When we left off my series of World War II articles, the war in Europe had wound down.
Ken remembers sailing home on an ocean as calm and smooth as a "honeymoon cruise," but only after a long journey across mainland Europe; from the beaches of Normandy to the lights of Paris, to the forests and superhighways of Germany. The war in Europe was over, as was the conflict in the Pacific. The atomic bombs had been dropped on Japan, and the Imperial Army had been beaten back. All of America had chipped in and contributed to the war effort, to a point of unity that has not been approached since. Schoolchildren banded together to collect milkweed and tin scraps, households accepted rationing, and even Hollywood lambasted the enemy in films and cartoon clips.
I also mentioned in a previous article that World War II actually was the union of two separate wars that, when joined, drew the entire world into conflict. It was not until September 1939, when Germany invaded Poland, that France and Britain finally declared war on Germany. Likewise in Asia, Japan invaded and secured Manchuria for its industrial capabilities as early as 1931. War formally broke out between China and Japan on July 7, 1937, in the Marco Polo Bridge incident. Later that year, on Dec. 13, Japanese troops smashed into the Chinese capital city of Nanking. What followed was a six-week orgy of brutality, which would be universally remembered as the Rape of Nanking. Shortly thereafter, the United States imposed economic sanctions on Japan. By 1940, it was illegal to sell any oil or rubber to Japan, meaning the country either would have to tone down its aggression, or acquire more resources.
Japan responded in July 1940 by announcing a New Order called the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" - essentially, a United States of Asia, with Japan at the center. Like Germany in Europe, Japan seemed unstoppable - literally, all of Asia was up for grabs. At the time, China was embroiled in civil war, Russia was tied up by Germany, European colonies in Asia were left unsupplied and unguarded, and even Australia's best troops were fighting in Africa for the crown. All that stood in the way of Japan's "Asia Co-prosperity Sphere" was the United States. Japan's view of America was that she would cower - American boys did not have the guts to fight.
This view was not entirely unjustified: During the 1930s, the United States was hardly a formidable military power. There was no Department of Defense, and even as late as 1941, the United States had the 16th largest military in the world, after Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and Romania. It is not surprising that Japan did not feel threatened by the United States.
In December 1941, the Japanese attacked the American Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. Had Japan struck America's oilfields, or her aircraft carriers instead, we certainly would have been put out of commission. But again, Japan's view of America was that she would not fight. In fact, right up to the Pearl Harbor attack, American citizens had long enjoyed a sense of isolated security. Often, when interviewing my friends, I hear comments like, "It all felt very far away"; or, "We felt safe - we were over here, they were over there." Pearl Harbor served as a wakeup call for a sleeping giant, and America responded by sending heavy bombers off an aircraft carrier to target the Japanese mainland. Still, it would be some time before the Americans could mount a truly decisive offense against Japan.
So, then, where does that bring us? After the Pearl Harbor attack and up until 1942, Asia literally was wide open for the taking. All that truly stood in Japan's way was a scandalously unprepared Australian militia in New Guinea. Some of these Australians had never held a rifle, much less fired one in anger or defense. They were issued khaki desert gear, and footwear that rotted in the jungles of New Guinea. On July 21, 1942, Japanese troops began marching across New Guinea toward Port Moresby, a strategic base that served as the last line of defense for mainland Australia. Remarkably, it was here that the "unstoppable" army of Japan experienced its first land defeat - by the ill-prepared and barely trained Aussies.
What the Australians encountered was an army unsurpassed in its sheer brutality. Certainly, in Europe, atrocities occurred: in his book "The Day of Battle," Rick Atkinson writes of German tanks running over wounded American soldiers - and spinning the tracks. In Asia, the Japanese displayed a historic disregard for human life. The Australian militia soon learned the Spirit Warriors' favorite trick, which was to torture a captured Aussie, in the hopes that his friends, lured by screams, would come running into ambush. It also was discovered that the Japanese Army, grossly undersupplied, had resorted to cannibalism for survival. Australian soldiers described re-taking ground and finding the bodies of their comrades, stripped of flesh.
The war in the Pacific is one that still vexes historians, and provides little in the way of strategic reason. Questions have yet to be answered, not least of which is in regards to the Japanese treatment of Chinese civilians and enemy combatants: Why were the Japanese so inhumanly brutal?
Contrary to Japanese opinion at the time, America did stand up to fight. Tune in next week.
- Dan Wegmueller is a columnist for The Monroe Times. He can be reached at dwegs@tds.net.
Ken remembers sailing home on an ocean as calm and smooth as a "honeymoon cruise," but only after a long journey across mainland Europe; from the beaches of Normandy to the lights of Paris, to the forests and superhighways of Germany. The war in Europe was over, as was the conflict in the Pacific. The atomic bombs had been dropped on Japan, and the Imperial Army had been beaten back. All of America had chipped in and contributed to the war effort, to a point of unity that has not been approached since. Schoolchildren banded together to collect milkweed and tin scraps, households accepted rationing, and even Hollywood lambasted the enemy in films and cartoon clips.
I also mentioned in a previous article that World War II actually was the union of two separate wars that, when joined, drew the entire world into conflict. It was not until September 1939, when Germany invaded Poland, that France and Britain finally declared war on Germany. Likewise in Asia, Japan invaded and secured Manchuria for its industrial capabilities as early as 1931. War formally broke out between China and Japan on July 7, 1937, in the Marco Polo Bridge incident. Later that year, on Dec. 13, Japanese troops smashed into the Chinese capital city of Nanking. What followed was a six-week orgy of brutality, which would be universally remembered as the Rape of Nanking. Shortly thereafter, the United States imposed economic sanctions on Japan. By 1940, it was illegal to sell any oil or rubber to Japan, meaning the country either would have to tone down its aggression, or acquire more resources.
Japan responded in July 1940 by announcing a New Order called the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" - essentially, a United States of Asia, with Japan at the center. Like Germany in Europe, Japan seemed unstoppable - literally, all of Asia was up for grabs. At the time, China was embroiled in civil war, Russia was tied up by Germany, European colonies in Asia were left unsupplied and unguarded, and even Australia's best troops were fighting in Africa for the crown. All that stood in the way of Japan's "Asia Co-prosperity Sphere" was the United States. Japan's view of America was that she would cower - American boys did not have the guts to fight.
This view was not entirely unjustified: During the 1930s, the United States was hardly a formidable military power. There was no Department of Defense, and even as late as 1941, the United States had the 16th largest military in the world, after Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and Romania. It is not surprising that Japan did not feel threatened by the United States.
In December 1941, the Japanese attacked the American Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. Had Japan struck America's oilfields, or her aircraft carriers instead, we certainly would have been put out of commission. But again, Japan's view of America was that she would not fight. In fact, right up to the Pearl Harbor attack, American citizens had long enjoyed a sense of isolated security. Often, when interviewing my friends, I hear comments like, "It all felt very far away"; or, "We felt safe - we were over here, they were over there." Pearl Harbor served as a wakeup call for a sleeping giant, and America responded by sending heavy bombers off an aircraft carrier to target the Japanese mainland. Still, it would be some time before the Americans could mount a truly decisive offense against Japan.
So, then, where does that bring us? After the Pearl Harbor attack and up until 1942, Asia literally was wide open for the taking. All that truly stood in Japan's way was a scandalously unprepared Australian militia in New Guinea. Some of these Australians had never held a rifle, much less fired one in anger or defense. They were issued khaki desert gear, and footwear that rotted in the jungles of New Guinea. On July 21, 1942, Japanese troops began marching across New Guinea toward Port Moresby, a strategic base that served as the last line of defense for mainland Australia. Remarkably, it was here that the "unstoppable" army of Japan experienced its first land defeat - by the ill-prepared and barely trained Aussies.
What the Australians encountered was an army unsurpassed in its sheer brutality. Certainly, in Europe, atrocities occurred: in his book "The Day of Battle," Rick Atkinson writes of German tanks running over wounded American soldiers - and spinning the tracks. In Asia, the Japanese displayed a historic disregard for human life. The Australian militia soon learned the Spirit Warriors' favorite trick, which was to torture a captured Aussie, in the hopes that his friends, lured by screams, would come running into ambush. It also was discovered that the Japanese Army, grossly undersupplied, had resorted to cannibalism for survival. Australian soldiers described re-taking ground and finding the bodies of their comrades, stripped of flesh.
The war in the Pacific is one that still vexes historians, and provides little in the way of strategic reason. Questions have yet to be answered, not least of which is in regards to the Japanese treatment of Chinese civilians and enemy combatants: Why were the Japanese so inhumanly brutal?
Contrary to Japanese opinion at the time, America did stand up to fight. Tune in next week.
- Dan Wegmueller is a columnist for The Monroe Times. He can be reached at dwegs@tds.net.
