Transcript 3 Pacific War

JAPAN: The Pacific Theater
World War II
Hirohito’s Birth
 Hirohito was born in 1901
 His grandfather, still emperor then,
was known after his death as the
Meiji Emperor. He was responsible
for Japan’s renewed trade and
communication with the West after
many years of isolation.
 Emperor Meiji died in 1912 and
Hirohito’s father became the Taisho
Emperor.
Hirohito’s Youth
 Hirohito’s father was not strong, so Hirohito
became regent (he acted as emperor but his
father was still technically in charge) in 1921.
 Dec. 13, 1921– Japan, the United States, Britain
and France signed the Four-Power Pact to
respect the current state of the Pacific. None of
them would try to seize colonies from each
other.
 1926– Emperor Taisho died and Hirohito
became Emperor.
Young Emperor
 When Hirohito took the throne, he realized he
had less power than he thought– the navy and
military had both grown strong enough to veto
govt. decisions and act on their own.
 In 1927 the military attacked Manchuria–
Hirohito did not authorize this invasion, nor could
he stop it.
 In 1936, several army officers led a revolt to take
over the govt., but Hirohito crushed it.
Bonding with Germany
 In 1931, Japan fully invaded Manchuria.
 In 1937, Japan attacked China and began the
Second Sino-Japanese War.
 Hirohito did not suggest these attacks– his
ministers did– but he didn’t object to them either.
He was more concerned about a possible attack
from the Soviet Union.
 China and the Soviet Union were showing signs
of a possible alliance, which would split China
from its former alliance with Germany. So, Japan
decided to make friends with Germany.
Heading towards War
 In 1938, Japan attacked the Soviet Union, but
was defeated. China also kept blocking their
advances.
 So, they turned south, to Pacific islands held by
the US and several European nations, in an
attempt to expand their empire.
 In 1940– Hirohito signed the Tripartite Pact with
Germany and Italy—Japan could “have” the
Pacific as long as they did not interfere with
Germany and Italy’s attempts to conquer
Europe. All three countries wanted to keep the
US and Great Britain out of the Pacific.
European Theater vs. Pacific Theater
Waking a Sleeping Giant
Dec. 7, 1941– Japan bombed Pearl Harbor to
destroy the United States Pacific Fleet. They
were trying to prevent the US from interfering
as they took over the whole Pacific region, but
instead they drew the U.S. into the war.
Doolittle’s Raid
In response to Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. sent B25 bombers to bomb Tokyo from the USS Hornet. They
bombed factories and military targets inside Japan.
Pacific
 Fortunately for Japan, FDR and the US
decide to focus on defeating Hitler and
Germany first, so there were fewer Allied
troops fighting on that front.
 April, 1942: American and Filipino soldiers
under General MacArthur lost control of
the Philippines. The Japanese army
marched 76,000 allied soldiers including
12,000 Americans more than 60 miles.
Bataan Death March
Bataan Death March
Without food or water,
more than 5,000
Americans died.
Pacific Theater Leaders
 Admiral Chester Nimitz: Commander in Chief of the Pacific
Fleet and the Pacific Ocean Areas for U.S. and Allied air,
land, and sea forces.
 General Douglas MacArthur- American General and Field
Marshall of the Philippine Army; oversaw the occupation of
"I have returned" — General MacArthur returns to
Japan from 1945 to 1951.
the Philippines with Philippine President Sergio
Osmena to his right. (1945)
Admiral Nimitz
General MacArthur
Allied Strategy: Island Hopping- Bypass Japanese
strongholds and take surrounding islands instead
Battle of Coral Sea, May 1942
 Japan prepares for attack despite trying to
negotiate peace with the United States.
 U.S. and Australian
forces suffer heavy
losses at Coral Sea,
but kept the
Japanese from
taking Port Moresby
and ultimately
Australia.
Japan – 1942
Battle of Midway, June 1942
Japan and the U.S. fought over the tiny island that
included a strategically important American military
base. Many people think this battle changed the
direction of the Pacific war.
Battle of Leyte Gulf, Oct. 1944
 Largest naval battle in history: within minutes 5 of 8
battleships were sunk or sinking, and many of the
airfields were also destroyed
 U.S. and Australian forces decimate Japanese navy in
the Philippines.
 First organized use of the Kamikaze (suicide attacks by
military aviators from Japan against Allied naval
vessels) occurred during the Leyte Gulf Campaign
Battle of Midway, June 1942
 U.S. levels the playing field through
superior communications and intelligence.
 Admiral Nimitz was able to ambush the
Japanese at Midway.
Iwo Jima, Feb-Mar 1945
 "No other island received as much preliminary pounding as did Iwo Jima."
~Admiral Nimitz
 21,000 Japanese, burrowed in the volcanic rock of Iwo Jima, anxiously
awaited the American invaders; many went underground.
 The US sent more Marines to Iwo Jima than to any other battle: 110,000
Marines in 880 ships.
 The traditional justification for Iwo Jima's strategic importance to the United
States' war effort has been that it provided a landing and refueling site for
American bombers on missions to and from Japan, but it was also a crucial
emergency landing point for the B-29s carrying the atomic bombs destined
for Japan.
Mt. Suribachi
Change of Leadership in America
 April 12, 1945 – FDR dies, Harry Truman
becomes President
 July 25, 1945– Truman makes the decision
to end the war
Atomic Bomb
 Manhattan Project:
creation of the first
atomic bomb in Los
Alamos, New Mexico
(1942-1946)
 “Little Boy” (a gun-type
weapon) dropped on
Hiroshima
 “Fat Man” (implosiontype weapon) dropped
on Nagasaki
Enola Gay drops “Little Boy” over Hiroshima on Aug
6, 1945. Over 40,000 people are killed immediately,
and 100,000 more die over the next few months.
Hiroshima Poetry, Prose and Art
 I don't know what weapons World War III will be fought with,
but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.
~Albert Einstein
 Our technology has exceeded our humanity.
~Albert Einstein
 Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process
he does not become a monster. If you gaze too long into an
abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.
~Friedrich Nietzsche
 If more politicians knew poetry, and more poets knew politics,
I am convinced the world would be a little better place to live.
~John Fitzgerald Kennedy
 http://www.thehypertexts.com/Hiroshima%20Poetry%20Prose%20and%20Art.htm
Japan does not surrender.
Aug 9, 1945- “Fat Man” is dropped on Nagasaki. Another
40,000 people are killed, with 40,000 more dying over
the next 4 months.
USSR Steps In
 Between the two bombs, the Soviets,
according to the Yalta agreement, invaded
Japanese-held Manchuria. They quickly
defeated the Kwantung Army, which was the
largest Japanese fighting force.
Japanese tanks attacking
Soviet positions from
Manchuko.
V-J Day-Sept 2, 1945: Japan officially
surrenders aboard the USS Missouri
War is
Over!
Casualties of War: Military &
Civilian Deaths
 US: 418,500
 Germany:7,500,000
 Great Britain: 450,000
 France: 562,000
 Russia: 23,000,000
 Italy: 459,900
 Japan: 2,600,000
 TOTAL: 75 MILLION DEATHS
U.S. Occupation of Japan
 General MacArthur oversaw the
United States’ occupation of Japan.
He wanted to keep Emperor Hirohito
on the throne to calm the Japanese
people, so the former Prime Minister
Tojo Hideki was blamed for Japan’s
involvement in the war.
 MacArthur wanted to help rebuild
Japan, not punish them, so the U.S.
provided relief in the form of food,
money, and aid.
 Emperor Hirohito became a public
figure and a diplomat, traveling
around the world and helping Japan
build new bonds with other nations.
Impact of World War II
 Total war – nations destroyed, first use of
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the atomic bomb
Starvation & disease
Approx. 75 million dead
Creation of United Nations in 1945: 50
member nations, Security Council
Cold War: conflict between US & USSR