Summary of Joseph Wheelan's Bloody Okinawa

Everest Media

Description

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.
Sample Book Insights:
#1 The American military leaders were debating what should come next after the capture of the Mariana Islands in 1944. Should American forces attack Luzon, the largest Philippine island, or invade Formosa. They decided to invade Luzon.
#2 The American military had grown by leaps and bounds in just three years, and was now a world-striding giant wielding astonishing power. Japan was unsure of the Allies’ intentions, and had vacillated between preparing for landings on Formosa and Okinawa.
#3 The US government began interviewing scholars and specialists about the history, culture, politics, and economics of the Ryukyu Islands in 1944, anticipating an invasion in the future. Okinawa was the most populous island to be invaded during the Pacific war by the Allies.
#4 The native religion was a synthesis of indigenous Okinawa religions and Shintoism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The islanders were stoical and easygoing people known for their courtesy and gentleness. They were racially distinct from the Japanese, and were regarded as second-class Japanese citizens.

Sujets

• Religion
• Histoire
• Military
• Naval
• History
• Politique

Informations

• Publié par: Everest Media LLC
• Date de parution: 23 juillet 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9798822546431
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Insights on Joseph Wheelan's Bloody Okinawa
Contents Insights from Chapter 1 Insights from Chapter 2 Insights from Chapter 3 Insights from Chapter 4 Insights from Chapter 5 Insights from Chapter 6 Insights from Chapter 7 Insights from Chapter 8 Insights from Chapter 9 Insights from Chapter 10 Insights from Chapter 11 Insights from Chapter 12 Insights from Chapter 13 Insights from Chapter 14 Insights from Chapter 15 Insights from Chapter 16 Insights from Chapter 17
Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The American military leaders were debating what should come next after the capture of the Mariana Islands in 1944. Should American forces attack Luzon, the largest Philippine island, or invade Formosa. They decided to invade Luzon.

#2

The American military had grown by leaps and bounds in just three years, and was now a world-striding giant wielding astonishing power. Japan was unsure of the Allies’ intentions, and had vacillated between preparing for landings on Formosa and Okinawa.

#3

The US government began interviewing scholars and specialists about the history, culture, politics, and economics of the Ryukyu Islands in 1944, anticipating an invasion in the future. Okinawa was the most populous island to be invaded during the Pacific war by the Allies.

#4

The native religion was a synthesis of indigenous Okinawa religions and Shintoism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The islanders were stoical and easygoing people known for their courtesy and gentleness. They were racially distinct from the Japanese, and were regarded as second-class Japanese citizens.

#5

The Ryukyus were invaded by Japan in 1875, and the last king was exiled to Tokyo. In 1894–95, Japan defeated China in the First Sino-Japanese War and acquired Formosa. The Shuri palace, its grounds, and the mansions of Shuri noblemen were destroyed.

#6

The Pacific Ocean Area Forces commander, Admiral Chester Nimitz, developed a tremor due to nervous tension. His doctor suggested that he take up target shooting. Nimitz set up a pistol range outside his Pearl Harbor office and practiced with a. 45 automatic that had been modified to fire. 22-caliber ammunition.

#7

The American invasion of Saipan in July 1944 marked a tectonic shift in the Pacific war. It meant that long-range B-29s could now bomb the homeland, and that it was just a matter of time before there would be an Allied invasion of Japan.

#8

On March 9,334 B-29s from the XXI Bomber Command flew to Tokyo. The planes carried 184 napalm and incendiary bombs, which were designed to cause maximum damage and casualties. The B-29s’ cargo was designed to cause maximum damage and casualties: 8,519 incendiary bomb clusters would release 496,000 bomb cylinders.

#9

The B-29 raids and the strikes by Admiral Mitscher’s carriers off the coast shocked Japanese officials, but the government responded by recruiting more kamikaze pilots and forming new squadrons.

#10

The invasion of Japan would be the culmination of twenty years of advances in amphibious warfare and naval aviation. The rise of naval air power was in step with innovations in amphibious warfare doctrine.

#11

The 77th Infantry Division, which was assigned to land on Kerama Retto and Keise Shima, the two small islands off Okinawa's west coast, carried out the first amphibious landings of Operation Iceberg.

#12

The islands west of Naha, known as Kerama Retto, would serve as a sheltered anchorage where the Fifth Fleet could rearm, refuel, and resupply. They were also a base from which Navy patrol bombers could conduct anti-submarine and search-and-rescue operations.

#13

The first American landings at Kerama Retto, Japan, were on March 26, 1945. The islands were the home of a Japanese Special Attack Unit that operated bomb-laden, 28-foot-long plywood speedboats designed to attack and destroy US transports and landing craft.

#14

On Saipan, American troops had seen the poisonous effects of years of anti-American propaganda: the suicides of up to ten thousand civilians who hurled themselves and their families from cliffs, drowned themselves in the sea, or killed themselves with knives and grenades.

#15

The American invasion of Kerama Retto was successful, and the island was secured late March 28. The Japanese soldiers there did not resist, and the Americans took them prisoner. The Americans then began transforming the island into a roadstead.

#16

The invasion of Okinawa was going to be a difficult one. The island was honeycombed with caves, tunnels, and gun emplacements, and the invading force faced a tough job.
Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The largest amphibious operation in history was underway off the coast of Okinawa on Easter Sunday morning. The troops and 747,000 tons of supplies had been assembled at 11 ports after having been loaded at ports spanning thousands of miles.

#2

The American bombardment of the landing beaches and the bluffs behind them was stupendous, and the troops did not go ashore until 8:30 a. m. in synchronicity with high tide. The Japanese buildup in the Shuri Castle area was a surprise for the Tenth Army.

#3

The first assault waves left the ships at 7:59 a. m. The amphibious landings were extremely well planned and executed. They were a mix of choreography and blunt force.

#4

The invasion of Okinawa was a success, despite the weak resistance. It was a source of astonishment for the planners, who had predicted that some units would sustain 80 percent casualties.

#5

The landing on Okinawa was a surprisingly easy task for the Americans, as the Japanese only put up a token defense. The Thirty-Second Army’s commander, General Mitsuru Ushijima, and his staff had elected to mount only a token defense of the landing beaches.

#6

The Imperial Japanese Army planned to inflict as many casualties as possible on the American invaders, and to break their will. However, the delaying tactics employed by the Thirty-Second Army did not go as planned, and the Japanese were eventually crushed by the veteran American troops.

#7

The Thirty-Second Army’s headquarters was located near Shuri Heights, and was the largest and most fully developed cave complex on Okinawa. It was honeycombed with natural and man-made caves, and its 60 miles of underground fortifications were practically invisible to US aerial reconnaissance.

#8

The landing force encountered the first casualties of L-Day when a kamikaze crashed LST-884, which had three hundred Marines aboard. The explosion and fire killed twenty-four Marines and sailors. A second suicide plane smashed into the transport Hinsdale, claiming sixteen more lives.

#9

On April 1, the American forces quickly captured the airfields at Yontan and Kadena, and the 7th Division’s 17th Regiment chopped Okinawa in half at its waist, seizing the highlands that overlooked Nakagusuku Bay on the eastern, Pacific Ocean side of the island.

#10

The first civilian captives were moved into evacuated villages in peaceful areas. Service troops began building military government compounds, each designed to hold twenty-five hundred to ten thousand civilians.

#11

By the end of April 3, the Tenth Army had reached the objectives set for April 15. The Americans were confused about what the Japanese were doing, and Sledge worried that the new men were being lulled into a false sense of well-being.

#12

The 1st Marine Division consolidated its position in the island midsection on April 3, and the 6th Marine Division pushed north, while the 96th and 7th Divisions of XXIV Corps wheeled to the right toward southern Okinawa.