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Pearl Harbor
In the morning, Japanese pilots dropped bombs on Pearl Harbor. The attack lasted two hours. More than 2,000 Americans died. The next day, FDR declared war on Japan. Germany and Italy declared war on the US three days later. -
Loss of Phillipines and Bataan Death March
This event showed how cruel the Japanese were. The march went from Mariveles, Bataan, to San Fernando, Pampanga. It was a total of 60 miles. Along the way, the weak were killed off and many people were beaten and abused. A total of 1,600 American, and as many as 20,000 Filipino dead. -
Battle of Java Sea
ABDA Admiral Karl Doorman and Japanese Admirals Takeo Takagi and Shoji Nishimura. The battle was a victory for the Japanese and effectively ended meaningful naval resistance by ABDA forces. 2,300 forces killed. -
Doolittle Raid
US air raid that struck the Japanese home islands. The raid tremendously increased American morale. The Japanese lost four fleet carriers and never fully recovered after this attack. While the Japs were searching for Doolittle's men that had crashed down, they killed more then 250,000 Chinese civilians. -
Island Hopping Strategy
Island hopping is a term used to describe what the US did in order to control many small islands in the Pacific. It was led by General Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. they would take control of the islands and build bases and landing strips. Soldiers werent used to this kind of fighting and some died of disease. In the end, it qwas succuessful, because we gained many new locations. -
Battle of Coral Sea
This was the first air-sea battle in history. When the Japanese landed in New Guinea, the Americans attacked them with aircraft carriers, under Admiral Frank J. Fletcher. Even though both sides were damaged during this fight, it left the Japanese unable to cover the ground attack of Port Moresby, which led to an Allied victory. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese attacked MIdway Island to lure the US in. The Japs had the advantage in number of ships and carriers, but the US had naval intelligence. They successfully decoded some of their codes and that gave them the advantage. Admrial NImitz led his troops to battle. American planes broke through the barier and this led to an American victory. -
Guadalcanal
The US needed to build up a base in the Soloman Islands. The island was a ruthless place to fight because of all of the isects and heat. The fight lasted 6 months until the Japs finally fled the island. It was a key moment in the war. -
Battle of Leyte Gulf
AT the beginning of this war, The US held a strong advantage in number of ships. In this war, The Japs used a new major form of weapon, kamikaze. Kamikazes are poliots who load their plance with bombs and crash into American vessels and bases. The US was still victorious, but the Allies feared the kamikaze. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The marines managed to capture the island's tallest point, Mount Suribachi. The US thought the battle was over but the Japs refused to surrender. In total, 7,000 Americans died while nearly 20,000 Japs died. -
Battle of Okinawa
Allies invaded the island. The Japanese foces retreated to the southern tip of the island to plan their attack. The Japs used caves and tunnels to hide in and launch deadly assaults. Over 12,000 Americans died. the Japs lost a total of 110,000 soldiers. The US gained control of the island. -
Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima
An American B-29 named the Enola Gay flew over the city of Hiroshima and dropped its atomic bomb. Instantly, 80,000 people perished. Not to mention the death brought to people later on from the radiation. Despite this, Japan refused to surrender. -
Atomic Bomb on Nagasaki
Three days after the bombing of Hiroshima, the US dropped another bomb on the city of Nagasaki. The death toll there was 40,000. Although after this attack the emperor wanted to surrender, the military refused. -
V-J Day!
Finally, after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Emperor Hirohito announced the end of the war in a radio broadcast. It was the first time Japanese people had ever heard his voice. This effectively ended WWII as we know it!
