The Path To Victory In The Pacific

Douglas MacArthur

The most important person in Japanese history in the twentieth century, hit-and-miss in the US. Sent to the Philippines in late 1941. Told to go until Navy rescue you. Sees “War Plan Orange” as hopeless. So he attempts to modernize Philippine defenses. Believes war will not come before April 1942

Bataan Peninsula

MacArthur moved too late, didn’t bring enough food and supplies. Japanese besiege, then advance southward. Surrender in April, Corregidor in May. Biggest surrender of US to foreign since revolutionary war. HUGE LOSS

Bataan’s Legacy

MacArthur, said he’d come back after being ordered to leave. His troops stayed behind. Ended in death march of 80,000 captives.

The Doolittle Raid

April 18, 1942. Launched as a revenge strike, a morale booster. 16 B-25s take off early from carrier Hornet. 13 bomb Tokyo, hitting all sorts of things, 71/80 American flyers live to tell about it. Last four surviving pilots had their 70th reunion, opened brandy(2012). Has far more consequences than intended. Disastrous ones for China, thousands slaughtered. Confirms the Japanese commitment to Midway Ops

Coral Sea

May 4-8, 1942. Ships never saw one another. No gunfire. First strategic defeat for the Japanese. Damage seemed a tactical Japanese victory. 

Planning for Midway

Wanted to capture midway to stop anymore doolittle’s. Japan had no follow up plans after December. Plan to capture the island, make it forward base. Would seal “keyhole” and safeguard emperor

Midway- a really bad plan

Yamamoto violates many principles of war,  including the very basic “He who pursues two hares catches neither” Nagumo (still in command despite failure at Pearl?), to capture Midway, destroy the US fleet, and wants to block and run at the same time. Not good or possible. Folly to put carriers in front, then transports. What are battleships doing in the rear?

Also Attack Aleutians (Kiska/Attu)

Attacked many places December 7. Fooled US. Now attack and capture Attu and Kiska. Weakened their Midway force by one carrier.

Role Reversal from Pearl

Japan cocky, Americans on guard. And deciphered Japanese target of Midway.

Midway unfolds

Americans spot the Japanese fleet first. Land-based bombers fail. Zeroes wreck many. No fleet sightings, Nagumo bombs Midway. Buffalo fighters try, but fail to stop them. Still no fleet. Second wave to bomb Midway. Halfway throughthe process, Plane 4 sights fleet!

Midway turns in five minutes

The first wave of carrier-based planes arrive, cut to pieces by Japanese AA & aircraft. American dive-bomber squadrons arrive. Wade McClusky, arguably #1 hero of the battle. Attack from above, target rich-environment. Yorktown’s DBs arrive next, sink a third carrier

Midway Assessment

The turning point of the Pacific War. “If the battle had gone the other way, things would really have been in a hell of a mess”. Japan builds six more carriers by 1944. The United States builds ~90 of them! (Yorktown, for example, rebuilt bigger and better. This second one is on display in Charleston harbor)

Guadalcanal

Japanese labor battalion building an airfield, in hopes of cutting off supplies. 1st Marine Division lands on August 7, 1942. Japanese navy replies, sinks four US cruisers, though fails to follow through and finish off others. Japan makes several efforts to retake the island. Always at a pace behind the American buildup. Convoy ambushed, mauled November 14-15(japan attacked, we won). Coincided with American reinforcements. U.S. win

Guadalcanal Consequences

Japanese abandon campaign December 31, only time they voluntarily retreated. Japan lost 22K men, 15 ships, 860 aircraft! U.S. only lost 1000. Strategic initiative now with the Americans

Island Hopping

Through the East Indies, or Central Pacific? The Southern route favors the Army, MacArthur. Smaller central islands favor the Navy, Marines, Bybass, smaller islands. Focus on large islands with air bases. Maintain a two-pronged approach throughout. Overtaxes Japanese defenses, keeps them off-balance. Bypass many Japanese forces along the way, skip many small islands.

The Marianas

Are within 1500 miles of Tokyo. Bomber range, Capture Guam, Tinian, and Saipan, summer 44. Saipan had a garrison of 32,000 men (largest). Americans put 20K men on shore on the first day. Push Japanese back steadily. 16K US casualties. Many choose suicide. Nagumo among them. Yamamoto was shot down in 1943. “Saipan Ratio” 2:1 – with 1/7 KIA – for planners. Guam and Tinian were only slightly less bloody. Japan lost more; we won by quite a bit.

Leyte Gulf

Closest battle. MacArthur returns to the Philippines in October ‘44, Japanese plan a three-pronged counterattack. (Northern carrier force a decoy to lure US fleet, Southern/Central to force a pincer around Leyte). Halsey takes the bait, smashes decoy force. Southern force annihilated a la Tsushima! The U.S. Tennessee is at the head of the Southern force. Center force damaged, but gets through. The US won, helped by Filipinos who live there.

Kurita vs. Taffy 3 (Leyte Gulf)

Kurita turned around and took a different route, the force in position to attack the landing. “Taffy 3” (destroyers, escort carriers) opposes. Only thing protecting vulnerable US force. Taffy 3 decide to just fight like hell in hopes of buying enough time for reinforcements to arrive. For reasons still unknown, Kurita withdrew

Kamikaze

suicide bombers. October 25, 1944 Carrier St. Lo first victim. Struck by Lt. Seki. Tactic comes too late to make a diff

Peleliu

Tiny airstrip miles east of Philippines. Should have been bypassed. Wasn’t. Thick foliage and many caves. Cost Marines, Army, 9500 casualties. Supposed to take 3 days, took thirty. US win, but at what cost.

Executive Order 9066

Ordered Internment of Japanese-Americans. Taken to camps. Often grievous property loss. Over 100,000 interned. Really stupid. They were loyal Americans! official apology, came in 1989

A. Philip Randolph

Born in Jim Crow Florida, moved to New York City. Wanted to be a Shakespearean actor. Read The Souls of Black Folk, became famous as President of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP) (an almost entirely black union). Struggled in the 1920s, had more success under FDR, achieving better pay, a shorter work week, and overtime pay. Planned a March on Washington in 1941. Called in off when FDR issued Executive Order 8802 – The Fair Employment Act. Randolph later pushed Harry Truman to integrate the armed forces; Executive Order 9981 did this in 1948.