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Closing In
Iwo Jima
In November 1944, just months after the D-Day invasion on the European front, the Battle of Iwo Jima began. It was one of the bloodiest battles of the war with 25,000 American casualties. It started with 74 days of air raids to weaken Japanese forces. In February 1945, 110,000 U.S. troops stormed the beaches of Iwo Jima. Japan fought to the last defenders with only 216 left to surrender.
Marines raising an American flag on Iwo Jima. Corbis, Image, Discovery Education. Web. 28 July 2014.
Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa was April to June 1945. It was the last obstacle before an Allied invasion of Japan. Okinawa was second in size only to the Battle of Normandy as far as American and British involvement, with 180,000 combat troops used to drive the enemy from the island. In desperation, the Japanese resorted to more kamikaze and banzai attacks, which were suicide charges on foot by Japanese soldiers designed to kill as many of the enemy as possible before dying in battle.
Marines blasting a cave at Okinawa. IRC, 2005. Image. Discovery Education. Web. 28 July 2014.
Okinawa was the costliest battle in the Pacific with 50,000 American casualties. In addition, 90,000 Japanese soldiers, and 100,000 Okinawa civilians died.
Amphibious Tanks approaching Iwo Jima. Image. Discovery Education. Web. 28 July 2014.
Steps to End the War
Following the surrender of Germany on May 7, 1945, the Allied leaders met for the last conference of the war in Potsdam, Germany. Remember from Unit 7, Franklin Roosevelt died shortly after the Yalta Conference, which took place prior to the surrender. [At the Yalta Conference, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Josef Stalin pledged to hold free elections after the war in Eastern Europe and to divide Germany and Austria into three zones of occupation. Stalin also promised to enter the war against Japan.] Therefore, the new President, Harry Truman, represented the U.S. at Potsdam.
During the Potsdam Conference, the leaders made final decisions regarding the future of Germany and occupied Europe, determined a framework for the future war criminal trials, and called for an unconditional surrender from Japan. Truman, agreed with the call for an unconditional surrender, but was not optimistic that Japan would soon comply.
Before the Potsdam Conference had even ended, Japan rejected the Potsdam ultimatum. The war had been going on for over four years when President Truman and the other Allies were faced with the dilemma of how to get Japan to accept the terms for an unconditional surrender.
Stalin, Truman, Churchill at Postdam Conference. Image. Discovery Education. Web. 28 July 2014.
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