Japanese Imperial Army

American History: The War in the Pacific

STEVE EMBER: Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

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American military planners had to make an important decision when the United States entered the Second World War at the end of nineteen forty-one.

American forces could not fight effectively in Asia and Europe at the same time. The military planners decided to use most of their forces to defeat the German troops of Adolf Hitler. Only after victory over the Nazis was clear in Europe would they use all of America's strength to fight Japan in Asia and the Pacific.

Because of this decision, Japan was able to win many of the early battles of the war in Asia. The fighting in the Pacific is the subject of program this week.

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Japanese planes bombed the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December seventh nineteen forty-one.

BROADCASTER: "We interrupt this program to bring you a special news bulletin. The Japanese have attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, by air, President Roosevelt has just announced.

"We take you now to Washington. The attack was apparently made on all naval and military activities on the principal island of Oahu.”

The surprise raid marked the first of several major victories for the Japanese.

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Shortly after Pearl Harbor, imperial forces attacked American bases in the Philippines. And within days Japan captured the American island of Guam. Japanese troops landed in Thailand. They marched into Malaya, and they seized Hong Kong. The Japanese also moved into Indonesia and Burma.

Even Hitler's troops in Europe had not moved so quickly or successfully. As one American historian wrote later, the Pacific Ocean looked like a Japanese lake.

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The United States tried to fight back. General Jimmy Doolittle led a group of sixteen American B-25 bombers that took off from an aircraft carrier and bombed Tokyo in a surprise raid.

JIMMY DOOLITTLE: "The B-25 was selected because it was small, because it had the sufficient range to carry two thousand pounds of bombs, two thousand miles, and because it took off and handled very well."

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STEVE EMBER: It was a bold move. The B-25 had never been launched from an aircraft carrier before. And the demands on the planes -- and the pilots -- were even greater with the weight of a full load of bombs.

Japan’s leaders believed no army could stop them. So they expanded their goals and launched new campaigns.

Jeff's Pirates Cove: The Story of a WWII Japanese Straggler on ...

If you are a World War II history buff and have followed the war in the pacific involving the Nation of Japan and the Japanese Imperial Army against the military forces of the United States, you have got to get yourself down to Jeff's Pirates Cove's Seaside Museum. Here you will find the largest photo exhibition on Guam of the infamous World War II Japanese straggler Sgt. Soichi Yokoi. Sgt. Yokoi spent 28 years hiding and surviving in the jungles of Guam after World War II was over. "According to news accounts, Sergeant Yokoi (Imperial Japanese Army) was found and captured January 25, 1972, after hiding in the jungles of Guam for twenty-eight years. The capture of Sergeant Yokoi was headline news worldwide. The story of the lone man's twenty-eight years of hiding and surviving with very little contact with "civilization" captured the attention of the world. When Yokoi stepped out of Guam's jungles he stepped out from the silence of the Talofofo river valley into the jet age. Remarkably Yokoi had correctly calculated the time that had passed while in the jungle and knew that the year was 1972 when he was captured." "A tailor by trade, Yokoi was uniquely suited for survival on the island of Guam. He was practical to a fault, rarely imagined problems, or let his imagination hinder his perceived need to hide. Yokoi was not alone in the jungles of Guam all of the time he was in hiding. Eight years prior to Yokoi's capture, two other Japanese soldiers died of malnutrition and disease. The two soldiers that hid out in the same area were the only humans Yokoi had any contact with. It was agreed between the three Japanese soldiers that they should limit their contact between each other as to avoid detection. Yokoi buried his compatriots in a cave and directed officials to this site soon after he was captured." "Yokoi was able to keep from getting ringworm, lice infestations and other infectious diseases by bathing frequently and thoroughly. He was remarkably healthy when he was found. He lived by trapping shrimp, fish, and rats and eating jungle vegetation. His movements were restricted to the night hours. The thick jungle in the area where Yokoi stayed helped him remain hidden." "Jesus Duenas and Manuel DeGracia were out checking fish traps when they saw Yokoi near a small river. Manuel and Jesus though at first that Yokoi was a young man from their village who sometimes roamed the jungle.

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The Thought War, Japanese Imperial Propaganda