Japan 1945: From Operation Downfall to Hiroshima and Nagasaki

100 Pages·36.96 MB·English

by  Clayton K.S. Chun, John White(Illustrator)

JAPAN 1945
From Operation Downfall to Hiroshima and Nagasaki
ABOUT THE AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR
CLAYTONKS CHUN, PH.D.,isonthe U.S.ArmyWarCollegefacultyat
CarlisleBarracks,Pennsylvaniawhereheteachescourseson nationalsecurity,
strategy,andeconomics. HecompletedamilitarycareerintheU.S.AirForce
and haspublished inthefieldsofnational security,militaryhistory,and
economics.
JOHNWHITEisacommercial illustratorwith manyyears'experience
ofworking withadvertisingagencies,designfirms,publishersand large
corporateaccounts.Hehasreceived awardsfromTheBroadcastDesign
Association andTheNational NavalAviation Museum,and hispaintingshave
appeared inAviationArtmagazine,AviationHistorymagazine,andonthe
HistoryChannel.Johnand hiswifeMargeryliveinCharlotte,NorthCarolina.
CAMPAIGN • 200
JAPAN 1945
From Operation Downfall to Hiroshima and Nagasaki
CLAYTON K S CHUN ILLUSTRATED BY JOHN WHITE
SerieseditorsMarcusCowperand Nikolai Bogdanovic
Firstpublishedin2008byOspreyPublishing ARTIST'S NOTE
MidlandHouse,WestWay,Botley,OxfordOX2OPH,UK
443ParkAvenueSouth,NewYork,NY10016,USA Readersmaycaretonotethattheoriginalpaintingsfromwhichthecolor
E-mail:[email protected] platesinthisbookwerepreparedareavailableforprivatesale.The
Publishersretainallreproductioncopyrightwhatsoever.Allenquiries
shouldbeaddressedto:
©2008OspreyPublishingLimited
JohnWhite,5107CMonroeRoad,Charlotte,NC28205,USA
Allrightsreserved.Apartfromanyfairdealingforthepurposeofprivate ThePublishersregretthattheycanenterintonocorrespondenceupon
study,research,criticismorreview,aspermittedundertheCopyright, thismatter.
DesignsandPatentsAct,1988,nopartofthispublicationmaybe
reproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyform
LINEAR MEASUREMENTS
orbyanymeans,electronic,electrical,chemical,mechanical,optical,
photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutthepriorwrittenpermission Distances,rangesanddimensionsaremostlygiveninthecontemporary
ofthecopyrightowner.EnquiriesshouldbeaddressedtothePublishers. USsystemofinches,feet,yardsandstatutemilesratherthanmetric:
feettometers: multiplyfeetby0.3048
ACIPcatalogrecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
yardstometers: multiplyyardsby0.9144
milestokilometers: multiplymilesby1.6093
ISBN9781846032844
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
EditorialbylIiosPublishing,Oxford,UK(www.iliospublishing.com)
PagelayoutbyTheBlackSpot Icouldnothavecompletedthisbookwithouttheoutstandingsupport
TypesetinSabonandMyriadPro ofseveralindividualsandorganizations.Thefollowingpeoplewillingly
IndexbyAlisonWorthington gavemuchhelpandadvicethroughouttheprocess.MyeditorsNikolai
OriginatedbyPPSGrasmereLtd.,Leeds BogdanovicandMarcusCooperfromlIiosPublishingcontinuedtoprovide
CartographybyTheMapStudio superbcoordinationandoversightoftheproject.Additionally,John
Bird's-eyeviewartworksbyTheBlackSpot White'sexcellentartisticabilitiesbroughtlifetothestoryofJapan1945.
PrintedinChinathroughWorldprintLtd. TheArmyHeritageandEducationCenterattheU.s.ArmyWarCollege,
CarlisleBarracks,PAandtheAlbertF.SimpsonHistoricalResearchCenter,
MaxwellAFB,ALgavemeinvaluablehelpansweringmanyquestions.
08 09 10 11 12 10 9 8 76 54 3 2 1
Finally,Iwanttothankmyfamilyfortheirpatienceduringthisproject.
FORACATALOGOFALLBOOKSPUBLISHEDBYOSPREYMILITARY THEWOODLAND TRUST
ANDAVIATIONPLEASECONTACT:
OspreyPublishingaresupportingtheWoodlandTrust,theUK'sleading
NORTHAMERICA
woodlandconservationcharity,byfundingthededicationoftrees.
OspreyDirect,c/oRandomHouseDistributionCenter,400HahnRoad,
Westminster,MD21157
E-mail:[email protected]
ALLOTHERREGIONS
OspreyDirectUK,P.O.Box140Wellingborough,Northants,NN82FA,UK
E-mail:[email protected]
www.ospreypublishing.com
Keytomilitarysymbols
0 0 0 0 0 DIII DII
ArmyGroup Army Corps Division Brigade Regiment Battalion
DI 0 0 0 ~ 8 ~
Company/Battery Platoon Section Squad Infantry Artillery Cavalry
D p 0 B bd EJ ~
Airborne UnitHQ Airdefence AirForce Airmobile Airtransportable Amphibious
[ZSJ § EJ §] G EJ EJ
Anti-tank Airaviation Bridging Engineer Headquarters
rn
EE [ill] W IT] ~ [ill
Medical Missile Mountain Navy ~~~~~:ibiological. Ordnance
[2] ~ (d 00 []] ~
Signal Supply Transport Rocketartillery Airdefenceartillery
Keytounitidentification
identiufienritlZlParueninlt
Commander
(+)wlllladdedelements
(-)lesselements
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 5
CHRONOLOGY 9
OPPOSING COMMANDERS 11
US commanders. Japanese commanders
OPPOSING PLANS 17
The options for Japan • The Allied strategyfor victory
Diplomacy or destruction
OPERATION DOWNFALL: THE INVASION OFJAPAN 34
Phase one: Operation Olympic. Phase two: Operation Coronet
Setting atimeframe • The Japanese response
THE APPROACH TO ARMAGEDDON 45
The choice oftarget • Ademonstration ofpower
S09th Composite Group. Readying the weapons
HIROSHIMA 51
The plan ofattack. Red plugs for go
NAGASAKI 67
The plan ofattack. Fat Man and the forecast
AFTERMATH 79
The future ofwarfare
THE SITES TODAY 90
BIBLIOGRAPHY 93
INDEX 95
J
R BERING SEA
SEA ~,
OF
OKHOTSK .J,
NORTH PACIFIC
/
/~
AREA
,I;,
. f·.
Bonin
Islahds CENTRAL PA'CIFIC
IwoJim~; ~~~~~nso . Marcus
AREA Hawaiian
o Islands
~ake (NIMITZ) ," <lo~{.>
:Marianas
Saipan~Islands
Guam,' 8th~
PACIFIC OCEAN
Caroline1~lands· .'
...~LineIslands Equator
/-----------------------------
~S..a...m...oa
\1t'" New /.~~ji
'";Hebrides ,.'Tahiti
... ·..·S.uva
'''3..
New·'.
INDIAN AU ALIA Caledonia SOUTH PACIFIC
OCEAN
AREA
Japanesecontrolledarea
_ Alliedcontrolledarea
USareaofresponsibility
1,000miles
I I
2,000km
INTRODUCTION
Byearly 1945,theseniorAlliedleadershiphadrecognizedthat Germanywas
on the verge of defeat, threatened with a combined American, British and
Sovietdrive into Germanterritory. Theattentionwas nowswitchedtoJapan.
American, British, Commonwealth, Chinese and other forces had fought
bitter campaigns against the Japanese throughout Asia and the Pacific, and
mademajoradvances againstTokyo'stroops. UnitedStatesArmyandMarine
Corps units had island-hopped their way across the Southwest and Central
Pacific, getting close to the Japanese home islands. This allowed American
long-range bombers to attack targets inJapan on a regular basis. American
submarines,whichhadfirststartedto blockadeJapaninDecember 1941,now
began to tighten their death grip onJapan's economic capability, its military
transportation system and its food supplies. However, unlike the situation
facing Allied ground forces poised to advance deep into Germany, Japan
posed a more difficultproblem. American forces could continue their march
north through the Central Pacific, but to accomplish a similar capture of
Tokyo, Allied forces would need to execute what would almost certainly be
a series of extremely costly amphibious invasions. The key question facing
Alliednationalandmilitaryleaderswas howto coercea determinedJapanese
government, military and population to surrender unconditionally.
Inanycontestforcontrol
oftheJapanesehomeislands,
theAllies'superiorityinarms
andmaterielwouldbetelling.
Japaneseheavyweapons,such
asthisIJAmachinegun,were
oftenlesseffectiveandfewer
innumberthanAllied
equivalents.(USArmy)
5
ABOVE,LEFT The United States had been at war for more than three years byjanuary
USArmyAirForces(USAAF) 1945.Thenationhadsacrificeditsmilitary,populationandeconomyfighting
officershopedtousestrategic anextensivetwo-frontwar. Althoughheavyattritionhadworndownjapanese
bombingasapowerfultoolin
military capability by 1945, a fresh round of Pacific amphibious invasions
thePacificTheater.The8-29
wouldfindfameasaweapons from the Philippines and Central Pacific had demonstrated that imperial
deliveryplatformthatwould japanese military units would not surrender easily. Allied leaders could see a
helpendthewar.(USAirForce) rush to end the war would be costly. Britain and her Commonwealth allies
had fought alongside America throughout the Pacific; these countries had
ABOVE,RIGHT
Americafoughtabrutalhand enduredwar sinceSeptember 1939, andtheirresourceswere depleted. China
to-handcampaigntoliberate was stillunderoccupationwhileNationalistand Communistforces struggled
thePacific,asdemonstrated among themselves and against the commonfoe ofthe japanese. How to end
bythisscenefromLeyte's
thewar becameadifficultchallenge. Politicalandmilitaryconferencesamong
recapturein1944.(DOD)
the Allies seemed to follow a singular approach: a methodical defeat of
japaneseforces onthe home islands ofKyushu and Honshu, followed bythe
occupationofTokyo. Still,japaneseforces maintainedmany, albeitweakened,
units throughout Asia and the Pacific. Taking Tokyo might not guarantee
the nation's defeat, as experience had taught the Allies that many japanese
soldiers, sailors and airmenwouldfight to the death. TheAllies had to find a
way to ensure theywould surrender.
japanese political and military leaders seemed, in public, unified in their
desire to fight to the death. However, mounting losses and the destruction
of japanese cities by bombing were hard to hide and might mean the very
destructionofjapanas anation.Therewasasmallbutgrowingmovementof
Foreign Ministry officials and others who believed surrender was preferable
to the type of end facing Germany, one that involved the destruction and
occupation ofthe nation. These officials believedthat a negotiated surrender
would leave some territory under Japanese sovereignty. To these "peace"
advocates capitulationwas a goal, but notwith the unconditional terms that
theAmericans, Britishand Chinesehadsought.Themostimportantaspectin
their mind was keeping intactjapan's symbolic essence: the emperor and the
imperial system. Opposing viewpoints recalled that japanese military forces
had executed spectacular victories in 1941 and 1942. Although Tokyo had
suffered horrendous losses since Midway, its ground and naval units had not
beentotally broken. japan's survival was stillpossible.
6
PresidentHarryS. Truman'sdecisionto usethenewweaponoftheatomic
bomb twice.against Japan continues to affect US national security policy
and her international relations to this day, and the process itself provides a
valuable insight into the way decisions were made under wartime pressures.
Many US War Department officials viewed the atomic bomb as little more
than a larger explosive device, with no wider significance; conventional
strategic bombinghad alreadyleveledDresden, Tokyo and otherAxis cities,
so what was so special about the atomic bomb? Many officials were also
lookingto the future and the postwarera, and soughtmeans to demonstrate
therelevance oftheirparticularbranches ofservice. Anamphibiousinvasion
would demonstrate the need for the US Army and Marine Corps, to protect
thenationandwinwars. BlockadingJapanand bombardingherwithsurface
ship firepower andcarrieraircraftwouldprovethatnavalforces could bring
decisive results. Likewise, the air forces could claim that the use of bombers
had broken the will and ability of the Japanese to continue the struggle.
However, Americanforces thattookthe Philippines, IwoJima and Okinawa
wereshockedattheferocity ofthefanaticalJapanese defense. TheAmerican
andBritishpoliticalandmilitaryleadershiphadfelt aninvasionwasthefaster
andmostlikelywayto force aJapanese surrender. AlthoughotherAmerican
AmericancasualtiesatIwoJima
military leaders advocated alternative ways to defeat Japan, such as the andOkinawashockedUS
opening of a second front by the Soviets (unlike Germany, the Japanese PresidentTruman.Theselosses
werefighting ononlyonemajorfront againsttheAmericans, andso opening hadaprofoundeffectonhis
decisionwhethertolaunch
another might make Japan's defeat quicker and less costly) an invasion
aninvasionoftheJapanese
seemed imminent. However, numerous voices in the Allied command homeislands.(DOD)
questioned this plan, fearing Allied casualties in the
tens ofthousands. Itwaswiththeseconsiderationsin
mind that the American president made one of the
most difficult decisions ofthe entire war.
The atomic bomb was but one of a long list
of many innovative weapons to emerge during
WorldWar II. Developedfrom experimentationwith
nuclear power, it was considered, at one point, to be
merely an expensive experiment, and one that some
Americangovernmentofficialsthoughtwasteful.The
US War Department gathered the greatest scientific
andtechnicalexperts available and spentan unheard
of$2 billionto design, develop andtestatheory. The
effortwas basedonthe ideas andconcepts developed
by a handful of highly influential scientists, who
believedthatGermanywasdevelopingnuclearpower,
which could give Adolf Hitler a weapon of great
magnitude. European scientific immigrants, such as
Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr and Enrico Fermi, had
sufficient credibility to persuade President Franklin
D. Roosevelt to establish a program to build an
atomic bomb. Intendedfor use againstGermany, this
scientificdeviceultimately becameaninstrumentthat
helped end the war againstJapan.
Inthecampaignsacrossthe The views and opinions of the political, organizational, strategic and
Pacificin1944and1945,US militaryleaders allcontributedto theeventual, difficultdecisionto drop the
soldiersandMarineshadto atomic bomb- onethathas beensubjectto debate eversince. The debate at
evictJapanesedefendersfrom
the time focused on the best way to demonstrate the Allies' determination
strongdefensivepositions,
suchasthiscave,which to get Japan to surrender quickly. At stake was the conduct of the largest
resultedinhighcasualties. - amphibiousinvasionplannedfor WorldWarII, whichmightcostthousands
Oneoptionforclearing of Allied, and particularly American, lives, not to mention those of the
suchpositionswastouse
Japanese defenders and civilians who might be killed or wounded. The
flamethrowersandchemical
enemy, fighting for its existence,couldcontinueresistancefor years, putting
weapons.(DOD)
at risk prisoners of war, civilians living in occupied territories and the
AlliedpopulationsthroughoutAsia and the Pacific. Oncetheinitialdecision
was made to land military forces in Japan and occupy sacred territory, it
would be risky to switch the focus from invasion to reliance on an as yet
unproven weapon.
Although the atomic bomb was instrumental in demonstrating a new
threat to the Japanese national existence, the use of nuclear weapons was
not the only factor that forced Japan's surrender. MountingJapanese losses
caused by increased and more intensive attacks on the home islands, the
nation's dwindling economic capability, the threat of invasion and the fact
thatJapanhadnowbecomethesolefocus ofAlliedmilitarypowerfollowing
Germany's capitulation all influenced the nation's leaders in Tokyo. Japan's
empire was shrinking at an increasing rate, and she could not hold back the
relentlessadvanceofAlliedmilitarypower. Alliedseniorpoliticalandmilitary
leadership agreed that theJapanese empire's rule was coming to an end, but
came to the conclusion that a major shock to theJapanese might push them
to surrender. The time for that shock would come on 6 August 1945.
8