Battle Of Tarawa Essay

The U.S. Marine Corps’ is thought to be one of the five free standing military departments, but in all actuality there is only three departments. The U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy are the only branches of the military that are correctly recognized as their own departments. There are two other Branches of the military that are under the U.S. Navy, one is the United States Marine Corps’. They were created to protect, but now they need protecting from budget cuts and disbanding. In order to protect the Corps’, they need to become their own U.S. Department, with their own funding and supplies.

The Battle of the Philippine Sea was the end of Japanese competiveness in the air. This Battle gave way to the United States’ ability to project its military power further into the heart of Japan with little to no resistance from the Japanese Fleet in the form of aerial warfare. It also left the Japanese desperate to find new ways of fighting American naval forces in ways other than the standard convention. The Battle of the Philippine Sea was “not the decisive battle in World War II”7; however, it did help accelerate the United States’ takeover of the auxiliary islands with the destruction of Japanese conventional air warfare.

The Battle of the Wilderness was fought May 5-7 1864 in the course of the Civil War. The battle was one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War that had a great impact on the Virginia campaign and further development of the Civil War. At the same time, the battle ended in disengagement, which did not bring any clear results for either party, Grant’s army from the Union Part and Lee’s army from the Confederate part. Instead, fighting had to carry on but the battle influenced the balance of power in the region and marked the beginning of Southerners’ retreat and advancement of the Union army. Now let's talk about what influence the battle of the wilderness have on the Civil War. The Battle of the Wilderness

The American forces plan consisted of a “divide and conquer” methodology. The U.S. focused on landing its assault force expediently and quickly and securing Mt. Suribachi and dominant high ground of the island. The Americans expected victory in less than a week. Their forces consisted of the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Divisions. The 4th and 5th Marine Divisions were to land on the eastern beaches the 4th on the right and the 5th on the left. The 3rd Marines would either land on the eastern beaches or assume a defensive role, which ever was called (Planning for the Battle of Iwo Jima, n.d.).

The Battle of Kokoda was significant in that it saved Australia from a possible invasion, along with the bravery and tactics shown by Australian soldiers. This battle was one of the most important and difficult war in WW2 fought by the Australian soldiers. This battle was a four-month struggle from 21 July 1942 – 16 November 1942 which began with the Japanese landing in Papua in July 1942. The Kokoda track was a path that Ower’s Corner, approximately 40 km north-east of Port Moresby. Approximately 625 Australians were killed along the Kokoda trail and over 1,600 were wounded, the casualties due to sickness exceeded 4,000. The source chosen for the memorial box showed the bravery and courage shown by the Australian soldiers.

The contents of this paper reflect my own personal views and are not necessarily endorsed by the Navy War College or the Department of the Navy

We have all seen the famous photograph; four Marines and one Navy Sailor raising the flag on Mt. Suribachi on the island of Iwo Jima. This lasting image has come to represent the Marine Corps, the Pacific campaign, and for many World War II. Eventually becoming the inspiration for the Iwo Jima memorial outside Arlington cemetery overlooking Washington D.C. Geography has left it marks all over the battle for Iwo Jima, influencing everything from the strategic impact on the region to the propaganda and psychological warfare. Military geography was an important factor in the planning of the operation like most and also had a direct effect during operations. To understand the battle we must first understand the state of the Pacific conflict at

Island hopping was the Marine Corps strategy to fight the Japanese during World War 2. It was effect in winning the war. One island, Iwo Jima became one of the most important events that has taken place in American history. One of the most historical battles marines fought during the pacific campaign lead by General Douglas Macarthur.

A US Army General also stated that the deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and

The focus of this investigation will be ?To what extent was the Battle of Iwo Jima strategically important to American forces?? and will analyze the degree to which it influenced the end of the war. Whether the Battle of Iwo Jima was beneficial to American forces winning the war or not is an issue that has been debated for decades since

Japanese Admiral Keiji Shibasaki, confident in his command, reportedly bragged that the U.S. couldn’t take Tarawa with a million men in 100 years.” The two mile long island was covered with Japanese pillboxes, coastal guns, antiaircraft guns, light tanks, and a trench system that allowed efficient defensive movements for the Japanese. Day one of the battle was where the problems arose. The unexpectedly low tide caused problems for the landing Marines because their vehicles could not reach the beach. The Japanese bombarded the stranded Marines and began diminishing their resources. Due to this problem, the landing Marines were forced to leave the safety of their vehicles and walk through chest high water to the beach. This destroyed a lot of the electronics that the Marines were carrying to the beach. Since the Marines were easy targets, the “shore became congested with disabled landing crafts and bloodied bodies, which hindered the dispatching of reinforcements.” On day two of the battle, the tide began to rises allowing the United States Navy to provide bombardment from its destroyers. Finally, the Marines were able to move into the middle of the island and start their offensive. The final day of the battle, November 22nd, 1943, the United States forces were advancing into the Japanese defenses. The Marines kept destroying enemy pillboxes and defensive weapons. By the

To be offensive in war requires you to seize, retain, and exploit the initiative. Because of how the mission was planned, the Marines were directly placed on offense. The amphibious operation was key to the success of the United States. By being flexible, and using original tactics such as combining artillery, naval gunfire and tank support was crucial to the successful offensive combat the US needed to maintain throughout the entire battle. Even though the Marines suffered a huge number of casualties, the soldier’s maintained a level of courage and devotion until they had completely captured the island from the

Brown led the Army’s 7th Division of three regiments of infantry, four battalions of artillery, the 13th Combat Engineer Battalion, and the attachment of the 50th Combat Engineer Battalion.1 Nearly a year before the battle took place, June 3rd, 1942, the Japanese seized Attu with only natives living there. The Japanese reestablished a base on Attu on October 29, 1942 under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Hiroshi Yanekawa.1 The Japanese set up strong defensive positions with antiaircraft and numerous caches of arms, ammunition and food spread across different locations on the island. U.S. forces did not have such advantage and had a difficult time with logistics due to the unforgiving elements. The islands beaches consisted of muskeg which created very difficult circumstances for U.S. vehicles that the engineers were crucial in resolving. Although the harsh climate and terrain caused many problems for both sides, it was more impactful against the Japanese due to the long period of acclimation they endured.2

starts out with Marine Lieutenant General Holland M. Smith on the bridge of the command ship Mt. Olympus, off Iwo Jima on the morning of 23 February 1945 with Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal who said that the raising of our flag atop Mt. Suribachi means there will be an Marine Corps for the next five hundred years. Smith commented “When

Tarawa is an atoll about 2400 miles Southwest of Hawaii. Betio is its largest islet on 3 miles long and 1/2 miles wide on the west side with an airfield from east to west, with a lagoon bordering Tarawa to the north with a bordering reef extending offshore around 1,200 yard. The water of the lagoon was shallower however it was deeper on the south than the north shore which could give a better landing location.