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Pearl Harbor
Hundreds of Japanese fighter planes ambushed the american navel base at Pearl Harbor. It is located near Honolulu, Hawaii. They wanted to eradicate our navy in the Pacific. -
Declaration of War
The United States Declared war on Japan after the bombing on Pearl Harbor. -
Battle of Coral Sea
This was the first air-sea battle in history. The Japanese were wanting to gain control of the Coral Sea. The American task force attacked them when they landed in the area. It was a strategic Allied victory. It lasted four days. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese and Americans fought this battle in the Pacific with aircrafts based on giant aircraft carriers. The United States destroyed hundreds of Japanese planes and regained control of the Pacific. The battle lasted four days. -
The Battle of Guadalcanal
This was the first major offensive victory for the Allies. The Japanese had troops stationed in the Solomon Islands, and the U.S. marines launched a surprise attack on them. They took control of the air base. Both sides suffered heavy losses. The Japanese were forced out by February 1943. -
Battle of Tarawa
In this battle the U.S. seized the Japanese-held island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands due to it being heavily fortified. The 18,000 marines that were sent were expected to quickly seize it, but problems were present. The marines took over the island after a 76-hour battle. -
Battle of Leyte
The Japanese wanted to converge three naval forces on Leyte Gulf, and successfully divert the U.S.. The U.S. destroyed one of the Japanese's forces causing the others to withdraw. This battle caused much of Japan's ability to move resources form Southeast Asia to the home islands to be difficult. This battle lasted till December 31, 1944. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The airstrips on Iwo Jima were important for the American aircraft to successfully launch its air strikes on Japan. It is known as the fiercest, bloodiest fighting experienced in the Pacific Theater during WWII. More than 6,000 U.S. Marines were killed and an estimated 20,000 Japanese. The U.S. wanted to gain/keep control over this area. It lasted till March 29th. -
Battle of Okinawa
This was the last and the biggest battle located in the Pacific islands. It involved 287,000 U.S. troops and 130,000 Japanese soldiers. They were battling over the air bases vital to the invasion of Japan. This battle lasted till June 15th of 1945. -
Hiroshima
Truman decided to use the atomic bomb to end the war quickly and prevent more U.S. casualties from happening. The Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. It killed about 78,000 people and injured 100,000 more. -
Nagasaki
A second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, killing another 40,000 people. Truman wanted to prevent further U.S. casualties and end the war quickly. -
End of the War
Japan surrenders to the United States. Their navy and air force were destroyed. They had extreme damage done to their Japanese cities due to the bombing, leaving their economy devastated. This is why they surrendered.
