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Doolittle's Raid
-April 18, 1942
-American victory
-American bombing raid over Tokyo and outher Japanese cities
-Goal was to raise Allied spirits, decrease morale of Japanese, and force Japan's air force to patrol their islands rather than be in combat
-Damage to Japan was modest -
Battle of Coral Sea
-May 7-8, 1942
-Allied victory
-Naval war in the Pacific Ocean between Japanese and American forces
-Even though America had large losses, the US Navy was victorious since the Port Moresby invasion force withdrew, Japan did not take control of Australia, and Japan had heavier losses.
-Japan wanted to invade Port Moresby in New Guinea so they could bomb Australia, cut off supplies for Australia and New Zealand possibly taking those two countries out of WWII -
Battle of Midway
-Allied victory
-June 4-7, 1942
-US Pacific Fleet surprised Japanese forces and sunk 4 Japanese carriers.
-Japanese were stopped from capturing Midway and using it as a base.
-Japan was set on the defensive and never recovered. -
Battle of Guadalcanal
-August 7, 1942 - February 9, 1943
-Allied victory
-It was the turning point of WWII because Alied forces took offensive against Japan.
-Battle was fought on the ground, in the air, & at sea.
-There were major losses for Japan; 25,000 men, 38 ships, and more than 680 aircrafts while only 1,600 American men died -
Battle of Saipan
-June 15 - July 9, 1944
-Allied victory
-Massive Japanese suicide attack; Imperial General Headquarters ordered each soldier to kill 7 Americans and die for the emperor.
-Saipan was important to Japan since it was a major supply route between Japanese home islands & Japanese garrisons in the Central Pacific. It also had airfields.
-Siapan was important for the United States because once they won the battle, Saipan would provide a base to launch attacks against Tokyo and Japanese home islands. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
-February 19 - March 26, 1945
-Allied victory
-This battle in which the US captures Iwo Jima from the Japanese Empire was also called "Operation Detachment"
-Considered the most intense WWII Pacific battle: one out of three soldiers died
-Japanese strategy was to fight from underground
-Japanese soldiers were ordered to kill 10 American soldiers before they kill themselves -
Battle of Okinawa
-April 1 (L-Day/Love Day) - June 21, 1945
-Japanese objective was to fight to the last man and destroy or at least delay the US fleet which would give the Japanese time to prepare in their homeland.
-American strategy was to move toward the industrial heart of Japan by island hopping.
-This final battle of WWII was also called "Operation Iceburg".
-Okinawa posed as a good base to launch an attack on the mainland by air or sea.
