In the autumn of 1944, Japan's absolute defense circle was completely opened by the United States, and the US military was close to attacking the Japanese mainland.
Beginning in October 1944, U.S. B-29 bombers took off from Saipan and carried out multiple rounds of air raids on Tokyo.
However, after several bombings by the US military, the effect was not good.
On the one hand, Saipan is about 2,300 kilometers away from Tokyo.
Although the maximum combat radius of the B-29 is 2900 km, it is the end of the crossbow after all.
In order to ensure the range, the pilots had to reduce the bomb load, which made each bomber only carry a maximum of 3 tons of bombs, which was only 30% of the maximum bomb load of the B-29.
And with such a long-distance air strike, the fighters will not be able to escort the whole process. For the sake of safety, bombers could only fly to an altitude of 8000 meters to drop bombs. The hit rate is greatly reduced.
For example, in an air raid on November 24, 1944, the U.S. military dispatched 88 bombers to drop more than 200 tons of bombs on Tokyo, but failed to hit even a worthy target.
On the other hand, there is also a Iwo Jima in the middle of the straight flight route from Saipan to Tokyo.
The Japanese army built a radar station on the island and deployed 40 fighters.
When the U.S. bombers took off from Saipan, the Japanese troops on Iwo Jima could not only send a warning to Tokyo in advance, but also dispatch fighters to intercept the U.S. bombers on the way, and even carry out long-range attacks on Saipan.
To a certain extent, this in turn affected the effect of air strikes.
Faced with Iwo Jima's sloppy existence, Nimitz decided to pull him out.
At first, there were doubts in the U.S. military, and some people felt that it was enough to besiege Iwo Jima, and there was no need to mobilize troops.
But later Nimitz's opinion took over.
Because if the U.S. military can occupy Iwo Jima, there are too many benefits.
First of all, Iwo Jima is located 1100 km from Tokyo, from which the B-29 takes off, and the range can be reduced by half.
In this way, not only can the bomb load of each B-29 be doubled, but tactical bombers such as the B-24 will also be able to participate in the operation.
Second, the range is reduced by half, and the fighter can escort the bomber throughout the whole process, and the bomber does not have to fly to 8,000 meters to drop bombs. The hit rate can also be greatly improved.
Third, if the bomber is damaged during the flight, it can make an emergency landing on Iwo Jima to reduce the loss of fighters.
Since there are so many benefits, let's get started.
In October 1944, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff approved the Iwo Jima Operation Plan.
Nimitz originally planned to launch a landing operation at the end of 1944, but it was postponed to February 1945 because he wanted to assist the army in attacking the Philippines.
In mid-February 1945, the U.S. Army assembled the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Marine Divisions in the waters off Iwo Jima, with a strength of about 610,000 people.
In order to send and support the Marine Corps to fight, the US military also concentrated 400 combat ships, 500 transport ships, and 2,000 aircraft, completely isolating Iwo Jima.
Before the war began, Nimitz thought that Iwo Jima was just a small island with an area of only 20 square kilometers, and that it would take five days at most.
But Lieutenant General Holland Smith, the commander-in-chief of the Marine Corps, after looking at the aerial photographs**, felt that things were not simple, and that there was a very likely unusual defense system on the island.
Smith judged that this would be the most difficult island for the U.S. military to capture in the Pacific theater, and estimated that it would cost at least 20,000 men** to take Iwo Jima.
As it turned out, Smith was not wrong, and the Japanese army's defense of Iwo Jima was indeed different from before.
In May 1944, the Tokyo headquarters appointed Tadamichi Kuribayashi as commander of the Iwo Jima garrison.
Before Kuribayashi Tadamichi arrived on Iwo Jima, the island's defenders numbered only 5,500.
Although the base camp was later successively increased by 170,000 reinforcements and more than 600 artillery, anti-aircraft guns, anti-tank guns and mortars.
Most of the troops that can be replenished are old and weak soldiers who have been forcibly conscripted. The only elite is still the chariot wing commanded by Baron Nishitakeichi.
If you play a bad card like this, if you change to Mutaguchi and the like, you will definitely be finished in three days.
However, Kuribayashi is different from those frogs at the bottom of the well at Mutaguchi, he has seen the world, has served as a military attache in embassies in the United States and Canada, and has also studied at Harvard University, carefully studied American affairs, and is a rare senior general in the Japanese army who is familiar with the characteristics of the US military.
Tadashi Kuribayashi. After Kuribayashi assumed the post of commander, he immediately inspected the entire island and counted the personnel and equipment of the Japanese troops stationed on the island.
He believed that in the face of the absolute naval and air superiority of the US army, it would be difficult for the beachhead operation to be effective, so he ignored the opposition of the Japanese base camp, directly abandoned all the beachhead and the gentle zone, and hollowed out the only two mountains on Iwo Jima, Mt. Oribo and Wonsan, and built a set of very strong underground fortifications that extended in all directions.
Since the volcanic ash on Iwo Jima is mixed with cement, it can make very good concrete. As a result, Oribasan Mountain and Wonsan Mountain were transformed into two super fortresses by the Japanese army.
Just repairing fortifications is obviously not enough to deal with the US military.
Kuribayashi Tadamichi knew very well that Iwo Jima would definitely not be able to hold it, and the only thing he could do was to kill and injure as many American troops as possible.
In order to improve his combat effectiveness, he had to teach his soldiers how to fight every day before the US army launched an offensive.
Such as close-range shooting, division of troops for mobile defense, ambush and other tactics. The soldiers were required to make use of the concealed fortifications and shoot at close range when the US troops approached to 500 meters, killing and injuring a large number of US troops.
In view of the fact that the Japanese army had previously launched a brainless charge on Kuah Island and Saipan Island, they unilaterally sent people to their heads.
Kuribayashi also repeatedly stressed that suicidal charges were strictly forbidden, and called on every soldier to kill at least ten American soldiers.
Suribachi. The Japanese army has made significant progress, and the US military is certainly not able to stand still.
On February 15, 1945, the U.S. ** team gathered in the waters off Iwo Jima.
In order to find out the firing points of the Japanese army, Rear Admiral William Brandy commanded 6 old battleships and 5 cruisers, calibrated by reconnaissance planes, to shell the surface positions on the island.
At the same time, Brandi also sent 12 landing craft to make a feint landing on the east coast of the island.
The Japanese artillery on Oribo Mountain did not know what was wrong, and opened fire to sink 9 landing guns and damaged 3, but they also exposed the position of the heavy guns, which were destroyed by heavy shells fired by American battleships.
A huge fleet involved in the Battle of Iwo Jima.
After the test, all the US naval guns and carrier-based aircraft covered Iwo Jima with artillery fire for three days and three nights.
During the three days of bombing, the US military poured a total of 240,000 tons of bombs, equivalent to an average of 1,200 tons per square kilometer.
According to the estimation of Lieutenant General Turner, commander of the US landing formation, even a barbell was blown apart.
However, Turner didn't know that the devil was far more cunning than he imagined.
When the Japanese army was repairing fortifications, they built more than 700 important firepower points.
These firing points, not only are they extremely sturdy on the outside, but they are also very hidden, and most of them are built in caves that cannot be bombed by aircraft and naval artillery.
The U.S. forces operated as fiercely as a tiger, destroying only 17 of the firing points, and the Japanese losses could be said to be negligible.
On February 19, unwitting U.S. forces officially launched an attack.
At 9 a.m., under the cover of bombers and naval guns, the first wave of 30,000 landing troops consisting of the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions launched an assault on the beachhead.
Since the Japanese abandoned the beachhead according to the pre-deployment, the first group of troops landing on the island rushed to the beach with murderous violation, but there was no, and almost no resistance was encountered.
The biggest obstacle for the U.S. military was volcanic ash on the beach.
The beach on Iwo Jima is made up of volcanic ash, and the soil is so soft that it is very difficult for people to walk on it.
As a result, all the tanks that were supposed to cover the infantry were trapped in the volcanic ash on the beachhead.
The landing craft behind did not know it, and they stuffed people and supplies on the beach one after another, so that the whole beach was blocked and the water was blocked.
At this time, the U.S. military only felt that it was squeezed a little, and there was no big problem. Anyway, there are not many devils left, and they can capture the entire Iwo Jima in a while. Completely unaware of the impending danger, at 10 o'clock in the morning, the Japanese army, under the command of Tadamichi Kuribayashi, simultaneously headed all artillery and machine guns at the crowded beach**.
The observation post located on Oriba Mountain, from a commanding position overlooking the entire east coast, accurately guided artillery fire.
In the face of the precise attack of the Japanese army, the American army could not dodge, and the beach suddenly flowed with blood.
The 4th Regiment of the Marine Division was directly reduced by 25%, and more than half of the 56 tanks that came ashore in the first wave were also lost.
Seeing that the beach had become a Japanese shooting range, the officers and men of the 4th Marine Division braved the rain of bullets and used explosives packs and flamethrowers to advance step by step.
At the same time, naval guns also covered Japanese firing points.
For this landing, each battalion of the US Marine Corps was equipped with a naval gun fire control group.
According to the tracer shells fired by the marines at the target, the naval guns on the sea struck with precision, pulling out many Japanese firing points.
At dusk, the Japanese ceased fire, and the American troops kept the beach, and also succeeded in severing the connection between Mt. Origa and Mt. Motoyama.
But the ** caused by the advance of the US military is not small.
According to post-mortem statistics, on the first day of fighting, the American troops lost 548 killed and 1,755 wounded.
Among the fallen soldiers, there was a platoon commander named John Baslon, who was very special.
John Baslon.
He is a legend of the U.S. Navy, and was awarded the highest honor of the U.S. side: the Medal of Honor for withstanding the attack of 3,000 Japanese troops with two machine guns in the Battle of Kuah Island.
But such a god of war-level figure died under Japanese artillery fire on the first day of the Battle of Iwo Jima.
From here, it is not difficult to imagine that the next battle must have been extremely bloody.
On February 20, four regiments of the U.S. Army launched an attack on Mt. Oriba and Wonsan respectively, but met with extremely stubborn resistance from the Japanese army.
In this day's battle, the US planes finished bombarding the ship and the tanks were bombarded by the naval guns, and the infantry followed behind the tanks, using grenades, explosive packs, and flamethrowers to pull out the Japanese fire points one by one.
But with such a terrifying torrent of steel, the US military fought from early morning to dusk, but only advanced 180 meters.
As night fell, the next day's battle ended. The U.S. military was afraid of a night attack by the Japanese army, and the fleet at sea fired flares on the shore all night.
However, in accordance with Kuribayashi Tadamichi's instructions, the Japanese army did not move and did not launch a night attack.
On February 21, the fighting continued, and the U.S. forces focused on Mt. Oriba.
At 7:30 a.m., the bombers took the lead and bombed the mountain again and again.
Immediately after that, naval guns and tanks opened the way for the infantry.
After the Japanese troops hiding in the mountains carried the bombardment, they quickly jumped out of the tunnel and shot.
When the American soldiers advanced up the hill, they were not only suppressed by frontal fire, but also had to watch out for the rear.
Because of the underground fortifications built by the Japanese army, which extended in all directions, the Japanese army could quietly reach the previously lost firepower point through the tunnel, emerge from behind the American army, and sweep them indiscriminately.
The Japanese army was very chicken thieves, and often ran away after a few shuttles, changing from the tunnel to the next firing point.
The U.S. military is overwhelmed, and every step forward has to pay a huge amount of **.
During the battle, 32 Japanese planes took off from the Katori base in Chiba Prefecture to launch a "kamikaze attack" on the US military.
Because there were too many planes in the airspace over Iwo Jima, the US radar monitors were unable to detect the planes in time when the planes attacked. As a result, the Japanese suicide attack achieved certain results, sinking a US escort aircraft carrier and damaging a Lexington-class aircraft carrier.
On this day of fighting, the US military lost 644 dead, 4,108 wounded, and 560 missing.
On February 22, the weather changed abruptly, and the US troops were forced to take a one-day truce due to heavy rains.
Taking advantage of the break, the 3rd Marine Division, which served as a reserve, took over from the 4th Marine Division, which was extremely heavy, and continued to attack Wonsan.
In three days of fighting, the 4th Marine Division suffered 5,300 casualties.
After the 3rd Marine Division entered the war, it learned its lessons, changed its style of play, and used flamethrowers on a large scale to deal with the Japanese army.
Where the flamethrowers could not burn, the 3rd Marine Division poured yellow phosphorus bombs or gasoline into the tunnels to smoke them.
The most powerful part of this fire attack is not to burn people to death, but to evacuate the air in the bunker or tunnel in an instant, and suffocate the enemy to death.
In the face of the new style of fighting of the US army, many Japanese soldiers suffocated to death before they could escape.
A small number of people were lucky enough to escape from the bunker, but before they could take a breath, they were guarded by the American troops squatting outside.
On February 23, after four days of bloody fighting, the 28th Regiment of the 5th Marine Division finally attacked Oriba Mountain and raised a Star-Spangled Banner on the top of the mountain.
Navy correspondent Sergeant Louis Souley recorded the moment.
The first Stars and Stripes erected by the U.S. military on Iwo Jima.
Two hours later, someone felt that the flag that had been raised was too small to be seen from a distance.
In order to boost morale, the commander ordered people to change the big one on the top of the folding bowl.
Associated Press reporter Joe Rosenthal rushed to hear the news, and when he was halfway up the mountain, he happened to meet Sule, who had just come down from the mountain, and the latter proudly said that he had photographed the soldiers raising the flag on the top of the mountain, which made Rosenthal a little disappointed.
But Rosenthal decided to go up the hill anyway.
As soon as he reached the top of Origa, Rosenthal saw six Marines changing flags.
Realizing that his chance to make a name for himself had come, he piled some stones together, stood on them, chose the angle, and pressed the shutter when the soldiers planted the flagpole.
Later, with this photo, Rosenthal won the Pulitzer Prize for photojournalism in 1944.
The American flag is planted on Iwo Jima
Although the Star-Spangled Banner was planted on the top of Oriba Mountain, at this time, there were still nearly 1,000 Japanese troops desperately resisting with tunnels and cave fortifications.
In the direction of Wonsan, there were nearly 10,000 Japanese troops.
On 24 February, in order to take Airfield 2 and heights 362 and 382, the 3rd Marine Division launched an attack on Japanese positions.
The battle was extremely fierce, and the 3rd Regiment of the 21st Marine Division, with strong support from sea and air fire, advanced 730 meters.
But in this 730-meter area, the U.S. military encountered nearly 800 Japanese pillboxes.
During the uprooting of these pillboxes, the 3rd Marine Division lost almost a thousand men.
On February 25, the 4th Marine Division completed its rest and rejoined the battle.
On the same day, three Marine Divisions began the attack side by side on Iwo Jima.
The 4th Division was on the right, the 3rd Division was in the center, and the 5th Division was on the left, advancing side by side towards Wonsan.
By March 2, the U.S. forces had finally captured Airfield No. 2 and Heights 382.
But in order to take these two strongholds, several companies of the 4th Marine Division were completely wiped out.
The remaining companies were also either killed or wounded, and there was a scene where the company commander was a second lieutenant or sergeant, while the platoon commander and squad leader were all ordinary soldiers.
An officer of the 4th Marine Division wrote in his diary: Many of the people I have known since the establishment of this division have died, and they no longer have the courage to put soldiers into battle.
The same was true of the 362 Marine Division, which was located on the left flank and was responsible for attacking the 5 heights.
During the battle, the 5th Marine Division often found that the Japanese troops on the opposite side suddenly disappeared and seemed to have taken refuge underground in an instant. When the infantry charges to the front of the formation, they suddenly appear and shoot at close range.
After repeated attacks, the US commanders gradually reacted.
It seems that the devil has figured out the routine, and the US military relies heavily on firepower, and every time it attacks, it always uses planes and artillery to bombard it first.
Therefore, the Japanese knew that the infantry would not attack until the end of the artillery coverage, and always hid in the tunnel first, and then entered the position to meet the infantry attack when the artillery was over.
After suffering several losses, the US military changed its tactics.
At dawn on 7 March, the US troops did not make any artillery preparations, and the 3rd Marine Division quietly approached the Japanese positions with the help of the dark night before dawn and suddenly launched an assault.
The Japanese were sleeping at the time, and they were caught off guard, and after a fight, the American troops successfully occupied the mountain.
On the evening of March 8, the 2nd Mixed Brigade of the Japanese Army, which was at the end of its rope, disobeyed the order and launched a Banzai charge against the American troops.
The U.S. military had been prepared for a long time and returned fire fiercely, killing more than 800 people.
On March 9, the U.S. forces split the Japanese defense line in the Wonsan area in two, and Kuribayashi Tadamichi shouted that it was not good, and decided to organize troops to counterattack.
However, when the Japanese army infiltrated at night, it was discovered by the U.S. military, and Kuribayashi Tadamichi stole chickens and rice, and buried more than 1,000 people.
On March 10, after the U.S. forces cut the Japanese defense line in two, they immediately began to expand the results on both sides.
Although the Japanese army had no chance of turning the tables at this time, the resistance was still fierce.
When the 5th Marine Division fought against the troops under the direct command of Kuribayashi, more than 75% of the combat units were basically scrapped, and finally even the clerks and cooks of the division headquarters were put into battle.
The ** of the 3rd and 4th Marine Divisions is also very serious. The Battle of Iwo Jima has turned into a "meat grinder".
In order to reduce **, Major General Clifton Kaze, commander of the 4th Marine Division, sent a letter of persuasion to Awabayashi Tadamichi.
But this letter of persuasion was lost in the sea, and there was no reply.
On March 16, after 26 days of hard fighting, the U.S. military announced the occupation of Iwo Jima.
On the same day, Tadamichi Kuribayashi sent a farewell message to the Tokyo base camp, and then ordered the remnants of the Japanese army on the island to launch a general attack on the night of the 17th.
However, for various reasons, the attack was postponed to March 26.
In the early morning of March 26, Tadamichi Kuribayashi, who had run out of ammunition and food, led 350 Japanese troops who could still move to launch a final counterattack against the American army.
The U.S. military was defenseless, and more than 100 people were killed in their sleep.
After dawn, the U.S. military organized a sweep and annihilated the Japanese army.
After this battle, Kuribayashi Tadamichi evaporated. Some say he committed suicide by caesarean section; Others said that he was seriously wounded and was buried on the spot by a staff officer next to him.
At 9 a.m. on March 26, the U.S. military declared the Battle of Iwo Jima a victory after believing that the remaining underground Japanese troops no longer posed a threat.
Subsequently, the Marines withdrew from the island, leaving the defense in the hands of the National Guard.
In the Battle of Iwo Jima, 6,821 U.S. troops were killed and 21,865 wounded; 22,703 Japanese troops were killed and 1,083 surrendered.
This is the first time since the U.S. military launched a campaign in the Pacific theater that the number of people is higher than that of the Japanese army.
After the U.S. military took Iwo Jima, the bombing of Tokyo was no longer obstructed. The "barbecue master" that has made the whole of Japan smell is about to appear.