"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve."

The above words are attributed to Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, leader of the attack on Pearl Harbor.   Said to have been spoken following the sneak attack of December 7, 1941 that brought the U.S. into World War II, their source is most likely a Hollywood screenwriter writing for the movie Tora! Tora! Tora!   They do however accurately describe the ultimate result of the attack on the United States and the American people.




BATTLESHIPS ABLAZE DURING THE ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR

The attack was planned to occur shortly after delivery of a message breaking-off talks with the U.S.
Delays by the Japanese Embassy in Washington caused the message to be delivered after the attack began,
making it an attack by a nation still engaged in peace talks.



USS ARIZONA SINKS FOLLOWING A DIRECT BOMB HIT DURING THE ATTACK

The sneak attack enraged the American spirit and ended isolationism.
The following day the United States declared war on Japan, officially entering World War II.

The American people responded as they had never done before nor have since. On April 18, 1942, four months after the Pearl Harbor attack, American planes led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle bombed Tokyo, the capital city of Japan. The raid was militarily insignificant, but a huge boost to American morale, sending a message to the Japanese military.



B-25 BOMBER OF DOOLITTLE'S TOKYO RAIDERS TAKES OFF FROM USS HORNET



The Battle of Midway (June 4-7, 1942) is seen as a turning point in the war. The United States took
the offensive in the Pacific and many of the Japanese carriers that attacked Pearl Harbor were sunk.


JAPANESE CARRIER HIRYU MANEUVERS DURING ATTACK BY U.S. B-17 BOMBERS. IT WAS LATER SUNK.



The tide had been turned but stubborn resistance led to an
island-hopping effort by U.S. forces in the Pacific.


FAMOUS PHOTOGRAPH OF THE AMERICAN FLAG BEING RAISED ON MT. SURIBACHI, IWO JIMA.



In the China-Burma-India Theater, "12,000 miles from Main Street," American forces
fought on the ground and in the air while supporting China's war effort against Japan.


AMERICAN GROUND CREWMAN NEAR SHARK-NOSED P-40s WAVES AS B-24 TAKES OFF ON BOMBING MISSION



Finally after three years of war, the Allies were in a position to dictate terms of surrender.



The POTSDAM DECLARATION of July 26, 1945 defined the terms for Unconditional Japanese Surrender.

1. We, the President of the United States, the President of the National Government of the Republic of China, and the Prime Minister of Great Britain, representing the hundreds of millions of our countrymen, have conferred and agree that Japan shall be given an opportunity to end this war.

2. The prodigious land, sea and air forces of the United States, the British Empire and of China, many times reinforced by their armies and air fleets from the west, are poised to strike the final blows upon Japan. This military power is sustained and inspired by the determination of all the Allied Nations to prosecute the war against Japan until she ceases to resist.

3. The result of the futile and senseless German resistance to the might of the aroused free peoples of the world stands forth in awful clarity as an example to the people of Japan. The might that now converges on Japan is immeasurably greater than that which, when applied to the resisting Nazis, necessarily laid waste to the lands, the industry and the method of life of the whole German people. The full application of our military power, backed by our resolve, will mean the inevitable and complete destruction of the Japanese armed forces and just as inevitably the utter devastation of the Japanese homeland.

4. The time has come for Japan to decide whether she will continue to be controlled by those self-willed militaristic advisers whose unintelligent calculations have brought the Empire of Japan to the threshold of annihilation, or whether she will follow the path of reason.

5. Following are our terms. We will not deviate from them. There are no alternatives. We shall brook no delay.

6. There must be eliminated for all time the authority and influence of those who have deceived and misled the people of Japan into embarking on world conquest, for we insist that a new order of peace, security and justice will be impossible until irresponsible militarism is driven from the world.

7. Until such a new order is established and until there is convincing proof that Japan's war-making power is destroyed, points in Japanese territory to be designated by the Allies shall be occupied to secure the achievement of the basic objectives we are here setting forth.

8. The terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out and Japanese sovereignty shall be limited to the islands of Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikoku and such minor islands as we determine.

9. The Japanese military forces, after being completely disarmed, shall be permitted to return to their homes with the opportunity to lead peaceful and productive lives.

10. We do not intend that the Japanese shall be enslaved as a race or destroyed as a nation, but stern justice shall be meted out to all war criminals, including those who have visited cruelties upon our prisoners. The Japanese Government shall remove all obstacles to the revival and strengthening of democratic tendencies among the Japanese people. Freedom of speech, of religion, and of thought, as well as respect for the fundamental human rights shall be established.

11. Japan shall be permitted to maintain such industries as will sustain her economy and permit the exaction of just reparations in kind, but not those which would enable her to re-arm for war. To this end, access to, as distinguished from control of, raw materials shall be permitted. Eventual Japanese participation in world trade relations shall be permitted.

12. The occupying forces of the Allies shall be withdrawn from Japan as soon as these objectives have been accomplished and there has been established in accordance with the freely expressed will of the Japanese people a peacefully inclined and responsible government.

13. We call upon the government of Japan to proclaim now the unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces, and to provide proper and adequate assurances of their good faith in such action. The alternative for Japan is prompt and utter destruction.

The Japanese Government ignored this declaration by the Allies and its final warning:

THE ALTERNATIVE FOR JAPAN IS PROMPT AND UTTER DESTRUCTION


Plans already in motion for the dropping of the atomic bomb continued.

On August 6, 1945 the first atomic bomb, "Little Boy" was dropped over
Hiroshima by "Enola Gay," a U.S. Army Air Force B-29 Superfortress.



"ENOLA GAY" DROPPED THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB OVER HIROSHIMA


Although massive air raids by U.S. Army Air Force B-29s had brought more destruction to Japanese cities in earlier raids, never had a single bomb dropped by a single plane caused more destruction.



HIROSHIMA IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE ATOMIC BOMB


Following the dropping of the atomic bomb, U.S. Army Air Force bombers dropped
leaflets over the major cities of Japan. The message was plain and to the point:

TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE: America asks that you take immediate heed of what we say on this leaflet. We are in possession of the most destructive explosive ever devised by man. A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s can carry on a single mission. This awful fact is one for you to ponder and we solemnly assure you it is grimly accurate. We have just begun to use this weapon against your homeland. If you still have any doubt, make inquiry as to what happened to Hiroshima when just one atomic bomb fell on that city. Before using this bomb to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this useless war, we ask that you now petition the Emperor to end the war. Our president has outlined for you the thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender. We urge that you accept these consequences and begin the work of building a new, better and peace-loving Japan. You should take steps now to cease military resistance. Otherwise, we shall resolutely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to promptly and forcefully end the war.

The Japanese Government once again ignored the message.

On August 9, 1945, the second atomic bomb, "Fat Man" was dropped over Nagasaki by "Bocks Car."



MUSHROOM CLOUD RISES OVER NAGASAKI FOLLOWING THE DROPPING OF THE 2nd ATOMIC BOMB


All but defeated and facing annihilation, the Japanese government
finally agreed to unconditional surrender on August 15, 1945.


The day will forever be known as V-J DAY.


VICTORY OVER JAPAN










AMERICANS CELEBRATE WITH NEWSPAPER HEADLINE TELLING THE STORY



PRESIDENT HARRY S. TRUMAN ANNOUNCES JAPANESE SURRENDER


Japanese military forces were ordered to cease-fire and surrender.

On September 2, 1945, aboard the USS Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay,
Japanese officials signed the Instrument of Surrender.



JAPANESE DELEGATION ASSEMBLED FOR SURRENDER CEREMONY ABOARD USS MISSOURI



JAPANESE FOREIGN MINISTER SIGNS ON BEHALF OF THE JAPANESE EMPIRE



GENERAL DOUGLAS MacARTHUR SIGNS AS SUPREME COMMANDER FOR THE ALLIED POWERS


    



U.S. NAVY PLANES CELEBRATE VICTORY WITH OVERFLIGHT OF USS MISSOURI IN TOKYO BAY



Similar ceremonies took place at major battlefronts across the Pacific.

On September 7, 1945 General Joseph Stilwell accepted the surrender of Japanese forces
in the Ryukus at Okinawa. On September 13, Japanese forces in Burma surrendered.


GENERAL JOSEPH STILWELL (RIGHT) OF CBI FAME, ACCEPTS JAPANESE SURRENDER ON OKINAWA.



THE GREATEST GENERATION HAD MET AND DEFEATED THE GREAT THREAT

WORLD WAR II WAS OVER




THE FAMOUS KISS IN TIMES SQUARE NEW YORK CELEBRATING THE END OF THE WAR




THE BANNER ON THIS SHIP AT NEW YORK SAYS IT ALL




SYMBOLS OF THE BEGINNING AND THE END - USS ARIZONA (BB-39) MEMORIAL AND USS MISSOURI (BB-63) AT PEARL HARBOR







                  More details from


 WORLD WAR II 

 PEARL HARBOR      NO DRILL      INFAMY 

 SLEEPING GIANT      DOOLITTLE RAID      IWO JIMA 

 ATOMIC BOMBINGS      ENOLA GAY      BOCKS CAR 

 SURRENDER OF JAPAN      V-J DAY      INSTRUMENT 

 IMAGE REVIEW 


 YOUR COMMENTS 

Compilation Copyright © 2005 by Carl Warren Weidenburner


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