The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also known as the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea was fought close to the Philippine islands of Leyte Samar and Luzon. It was a three day battle between US and Australian forces against Imperial Japanese Navy. It was the biggest naval battle of World War II. Some historians believe it has been the largest naval battle ever. The Battle of Leyte Gulf was the first battle where Japanese organized Kamikaze attacks and consisted of four battles: the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, the Battle of Suriago strait, the Battle of Cape Engaño, and the Battle of Samar.
On October 20th, American forces invaded Leyte Island as part of a strategy to remove Japan from the countries it had occupied in southeast Asia. The Japanese Navy moved almost all of its remaining naval vessels in attempt to defeat the allied invasion, they were stopped by the US Navy’s 3rd and 7th fleet. Due to this, the Japanese Navy suffered many casualties and surviving ships remained at their base for the rest of the war.
Also on October 20th 1944, the US Navy 6th fleets arrives on Leyte Island on a mission for the independence of the Philippines. Close naval support would be provided by the 7th fleet, on command by Vice Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid. The fleet contained US Navy units, the Australian Navy, which included heavy cruiser Shropshire and Australia, and the destroyer Arunta. The US 3rd fleet, commanded by Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr., would provide cover and support from farther away.
The US fleets had a defect in their plan, there was no single American Admiral in overall command. The 7th fleet and Kinkaid fell under MacArthur as Supreme Allied Commander Southwest Pacific, where the 3rd fleet reported to Nimitz in Pacific Ocean Area...
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...orce approaches the Suriago strait, they ran into a trap from the 7th fleet support force. The support force had six battleships, couple of them had been damaged before, four heavy and light cruisers, and many destroyers and torpedo boats. If Nishimura wanted to keep moving forward, he would have to out run the torpedoes, survive attacks from the destroyers, and then fight against battleships. Nishimura was able to bypass the torpedoes’ boats, but soon after was attacked by US destroyers from both sides. One the battleships was hit by many torpedoes and sunk, while the other one was able to get away with damage. Two destroyers were sunk and one the remaining two was hit but was able to leave but later on it sunk.
A second striking force was behind Nishimura’s fleet. This striking force was the support of Nishimura’s southern force. It was commanded by Admiral Shima
The Northerners were warned about this ironclad “monster” and were waiting for this moment a long time. When the Merrimac came into view she fought the Cumberland and ended up destroying it. The shell burst into the rail and knocked down nine men of the Cumberland. In the end the Merrimac destroyed the Cumberland. But no ship in the navy ever fought as hard or as brave as the Cumberland did.
Tinian is a small island in the Marianas group lying approximately 3,500 miles west of Hawaii and 1,400 miles southeast of Tokyo Japan. The island was discovered by Ferdinand Magellan who landed on the island of Guam first in 1521. The island remained under Spanish control for centuries. Tinian remained under Spanish control until the Spanish-American war of 1898, when the American cruiser USS Charleston entered the harbor in Guam to claim that island. Spain took notice at the end of the war and sold the remaining islands of the Marianas to include Tinian to Germany. Germany’s regime lasted shortly when the first world war and seized the Mariana Islands except for Guam which remained under US control. The native people of the Marianas are known as Chamorros, and the native language is Chamorro. Although the original language is now mixed with Spanish, German, and Japanese, it is still thought until today.
Dubbed the largest battle between aircraft carriers, the World War two, Battle of the Philippine Sea was also the most lopsided modern naval victory ever. Like shooting fish in a barrel or a sitting duck the United States forces easily shot Japanese planes out of the sky and sunk their ships. The object of the battle was control of the Mariana Islands. The Japanese who had initiated the fight with us were strategically using the islands in the Philippine Sea as a defense for their homeland. The United States however also had a vested interest in these islands as they would help us project our forces into reaching distance of Japan. Though the Japanese had the upper hand in the Battle of the Philippines, the United States was able to overcome its disadvantages with superior command, equipment, and training.
The battle of midway was then to follow, being know now as the most stunning and decisive blow in naval history. The following battle was the battle of Leyte Gulf was decisive in that it destroyed much of the remaining Japanese surface fleet while virtually ending Japan’s ability to move resources from Southeast Asia to the home islands. On Feb.19.1945 in Iwo Jima, Americans invade the island and use it as an airbase to get closer to
Blair Jr., Clay, (1975). Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War Against Japan. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, p. 78. p. 1072. Buell, Thomas B. -. (1987)
On December 7th 1941, Japanese Planes and submarines attacked the United States Naval base at Pearl Harbor. This event singlehandedly brought the U.S from its then neutral stance in World War Two to a fighting member of the “Allied Powers.” Pearl Harbor was the first of a long series of confrontations between the U.S and the Japanese in an effort to gain control of the Pacific. Unlike the “War in Europe” the Pacific strategy was dominated by naval and aerial battles, with the occasional land-based “Island Hopping” Campaign. As such, one of the most important factors in the war in the pacific was Fleet Size, the more ships a country could send to war, the better. Pearl Harbor was the Japanese’s way of trying to deal with the massive U.S Pacific fleet. However, Pearl Harbor was not the turning point of the war. After December 7th the United States began work on numerous technological developments which would ultimately help them in one of the most important battles of WWII, the largest naval confrontation of the war, The Battle of Midway. The battle, which took place from June 4th to June 7th , 1942 is widely considered the turning point of the Pacific Theater (James & Wells). Through the Post-Pearl Harbor desire for “Revenge” and various technological advantages including code breaking and radar, the U.S were able to outsmart the Japanese at Midway and ultimately win the battle, eventually leading to a victory in the Pacific.
Last and biggest of the Pacific island battles of World War II, the Okinawa campaign (April 1—June 22, 1945) involved the 287,000 troops of the U.S. Tenth Army against 130,000 soldiers of the Japanese Thirty-second Army. At stake were air bases vital to the projected invasion of Japan ("Battle of Okinawa," 1996). The Battle of Okinawa remembered more for its iconic photograph of US Marines raising the US flag on Okinawa more so than any other war or battle ever fought. Okinawa the largest of the Ryukus islands played a major role in the American forces overall strategic efforts to advance to the mainland’s of Japan. Because it was the last major battle of WWII, the battle of Okinawa used lessons learned and TTP’s from all previous battles with the Japanese to successfully employ combined striking power of the services and techniques of amphibious operations.
In the spring of 1942, the Japanese had great gains in the Far East. The conquest of the Philippines, Burma, Malaya, and Dutch East Indies had cost the Japanese Navy 23 warships. Also, 67 transportation ships had also been lost. The naval command had expected a greater loss. Some of the people thought it would be best if they continue spearheading territorial gains, Admiral Nagano was a supporter of these. Others, followed Admiral Yamamoto, wanted to an all out attack on America's aircraft. Yamamoto believed that the destruction of America's aircraft, would make sure they had a security for Japan. Because of these, Yamamoto wanted an attack on Midway, as he believed that such an attack would definitely draw the American navy into a battle, which he believe that Japan would win.
On June 21, all the loose ends were tied up, and America had won Okinawa. Okinawa was needed by the Allies to attack mainland Japan. After obtaining it, Okinawa would be used as a staging ground for the attack. The several airfields that were on it made it vital if Japan were to be conquered. Before the troops landed on the island, 13,000 rounds were fired at it.
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.
This is how the battle of the coral sea began. Japan was fighting against Australia and America for their land and ports. This is what happens during the battle of the coral sea. It first began when japan tried to invade the land that Australia owned. The war started on may, 4th 1942 over the coral sea. Australia began to fight back and made an alliance with America. America began helping Australia fight against Japan. They were fighting for the land in the pacific. Both of the sides began to bomb their opponents boats and aircrafts. Australia also bombed the port of moresby on the edge of japan.
A decisive US victory on the island of Iwo Jima later played a pivotal role in the overarching defeat of the Japanese Empire and its Armed Forces (Morison, 1945). On 9 July 1944, 2nd Marine Division, 4th Marine Division, and 27th Infantry Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Holland Smith, defeated the 43rd Division of the Imperial Japanese Army, commanded by Lieutenant General Yoshitsugu Saito, capturing the Saipan (Moore, 2002), a 44.55 sq. mile island located in the Northern Mariana Islands, approximately 1,465 miles south of Tokyo, Japan. The capture of Saipan was strategically important for U.S. and Allied Forces, as it was logistically relevant, due to its location from Tokyo. "It was the decisive battle of the Pacific offensive [.]
The bombs the American had sent out only made it easier for the Japanese. What it had done was to churn up the beaches and the immediate hinterland and had given the Japanese far more opportunities to find hiding-holes for snipers. They had dug all sorts of tunnels and hiding places all over the island. The Japanese waited patiently for more Marines to get on shore to attack, many Marines were killed using that tactic. The battle went on for days.
There was also confusion over unity of command. Admiral McDonald, commander of LANTCOM, made two errors in command and control. He did not assign one his subordinate commanders to act as the overall director of ground forces no matter what the service and he did not select the commander of XVIII Airborne Corps as the leader of Army forces. The lack of a single commander meant that coordination between the Marines and the Army was minimal. The lack of a designated ground force commander and the omission of XVIII airborne Corps muddied the commander’s intent. The services would have been ...
I don’t believe the Philippine War was justified. There are more ways than war to solve the annexation of the Philippines. I agree on some of the policies, but not all of the policies, that were in place during that time period.