Transcript december 7, 1941

DECEMBER 7,
1941
“A DAY THAT WILL
LIVE IN INFAMY”
ALLIED STRATEGY
1942-1945
GET HITLER FIRST
 FIGHT A DELAYING ACTION
VERSUS THE JAPANESE IN THE
PACIFIC.
 CONCENTRATE ALL REMAINING
EFFORTS AGAINST THE JAPANESE
ONCE THE GERMANS WERE
DEFEATED

Admiral Yamamoto
Believed that America
was a “sleeping
giant”
THE 5 YEAR PLAN
STRIKE AT THE ENEMIES
STRENGTH, PEARL HARBOR.
 FAN OUT AND CAPTURE AS MUCH
TERRITORY AS POSSIBLE.
 “DIG IN” AND HOLD ON FOR AS
LONG AS POSSIBLE.
 TRY TO EXTEND THE CONFLICT
FOR MORE THAN 5 YEARS.

Expand and “Dig in”
YAMAMOTO’S
REASON
THE AMERICAN PUBLIC
CAN ONLY SUPPORT A
WAR FOR NO MORE
THAN 5 YEARS.
Anti-war sentiment
PLAY FOR A TIE
BY EXTENDING THE WAR
AMERICANS WILL CLAMOR FOR
THE WAR TO STOP.
 TOO MUCH MONEY, TIME, AND
EFFORT BEING SPENT.
 CASUALTY TOTALS WILL
CONTINUE TO MOUNT
 U.S. WILL BE FORCED TO SUE FOR
PEACE ON JAPAN’S TERMS.

Guadalcanal 1942-43
The first chance the Allies would get to
see the level of Japanese resistance
was with the invasion of Guadalcanal.
 After months of hard fighting and loss
of life, Allied commanders began to rethink our “comeback strategy”

Guadalcanal
“Island Hopping”
US strategy was to “shorten” the war by
only taking certain islands and “bypassing” others.
 This caused thousands of Japanese
soldiers to be “cut off”
 The war was shortened but it didn’t
mean it was going to be easier combat.

Two paths back to
Japan
Yamamoto’s Death
April 18, 1943 – US planes ambush
Yamamoto’s plane.
 Japan loses its #1 strategist.
 He would not live to see his strategy
fail.

“I shall return”
Gen. MacArthur finally keeps his
promise made in early 1942, when his
forces land in the Philippines in 1944.
 Heavy fighting both on land and in the
waters surrounding the Philippines mark
the end of Japan’s control of the
Philippines.

The US Marines “island hop”
across the Central Pacific
Several key battles lead to US victory
but at an ever increasing toll in lives.
 Japanese resistance increases as we
moved closer to the home islands of
Japan.
 Iwo Jima, Tinian, Saipan, Guam.
 US builds airfields on Tinian to launch
B-29 bombing raids on Japan.

Iwo Jima
Kamikaze Attacks and Banzai
Charges
Kamikaze attacks begin with the
invasion of the Philippines.
 They continue in intensity with each
invasion.
 Japanese suicide planes crash onto US
warships (Divine Wind)
 Japanese troops on land resort to
Suicide “banzai charges” in an effort to
defeat the US.

Kamikaze or “Divine Wind”
Okinawa
Okinawa (March-June 1945) was the
last battle of WWII.
 US forces encounter Japanese civilians
in large numbers for the first time in the
war.
 Soldiers and civilians refuse to
surrender and choose suicide instead.

Suicide Cliff, Okinawa
“Operation Olympic”
Plans for the invasion of Japan started
during the battle of Okinawa.
 Estimates of US casualties started at
500,000 just to land on the beach.
 Fear of Japanese civilian and military
resistance raised the enemy totals to
the millions…(Kamikaze’s, banzai
charges)

The Final Invasion????
What were the alternatives to
invasion…?
Operation Starvation – continued
blockade of Japan to force starvation on
the population.
 Fire bomb raids on Japanese cities –
continue the onslaught on Japan with
our air force.
 Invade…..
 Or drop the Atomic Bombs on them
with out warning.


Warn the Japanese of the ultimate
weapon and show them a test
detonation…

Which option would you make if you
were President Truman?????
V-J Day September 2, 1945