How Did Ww2 Change The World
Seventy-five years ago, one word repeated three times changed the world forever. “Tora, Tora, Tora” was heard through the radios on Japanese fighter planes. They had been given the final go-ahead for their attack on pearl harbor. The pacific theater of World War Two was the most savage and cruel of the many fronts the war was fought on. The Pacific war had a large impact on the world as we know it. Some historians will argue that the second World War did not begin in 1939 with Hitler’s invasion of Poland. They would claim that the war began in 1931 when Japan invaded Manchuria. Manchuria was a region in northeastern China that was rich in natural resources. Japan pursued expansion for the same reasons as its allies in Europe. They believed that they were racially superior and desired more space for their people to live. The invasion of Manchuria is chronicled as extremely brutal as executions and rape were commonplace. The United States did little to prevent Japan’s atrocities until August of 1941 when President Roosevelt banned the sale of oil to
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Japan. This was seen by the Japanese as an aggression that had to be retaliated. That retaliation came on December 7th, 1941. Thousands of Japanese planes flew over Hawaii and dropped torpedoes on the unsuspecting American fleet stationed at pearl Harbor. Over three thousand Americans were killed in the Attack. Japan did not know it yet, but it had awoken a sleeping giant. The next day, President Roosevelt declared war on Japan. Germany and Italy in turn declared war on the United States. The United States had been brutally shaken out of isolationism. The United States had trouble finding itself in the early parts of the war.
Their most famous defeat came at the Philippines. The Japanese began their attack on the Philippines on the same day as the Pearl Harbor attack. The soldiers stationed in the Philippines were badly outnumbered and were being overrun on the Bataan peninsula. President Roosevelt commanded General Douglas MacArthur to flee. As General MacArthur was leaving, he made his famous vow saying: “I shall return.” Although General MacArthur fled, the GIs were left to fend for themselves. Without their general, they couldn’t last long. The American and Filipino soldiers defending the Philippines were forced to surrender. The American and Filipino soldiers were forced to march eighty miles in just six days to a prison camp. Anyone who stepped out of line or showed signs of fatigue was shot. A total of ten-thousand men died along the
way. The United States turned the tide of the war at the Battle of Midway. The Japanese planned to take the island of Midway to destroy the U.S. navy and use the island as a base for attacking Hawaii. American cryptographers broke the Japanese code and warned the American fleet about the upcoming attack. The United States ambushed the Japanese near Midway Island. The battle was mostly fought with airplanes as the opposing ships never came into view of each other. The battle was a decisive victory for the United States and a devastating blow for Japan. The Japanese lost all four of their large aircraft carriers and a heavy cruiser, while the United States only lost one carrier and a destroyer. On the United States’ mainland, everybody contributed to the war effort. People joined together to replace the twelve million men who served in the war. The demand for supplies fully lifted America from the Great Depression. Factories all over the country were repurpose to make machines of war. Over the course of the war, factories in the United States produced 124,000 ships, 100,000 tanks and armored vehicles, 310,00 airplanes, 12.5 million guns, and 41 million rounds of ammunition. The weapon that would end the war was kept hidden from the American people. Dr. Robert Oppenheimer headed a large team of scientists in Los Alamos, New Mexico. His team worked to weaponize the energy that was released when an atom was split. The first atomic bomb was successfully tested on July 16th, 1945. Meanwhile, The United States was inching closer to the heart of Japan. The U.S. used a strategy called island hopping to take territory from Japan. They would attack Islands that they deemed important strategic points and use them as bases for their next attack. They would pass over islands that they decided were unimportant. Two of the bloodiest battles of the war were Okinawa and Iwo Jima. On Iwo Jima, 70,000 American marines clashed with 22,000 fierce Japanese defenders. Almost all 22,000 Japanese were listed as casualties. 26,000 Americans were also listed as casualties. Iwo Jima was the only battle involving the marines where American casualties outnumbered Japanese On Okinawa 38,000 Americans were killed along with 12,000 wounded. 107,000 Japanese soldiers died along with 100,000 civilians. The capture of these two islands put Tokyo into the range of American B-29 bombers. As the war in Europe ended, Allied leaders prepared for an invasion of Japan’s mainland. Japan prepared every citizen to defend their homeland to their deaths. Americans were stationed on surrounding islands waiting for British reinforcements. Russia was racing an army across Siberia unbeknownst to the rest of the world, trying to claim their piece of the crumbling empire. New President Harry S. Truman was presented with a decision that would rattle the world. Truman authorized the use of the atomic bomb, much to the displeasure of General Macarthur. General MacArthur had hoped to be the man credited with victory in the pacific, and he hated the idea of a single bomb being the deciding factor. Colonel Paul Tibbets flew over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 in the Enola Gay and dropped the first bomb. Japan was devastated after the first bombing but they held on to hope that the Soviet Union would come to their aid. Three days later the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. The news of the second bombing came along with news that the Soviet Union had begun an invasion into Manchuria. Emperor Hirohito authorized unconditional surrender to the United States on August 15th, 1945. The surrender was formalized on the deck of the USS Missouri on September 2nd, 1945.
The Pacific theater of World War Two will always be a major piece of American history. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki remain the only two uses of Atomic weapons in the history of warfare. A sleeping giant was awoken with the words “Tora, Tora, Tora”, and that giant has never left.
Japan. This was seen by the Japanese as an aggression that had to be retaliated. That retaliation came on December 7th, 1941. Thousands of Japanese planes flew over Hawaii and dropped torpedoes on the unsuspecting American fleet stationed at pearl Harbor. Over three thousand Americans were killed in the Attack. Japan did not know it yet, but it had awoken a sleeping giant. The next day, President Roosevelt declared war on Japan. Germany and Italy in turn declared war on the United States. The United States had been brutally shaken out of isolationism. The United States had trouble finding itself in the early parts of the war.
Their most famous defeat came at the Philippines. The Japanese began their attack on the Philippines on the same day as the Pearl Harbor attack. The soldiers stationed in the Philippines were badly outnumbered and were being overrun on the Bataan peninsula. President Roosevelt commanded General Douglas MacArthur to flee. As General MacArthur was leaving, he made his famous vow saying: “I shall return.” Although General MacArthur fled, the GIs were left to fend for themselves. Without their general, they couldn’t last long. The American and Filipino soldiers defending the Philippines were forced to surrender. The American and Filipino soldiers were forced to march eighty miles in just six days to a prison camp. Anyone who stepped out of line or showed signs of fatigue was shot. A total of ten-thousand men died along the
way. The United States turned the tide of the war at the Battle of Midway. The Japanese planned to take the island of Midway to destroy the U.S. navy and use the island as a base for attacking Hawaii. American cryptographers broke the Japanese code and warned the American fleet about the upcoming attack. The United States ambushed the Japanese near Midway Island. The battle was mostly fought with airplanes as the opposing ships never came into view of each other. The battle was a decisive victory for the United States and a devastating blow for Japan. The Japanese lost all four of their large aircraft carriers and a heavy cruiser, while the United States only lost one carrier and a destroyer. On the United States’ mainland, everybody contributed to the war effort. People joined together to replace the twelve million men who served in the war. The demand for supplies fully lifted America from the Great Depression. Factories all over the country were repurpose to make machines of war. Over the course of the war, factories in the United States produced 124,000 ships, 100,000 tanks and armored vehicles, 310,00 airplanes, 12.5 million guns, and 41 million rounds of ammunition. The weapon that would end the war was kept hidden from the American people. Dr. Robert Oppenheimer headed a large team of scientists in Los Alamos, New Mexico. His team worked to weaponize the energy that was released when an atom was split. The first atomic bomb was successfully tested on July 16th, 1945. Meanwhile, The United States was inching closer to the heart of Japan. The U.S. used a strategy called island hopping to take territory from Japan. They would attack Islands that they deemed important strategic points and use them as bases for their next attack. They would pass over islands that they decided were unimportant. Two of the bloodiest battles of the war were Okinawa and Iwo Jima. On Iwo Jima, 70,000 American marines clashed with 22,000 fierce Japanese defenders. Almost all 22,000 Japanese were listed as casualties. 26,000 Americans were also listed as casualties. Iwo Jima was the only battle involving the marines where American casualties outnumbered Japanese On Okinawa 38,000 Americans were killed along with 12,000 wounded. 107,000 Japanese soldiers died along with 100,000 civilians. The capture of these two islands put Tokyo into the range of American B-29 bombers. As the war in Europe ended, Allied leaders prepared for an invasion of Japan’s mainland. Japan prepared every citizen to defend their homeland to their deaths. Americans were stationed on surrounding islands waiting for British reinforcements. Russia was racing an army across Siberia unbeknownst to the rest of the world, trying to claim their piece of the crumbling empire. New President Harry S. Truman was presented with a decision that would rattle the world. Truman authorized the use of the atomic bomb, much to the displeasure of General Macarthur. General MacArthur had hoped to be the man credited with victory in the pacific, and he hated the idea of a single bomb being the deciding factor. Colonel Paul Tibbets flew over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 in the Enola Gay and dropped the first bomb. Japan was devastated after the first bombing but they held on to hope that the Soviet Union would come to their aid. Three days later the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. The news of the second bombing came along with news that the Soviet Union had begun an invasion into Manchuria. Emperor Hirohito authorized unconditional surrender to the United States on August 15th, 1945. The surrender was formalized on the deck of the USS Missouri on September 2nd, 1945.
The Pacific theater of World War Two will always be a major piece of American history. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki remain the only two uses of Atomic weapons in the history of warfare. A sleeping giant was awoken with the words “Tora, Tora, Tora”, and that giant has never left.