipment to their troops, leadership decisions and
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other battles that were going on in the pacific One of the largest factors that contributed to the outcome of the Kokoda campaign, was supplies. General Douglas MacArthur said "nine times out of ten an army has been destroyed because it's supply lines have been severed". You cannot wage war if your troops are unequipped. Papua has very dense jungle and mountainous terrain, this makes supporting an advancing ground force very hard and dangerous by land. This means that you have to bring in supplies by air and the only air strip on the Kokoda trail was the village of Kokoda, making this village one of vital strategic importance for both sides. Throughout the campaign both sides where hampered by supply lines, in the early days of the campaign the Australian 39th infantry where nearly destroyed because their reinforcements were held up because there supplies did not come. Included in the supplys that both armies's troops where deprived of was medicine such as penicilin and other medicines, this meant that as the Australian and later japanese armies where reaked with supply problems this gave serious illness a chance to take hold Illnesses such as Malaria and Disentry swept through the ranks of both sides this decreased both the moral and the capability of both sides to fight. Throughout the campaign both armies where ravaged by disease In the final months of the Kokoda campaign the Japanese had retreated all the way to the coast and fortified 3 villages, Gona, Buna and Sanananda more men would die in these battles than in every other battle of the track combined. Buna was built on a stagnant swamp, there where "mosquitoes everywhere " this is where malaria and dysentery devastated both armies. Later in the campaign the Japanese army was decimated by diseases because there supply lines Where being strafed and bombed by American bombers some estimates say that there were 4 times as many deaths caused by malaria and other diseases than were caused by combat "there where quite a few troops who were killed by desease or lac of food before they had even seen the enemy". The japanese troop's moral was decimated. Lieutenant Sakamoto said "not a single grain of rice left, for tommorow we will have to chew grass or bark, how can we fight against this? Another vitally important fcator in the Kokoda campaign was the commanders decisions.
Because Papua was incredibly close to auustralia, this meant the Kokoda campaign was Australia's last line of defense. Meaning that the allies were more afraid of failure than they were of the Japanese this meant that they would not engage in confrontation unless absolutely necessary if they thought that it could be a defeat. The allies had two main commanders, general MacArthur from America and general Blamey from Australia however they both where in Brisbane, hundreds of miles away from the action because they thought they should fortify Australia rather than stop Japan. Unlike Australia Japan actually had a commander on Papua overseeing the campaign personally, this gave them a huge strategic advantage over the Australians. The Japanese came within visual distance of Port Moresby when the context of the war going on around them caught up with them. The American leadership had decided that it was time to take the fight to Japan. Since invading Japan it's self was not fiesable they decided to use a leapfrog stratigie, systimatically invade Japanese held islands, each island would be a launch point for the invasion of the next. Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima where just 2 of this overall master plan this meant that the Japanese forces in Papua where in danger of being encircled, this caused the Japanese high command to order them to retreat. The effect of this order of the Japanese troops was devastating there moral fell through the floor, there will to fight was shot some accounts say that the japanese had only got as far as they did because of pure pride, and when the order came in to retreat they felt they had lost. Also the japanese soldiers where trained and there culture was such that if it became public kwnolage that they had retreated then the public would view this as a total falour this is what the troops where afraid of and this is what
happened. The outcome of the Kokoda campaign would have been very different if it weren't for the other battles and the context of the war going on around it in the pacific. The war in the pacific was not by any means confined to only the Kokoda campaign. There where 100 different 'D days' in the pacific the casualties reflected this. There where 4 thousand allied casualties on Normandy and 20,000 allied casualties during the advance on Japan, this was becasuse of a number of factors but most significant was in Japan the soldiers followed the "Brashido" code this meant that they would always fight to the death and to be captured allive was the ultimate disgrace, this made them an incredibly formidable enemy. When america began it's campaign to systimatically invade Japanese held islands Japan realised that it's forces in Kokoda where going to be encircled this was the reason that they decided to pull them out Japan also realised that they would need all the troops that they could get to defend them from america this is why the ordered them to pull out. Unfortunately for them however when their troops got to the beach the ships that where supposed to come and get them where destroyed by the americans in other battles in the pacific this is why many of the Japanese where killed on the beaches where they had landed months before. The Kokoda campaign was influenced a huge amount by the war going on the pacific everything from war policy on both sides to the decision for the Japanese to retreat, all of it was dependant on other battles raging in the pacific. The battles of Milline bay, guadal canal, midway all had an effect on the war on the track.. Supplies, leadership decisions and other decisive actions would ultimately be the reason that the Japanese were so convincingly defeated on the Kokoda trail
The Kokoda track campaign stopped the invasion of Australia and the Japanese advancing any further in WW2. Australian’s believed that Australia was going to be invaded, but it is now mostly believed that Japan was not going to invade. Australia thought they were going to be invaded because of the multiple attacks by the Japanese already, including the bombing of Darwin, Townsville and Broome and also the findings of midget-submarines in Sydney Harbour. The battle started on June 1942, in Papua New Guinea, on the Kokoda Track. The Japanese were planning to take Port Moresby so they could get access to the Port and airstrip to invade Australia. It is estimated that 6000 Japanese troops landed on the beaches of Papua New Guinea,...
In May of 1942, Japanese Admiral Isorosku Yamamoto devised a plan to draw the US Pacific fleet into battle where he could completely destroy it. To accomplish this master plan of his, he sought out the invasion of Midway Island which would provide a base for the Japan troops to attack Hawaii. Unfortunately for Yamamoto, America decrypted Japanese radio transmissions and Admiral Chester Nimitz was able to establish a counter attack against this offensive. Nimitz sent three aircraft carriers, The USS Enterprise, The USS Hornet and The USS Yorktown to destroy the Japanese. This is just a short overview of The Battle of Midway, or as commonly referred to as, the battle that changed the war. People argue that it had no affect on the war, but those critics couldn’t be farther from the truth. The Battle of Midway was the turning point of the war because it fully enters America into the war, it kicked off the Pacific Campaign, and it had Japan on the defensive, thus preventing them from helping The Axis Forces.
The Kokoda Campaign, also known as the Battle that saved Australia, was a series of battles in which the Japanese fought the Australian and Americas for control over Port Moresby. Had the Japanese been successful in taking over Port Moresby, Australia would have been under serious threat. This was a significant event in Australian History because it was the first time the Australian Nation had been threatened by invasion. This was a significant event in Australian History because as it was a time to reflect upon those who put others lives before theirs for the safety of this Country.
In 1937, Japan started a war against China, in search of more resources to expand its empire. In 1941, during World War II, Japan attacked America. This is when the Allies (Australia, Britain etc.) then declared war on Japan. Before long the Japanese started extending their territory closer and closer to Australia and started taking surrendering troops into concentration camps where they were starved, diseased and beaten.
Firstly, the Kokoda Battle was an important event because of its cultural significance to Australia. The Kokoda track stands as an icon for Australian participation in the Second World War, just as Gallipoli serves the same purpose for the First World War. In 1942, the Australian Territories of Papua and New Guinea were in law if not in public sentiment, as much a part of Australia as the Northern Territory. It is then quite true to say that Australian soil was invaded by the Japanese in 1942. The main objective of this battle was for Japan to capture Port Moresby via the Kokoda track and from there they would control the Pacific. This war was also very significant because of the mateship, loyalty and hard work the Australians did to protect our country even when they were “flat out” of energy, as evidenced by this quote
The Pacific War was extremely interesting to read and it was well written. It covered the fifteen year war in comprehensible way and it was engaging for the reader. Ienage’s main argument throughout his book was Imperial Japan was able to cause so much damage within the Pacific theater due to its tight control of civilian life. He provides clear examples of this by looking at the control of the media, public schools, and military. Ienage also does an amazing job at providing an analytical viewpoint of Japanese
”(Doc. A) Great Britain, Japan announced its new policy and invaded Manchuria and Japan. The U.S. was concerned about Japan’s behavior but did not take war actions so they stopped trading with them. President Franklin moved U.S. Navy from California to Pearl Harbor with the Congress agreement. The United States became a major threat to Japan.
The motive for Japan’s plan to attack Midway Island was to claim dominant power over the Pacific Ocean and to...
Japan's actions from 1852 to 1945 were stimulated by an extensive aspiration to elude the providence of 19th-century China and also to overtake as a great power. When Japanese soldiers stormed into Manchuria in 1931, Japan commenced the first in the succession of
On June 4th, a legendary battle took pace over the pacific sea. The battle of midway was the turning for America in World War 2. The air attacks of Japan and America would continue for many days. America won the battle and took out half of Japans carriers. It battle was a great victory for America, considering the fact that japan had much greater forces. This battle was the start of America taking control of the war over the pacific. This battle took place six months after japans first strike a Pearl Harbor. Many histories say this was the greatest air battle of all time. America not only proved that numbers didn’t matter, but showed that only leaders with clear eyes and soldiers with heart can win a battle of any size.
Japan figured if it wanted to survive, it would have to expand to get more materials. o neal 410-413. Japan started trying to take over Asia. They landed on the east coast of China in Manchuria and stationed troops there in order to try to take over northeastern China. ("Japan Launches A Surprise Attack on Pearl Harbor: December 7, 1941").
Both the Americans and the Japanese had specific reasons to become involved in this battle, with goals of victory. The Japanese wanted to fight so that they could cut off sea routes between Australia and America. If the Japanese could keep control of the island, they would be able to begin building an airfield, made for both fighters and bombers. This meant that the U.S. Marines and Navy had an important job to secure the region in a method known as Island Hopping. Americans wanted to fight so that they could protect the allies from the Japanese. If Americans ended up controlling the island, they would be better able to protect Australia from the Japanese Invasion. They could also protect allied build-up in Australia that would act as a “springboard” for major assault on the Japanese. Both sides were completely against each other’s goals. USA wanted to protect Australia, and Japan wanted to prevent the help from the U.S.
Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima. Oxford: Osprey, 2007. .
With the outcome of the Battle of Pearl Harbor not accomplishing Japans ideals and retaliation was for certain. The island of Midway started preparing for a battle, “After the somewhat shaking events of 7 December, Midway, no less than Pearl Harbor, prepared for the worst with full anticipation that it would come” (Heinl, 16). Within two weeks new shipments of aircrafts and US troops to the island had arrived to stockpile resources. The United States was preparing to defend their fleet and resources involved. The attack on Pearl Harbor opened up the idea to American that the war had already started whether people kne...
Why did the event take place - During the 1930s Japan invaded and occupied large parts of China. By 1941 Japan also controlled Indochina (a federation of French colonies and protectorates in South East Asia). In December 1941 Japan bombed the Americans at Pearl Harbour and entered the Second World War. Within 10 weeks Japan controlled Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and the Australian territory of new Britain (Rabaul). The Japanese thought that Darwin was a threat because the Allies ( their enemies ) were able to regroup in Darwin Harbour which it was a key defensive position