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Japan Invades China
Japan, hungry to raise its empire to be larger, had invaded Manchura, China for its resources in 1931, despite concerns from the League of Nations. In 1937, however, the Japanese-Chinese conflict blew into full-scale war when the Japanese continue to seep into northern China. Beijing and the capital of China, Nanjing, fell to the Japanese. Germany, the Soviet Union, and the United States came to China’s aid, involving the world’s great military powers into the Asia/Pacific front. -
War Begins
With Germany’s surprise lightening attack, blitzrieg, on Poland sets off the real war time. However, at this time, the U.S. was not willing to be involved and took a neutral stance. However, the U.S. forces would soon be dragged into the World War in the Asian front. -
Seizure of Indochina, Complete Oil Embargo for Japan
Japan continued to increased their power over the European governments in southeast Asia. French government had lost the French Indochina Japan. In response, western governments including United Kingdom and the United States placed a complete embargo on oil to Japan, which meant that Japan could either stop its ambition or further seize Chinese natural resources by force. Japan would choose to further dominate southeast Asia and push forward into the Central Pacific. -
Pearl Harbor: Japan Attacks the U.S.
The Japanese surprised the U.S. by attacking Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The U.S. had cut off oil shipments to Japan and aided China's resistance during Japan's invasion of China. Bitter at the U.S. the Japanese launched a surprise attacked that suck 19 U.S. ships including 8 battle ships, killed more than 2,300 Americans and injured more than 1,100. This day will live in infamy, and President Roosevelt quickly declared war on Japan and its allies. -
Battle of Bataan: the Death March
The capture of the Philippine Islands was crucial to the Japanese Empire for gaining control of the Southwest Pacific. The Battle of Bataan was one of the most intense and aggressive dominance in Imperial Japan’s invasions. However, the Japanese were not able to handle the large number of prisoners of war (Filipino and American). The march to Balanga was long and characterized by prisoner abuse and deaths. -
Battle of Midway
The battle at Midway Island was a turning point for the American forces. The U.S. clenched a win against the Japanese, and flipped the tide for the Allied Forces in the Pacific. -
Allies Capture Guadalcanal
After six months of fighting on land and at sea, the U.S. defeated the Japanese at the Battle of Guadalcanal. The Japanese called the Solomon Islands in the Pacific the “Island of Death” because of their losses. General Douglas MacArthur had established a new offensive in the Southeast Asia and the Pacific. -
Japanese in Devastating Retreat after the Ba Leyte Gulf
After the defeat at Guadalcanal, the Japanese advances in the Pacific had been stopped. The Japanese lost disastrously at Leyte Gulf, in just four days, except the kamikazes were left. The Kamikazes sunk Allied ships, but at the point, the the Japanese only continued to retreat before Allied attacks. -
U.S. Marines take Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, an island 760 miles from Tokyo, after the bloodiest and the most horrific battles of the war for months, the Japanese gave a desperate fight to save their home soil.
