Kwajalein January 31 - February 3, 1944

Kwajalein Atoll was the administrative center of the Japanese-held Marshall Islands. The atoll was 73 miles long, with eighteen islands clustered together. During the Battle of Midway radio stations on Kwajalein listened to traffic between Hawaii and Midway.

When the Americans moved through the Marshalls in early 1944, Kwajalein was a primary target. With Kwajalein in Japanese hands for decades, it was assumed that there would be casualties as heavy as Tarawa. A sustained air campaign from the Gilberts and from aircraft carriers pounded Kwajalein for days prior to the landings on January 31, 1944.

Resistance was light as the US Army and Marines moved through the atoll. On the island of Kwajalein itself, 10,000 Japanese soldiers waited for the US Army's 7th Division. By February 3, 8,400 Japanese were dead, mostly by suicide. 500 Americans died.

The last year of the war saw escalating dead and wounded on both sides. Half of all the casualties in the Pacific War was during the last year of the war. Kwajalein showed the Americans that heavy pre-invasion bombardment was a necessary component to amphibious landings. The old, slow battleships that America started the war with became floating gun platforms to support the invasions, and escort carriers brought aircraft to fly ground support missions.

At Kwajalein, these new tactics were tried out. The result was huge Japanese casualties. This would be the pattern for the rest of the war.

Internal Links

Imperial Japanese Navy

United States Navy

Eniwetok

Truk

 

Internet Links

Building the Navy's Bases Online: Kwajalein Atoll, in the Marshall Islands

Battle of Kwajalein - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

David Huskins - Historic Kwajalein Photos

Soldiers Online - Feature Stories

HyperWar: US Army in WWII: Seizure of the Gilberts and Marshalls [Chapter 14]

Heroes of the Kwajalein and Eniwetok
Stories and details on heroes of the Marshall Islands in World War II who were recognized with the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Roi Namur

Researched at Tarawa | TIME
From Washington Admiral Ernest J. King signaled: "To all hands concerned with the Marshall Islands operation: Well and smartly done. Carry on." Said Rear Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner,...

 

Bibliography From Amazon.com

 

 

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