War in the Pacific

1

From Europe to the Pacific

• Now that the war in Europe had ended, it was time for the United States to focus on defeating the Japanese and end the war

2

Japanese Victories

• On the same day that the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, they attacked American bases in Guam and the Philippines
• They also invaded Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaya and Burma�
• After months of conflict, General MacArthur was ordered to leave the Philippines to defend Australia
• As a result, the Philippines surrendered to Japan and the troops were forced to walk over 60 miles to the prison camps
• At the prison camps, hundreds of Americans and thousands of Filipinos were killed
• This event is known as the Bataan Death March�

3

Turning the Tide

• In April of 1942, Americans launched air raids on Tokyo which helped boost American morale�
• In the Battle of Coral Sea, the Americans blocked Japanese forces from reaching Australia�
• In the Battle of Midway, American Naval forces destroyed four Japanese aircraft carriers

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4

Island Hopping

• U.S. General MacArthur adopted a strategy called Island Hopping
• This is the idea to capture small island, use each as a base to capture other island, and hop closer to the Philippines and Japan

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5

Battle of Leyte Gulf

• In the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the allies destroyed almost the entire Japanese navy.�
• Allied forces liberated Manila in March of 1945 and headed for Japan

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6

Reaching Japan

• The allied forces targeted two Japanese Islands: Iwo Jima and Okinawa
• The Japanese forces tried to use kamikazes to attack allied ships and gain the upper hand

7

A-Bomb

• J. Robert Oppenheimer was the scientist behind the Manhattan Project
• The Manhattan Project was the creation and testing of the Atomic Bomb
• President Truman knew that using the atomic bomb could end the war but it would also take thousands of civilians live
• Truman issued the Potsdam Declaration
• This said that if Japan did not surrender, the U.S. would inflict “prompt and utter destruction”

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A-Bomb

9

A-Bomb

• Japan did not take the threat seriously and did not surrender�
• On August 6, 1945: the airplane Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima
• At Least 75,000 people were killed in a single instant

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A-Bomb

• On August 9, the U.S. dropped another atomic bomb on the city of Nagasaki
• Over 200,000 civilians were killed
• Many of those who survived the bombings later died from radiation and horrific burns
• Those who did not die lived with severe health problems and disabilities

11

Peace

• Japan surrendered on August 15 which is now known as V-J Day (Victory in Japan)�
• On September 2nd, 1945, Japan officially signed the surrender documents and World War II was officially over

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