Transcript Allied Victory in the Pacific

Do Now.
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Was the United States justified in dropping
the atomic bomb on Japan?
Allied Victory in
the Pacific
The Pacific
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Fighting in the Pacific was fierce—
bushido—code of the warrior
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Fighting an enemy in a hopeless situation, defeat
is a disgrace
“If you tried to help one of the Japanese, he’s
usually detonate a grenade and kill himself as
well as you”
Island-hopping
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Air and sea power were keys to victory—allies
strategically attack and seize only certain
Japanese held islands
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Makin or (Butaritari) -taken first as a distraction (August 17 1942)
Tarawa (1943)—fierce resistance, US gains control of
vital airstrip
Saipan (1944)—decisive victory—Japanese air force hit
hard
Philippines—(Douglas MacArthur)
th
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Battle of Leyte Gulf—last and largest naval battle in the
Pacific—Japanese no longer a serious threat after this
Pacific Battle Outline.
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http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/p
acificwar/timeline.htm
Battle of Iwo Jima
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Japanese fight as fiercely as ever in spite
of certain overall defeat
4,000 U.S. Marines killed, 20,000 Japanese
fighters killed in six weeks
Marines struggle to Mount Suribachi—
Pulitzer Prize winning photo taken…
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U.S. Marines
storm Mount
Suribachi in Iwo
Jima
Battle of Okinawa
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Bloodiest in the Pacific
Japanese do not challenge the landing of allied
troops—Why?
700 planes with 350 Kamikaze pilots attack US
Naval force 5 days later
Japanese ground troops fight to the death—U.S
troops need to go into each individual cave on the
island with flame throwers
U.S. wins the battle with almost 50,000 casualties
Japan suffers about 110,000
The Atomic Bomb (the Manhattan
Project)
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Roosevelt dies on April 12th 1945 in the midst of war with Japan
He did not anticipate a Japanese surrender-Harry S Truman faces a
difficult choice
Bomb developed between 1942 and 1945—successfully tested in New
Mexico
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A ground invasion of the rest of Japan would cause an estimated Million U.S.
causalities
We have this enormous weapon
What should the United States do?
August 6, the Enola Gay drops the bomb on Hiroshima killing about
100,000
Three days later, Nagasaki another 100,000 killed (Bock’s Car)
Cities are flattened and the Japanese officially surrender on September
2nd 1945
The world’s most devastating war was over.
Atomic Bomb Footage
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEaqbv3
WuF0
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperien
ce/features/primary-resources/trumanleaflets/
http://www.damninteresting.com/ww2america-warned-hiroshima-and-nagasakicitizens/