Preview

Pacific Theater Of Operations During World War II: The Battle Of Midway

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1240 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Pacific Theater Of Operations During World War II: The Battle Of Midway
The Battle of Midway took place in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, between 4 and 7 June 1942. Six months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The United States Navy was under the leaderships of Admiral Chester W. Nimitz as Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher as senior tactical commander Task Force 17, and Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance Task Force 16; the Imperial Japanese Navy was under the command of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto as Commader-in-Chief Combined Fleet and Vive Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, First Air Fleet. This attack on Midway was an attempt by the Japanese to expand their defense perimeter and have a closer outpost to Hawaii, this way eliminating the United States strategic power in the area. This would be accomplished by …show more content…
It was simple because the main outcome was to “invade a target relatively close to Pearl Harbor to draw out the American fleet, calculating that when the United States began its counterattack, the Japanese would be prepared to crush them.” It was complex because he decided so divide his assets into four main components. This meant that a very careful and timely coordination between their battle groups was necessary for the plan to succeed. Yamamoto’s battle plan also relied on information that the United States Enterprise and Hornet were the only carriers operational at the time. But Japanese intelligence fail to acknowledge that the carrier USS Yorktown had been repaired after the Battle of Coral Sea; a battle that took place a month before. Yamamoto was also optimistic on thinking that Midway wouldn’t pose a threat until reinforcements arrived from Hawaii. Vice-Admiral Nagumo’s carrier strike force was to weaken Midway’s defenses for a full invasion to happen. Once the American
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    What were the reasons for the Japanese defeat during the battle of Midway in June 1942
    • 1980 Words
    • 8 Pages

    What were the reasons for the Japanese defeat during the battle of Midway in June 1942

    On September 6, 1941, the Japanese government decided to go to war with America. (Japan had been preparing for the possibility of war for several years.) Though the final decision to actually go to war was deferred, pending a possible diplomatic breakthrough, the machinery for war, especially in the Imperial Japanese Navy, was put in motion. In April 1942 Japan wanted to expand their defensive lines so they went east towards the island of Midway (1000 miles from Hawaii), they sent most of the imperial fleet to battle. That fleet was composed of four aircraft carriers, two battleships, thirteen cruisers, assorted submarines, transports and mine sweepers. "The Battle of Midway, 1942" EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2001). After that, an event known as the “Allied Code-Breaking” took place , Admiral Nimitz of the allied forces had his cryptanalysts had broken the JN-25 code. The US had been decoding messages since spring 1942 and they discovered that Japan’s objective was Midway. The American base at Midway started to send false messages saying that its water distillation plant had been damaged and that the base needed fresh water. The Japanese saw this and soon started to send messages stating that "AF was short on water”. AF was the name of the objective the Japanese had which was Midway. Commander Joseph J. Rochefort and his team at Station Hypo were able to determine that the attack was going to be on either the 4th or the 5th of June. As a result the Americans were able to enter the battle knowing when and where the Japanese were going to be and also with what force they were going to attack. The Japanese Naval Marshal General Isoroku Yamamoto considered that going to war with the United States was a “suicidal mission” and that he did not think that Japan could win such war.…

    • 1980 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Battle Of Midway Research Paper
    • 3280 Words
    • 14 Pages

    Battle Of Midway Research Paper

    By any ordinary standard, they were hopelessly outclassed. They had no battleships, the enemy eleven. They had eight cruisers, the enemy twenty-three. They had three carriers (one of them crippled), the enemy had eight. Their shore defences included guns from the turn of the century. They knew little of war. None of the Navy pilots on one of the carriers had ever been in combat, nor had any of the army fliers of the marines. Seventeen of twenty new pilots were just out of flight school, some with less than four hours flying time. Some of their dive-bombers could not dive-the fabric came off the wings. Their torpedoes were slow and unreliable, the torpedo planes even worse. Yet they were up against the finest fighting plane in the world. Their enemy was brilliant, experienced and all conquering. They took crushing losses – 15 out of 15 in one torpedo squadron…….. 21 out of 27 in a group of fighters …… many, many more.…

    • 3280 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Pivotal Moments In American History: Battle Of Midway
    • 123 Words
    • 1 Page

    Pivotal Moments In American History: Battle Of Midway

    For Yamamoto’s plan to be successful, it would require the element of complete surprise. Yamamoto knew, and counted on the fact, that as soon as the attack on Midway commenced, the Americans would message Pearl Harbor for assistance. However, because of the distance from Pearl Harbor to Midway, the American Fleet would be unable to arrive in time to disrupt the attack. The Kido Butai could then shift its sights on targeting the American Fleet. (Symonds, Pivotal Moments in American History: Battle of Midway 102-103) In preparations for the attack, the Japanese fleet began a series of war gaming exercises. All messages and radio communications regarding the attack were encrypted, utilizing a highly classified Japanese Naval code, known as JN…

    • 123 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Summary: The War On The Pacific Front
    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Summary: The War On The Pacific Front

    The attack left the base badly damaged resulting into one out of nine battleship’s being destroyed in the process however this was also a good thing for the American navy because the Japanese didn’t destroyed the supply depot for the ship’s fuel the same with they failed to destroy the american aircraft carriers. When the american fleet was trying to repair itself the Japanese moved down south in order to get more resources for their military they went so far south that they invaded new Guinea the Australian military were training local militia to face the threat that was soon to come. American forces soon came to fight off the japanese military when they broke the Japanese codes when both sides met it was then called the battle of the Coral sea, the…

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    The Military Experience War In The Pacific Summary
    • 1546 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The Military Experience War In The Pacific Summary

    1Includes only losses in ground combat. I have not been able to find separate figures for naval and air losses in the war against Japan.…

    • 1546 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Isoroku Yamamoto's Accomplishments
    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Isoroku Yamamoto's Accomplishments

    Yamamoto had to go through a lot before being known as the mastermind of the planned attack on pearl harbor.He was so smart he even went through one of the most persigue colleges in the U.S. Because of this great education he was provided with, Yamamoto was able to speak the language of which the country he was planning to attack and he learned more about the U.S military which was critical in his planned attack on Pearl…

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    How Did The United States Defeat The Pacific Warfare?
    • 1880 Words
    • 8 Pages

    How Did The United States Defeat The Pacific Warfare?

    On December seventh, 1941, hundreds of Japanese bombers launched an attack on the US naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. They took off from Japanese aircraft-carriers which set out from Japan and remained radio silent and not detected. In this attack, the USS was badly damaged and almost lost the Pacific Fleet. Although the attack only lasted about 2 hours consisted of 2 waves of attack, over 2400 American soldiers lost their lives, more than 1000 soldiers were injured and 12 United States Navy vessels were destroyed, including the Arizona, the Oklahoma, the West Virginia, the California and so on. The American ground force did not respond quickly until the second wave of attack. Most of the soldiers in service in the Pearl Harbor were on…

    • 1880 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Pearl Harbor Bombing Research Paper
    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Pearl Harbor Bombing Research Paper

    Involved was the secret passage of an entire fleet including six aircraft carriers, two battleships and three cruisers over a distance of some 3,700 miles across the North Pacific.Some 26 Japanese ‘cruiser’ submarines were concentrated around the Hawaiian Islands, their mission to pick off any American ships that survived the main air attack. In the event they achieved nothing during the main attack, although an American carrier was damaged near Hawaii in January. Five small two-man submarines, launched from larger submarines, attempted to enter the harbour early on 7 December but failed. An American destroyer sank one of the boats off the entrance to Pearl Harbor about an hour and 15 minutes before the air attack began, and nearly cost Japan the element of surprise. Fleet Commander, Vice Admiral Nagumo, received his final orders on December 1 and on the morning of December 7 the battle group was in position 275 miles north of…

    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Two Battles: The Second Battle Of Guam
    • 110 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Two Battles: The Second Battle Of Guam

    The Second Battle of Guam was the American recapture of the Japanese captured island of Guam, a U.S. territory in the Mariana Islands captured by the Japanese from the U.S. in the First Battle of Guam in 1941. The countries involved were the U.S. and Japan. It took a week for the Americans to link their two beachheads, but by then much of the Japanese strength had been dissipated and Takashina had been killed. The surviving Japanese units fought for another two weeks. The Second Battle of Guam took place on the island of Guam. The battle was important because the U.S. regained a previously owned island from the Japanese.…

    • 110 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    World War II: The Battle Of Midway
    • 127 Words
    • 1 Page

    World War II: The Battle Of Midway

    The Battle of Midway was one of the most decisive naval battle of World War II. This was one of the most important turning point of the War. The cause of the battle was the Japanese desire to sink the remaining aircraft carriers. Admiral Isoroku chose to attack close to Pearl Harbor to draw out the American ships. Once they came out the Japanese was prepared to destroy them. But the Americans solve the Japanese plans and was prepared. Scouts the Japanese in the morning of June 4. The Japanese carriers were caught of guard while they were refueling and made they vulnerable. The Americans were able to sink 4 carrier with 322 aircraft and over 5 thousand sailors. This was a terrible defeat for the Japanese.…

    • 127 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Yamamoto's Influence On Japanese
    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Yamamoto's Influence On Japanese

    As the senior seagoing admiral in the Japanese fleet, Yamamoto prepared for war against the United States. Contrary to popular belief, Yamamoto argued for a war with the United States once Japan made the fateful decision to invade the rich lands of Southeast Asia; others in the naval ministry hoped to avoid war with America even while making war with Dutch and British possessions in Asia. When the Japanese emperor Hirohito adopted Yamamoto’s view, the admiral focused his energy on the coming fight with the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Well aware of the immense industrial capacity of the United States, but misunderstanding the potential resolve of the American public, Yamamoto asserted Japan’s only chance for victory lay in a surprise attack that would cripple the American naval forces in the Pacific and force the United States into a negotiated peace, thereby allowing Japan a free reign in greater East Asia. Any long war with the United States, Yamamoto believed, would spell disaster for Japan. Although he was not the author of the detailed plan to attack Pearl Harbor, he certainly championed it within government circles. On Dec. 7, 1941, his…

    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Wwii Pearl Harbor Attack
    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Wwii Pearl Harbor Attack

    The planning on the attack took some time and some thought for the Japanese. They began planning the attack in early 1941. The Japanese Navy took several months to take the time to plan for this attack. It took a lot of their own time and their attention to get it all done. The intent of a defensive strike on Pearl Harbor was to neutralize American naval power in the Pacific, then removing it from influencing operations against American, British, and Dutch colonies to the south. Successful attacks on colonies were judged to depend on successfully dealing with the American Pacific Fleet. Planning had long anticipated that a battle between the two Fleets would happen in Japanese home waters after the US Fleet traveled across the Pacific, under attack by submarines and other forces all the way. The U.S. Fleet would be defeated in a climactic battle, just as had the Russian Fleet in 1905. A surprise attack posed a twofold difficulty compared to long standing expectations. First, the Pacific Fleet was a formidable force, and would not be easy to defeat or to surprise. Second, for aerial attack, Pearl Harbor's shallow waters made using conventional aerial torpedoes ineffective. On the other hand, Hawaii's isolation meant a successful surprise attack could not be blocked or quickly countered by forces from the continental U.S.…

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Espionage During Wwii
    • 1258 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Espionage During Wwii

    Espionage was vital in the war effort of both the allied and axis powers during World War II. Espionage can take many different forms. Deception, leaking of false information, coding and encryption of information, sabotage, and sending spies in to gather intelligence are all were all used during the war and were all effective. Many of the turning points for the allied forces occurred due to various forms of espionage and deception. Depending on which side of the fence you 're sitting on, espionage was either a blessing or a curse.…

    • 1258 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    World War 2 Pacific Theater Essay
    • 2883 Words
    • 12 Pages

    World War 2 Pacific Theater Essay

    World War Two was a time of change. Weird alliances, lands of confusion, more efficient ways to kill, and most importantly, new ways to survive. The United States entry to World War two can be completely attributed to the Japanese attack on Pearl harbor. The United States had declared several neutrality acts throughout the course of Axis aggression in Europe and Asia. America first stated that they “did not recognize” Japan’s aggression when they invaded Manchuria in 1931. Then America “condemned” Japan’s ignition of World War 2 in the Pacific by invading China. Although Japan and the United States were still undergoing political negotiations about the recent Japanese aggression, Japan took a cowardly approach and bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The United States officially entered the war the next day. Some of the Japanese leaders feared they had made the wrong decision. The Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is famously quoted as saying "I fear all we have done is to…

    • 2883 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Pearl Harbor
    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Pearl Harbor

    Isoroku Yamamoto, born as Isoroku Takano, was Japan’s greatest naval strategist. He is considered by far the most outstanding Japanese naval commander of World War 2. Yamamoto shifted World War 2 a whole new level. Major advancements in Technology brought new techniques and weapons in war such as Japans air force. Let’s not forget, he was even able to bring the United States into war, when earlier he stated, "We can run wild for six months or a year, but after that I have utterly no confidence. I hope you will try to avoid war with America".…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics