United States Army in World War II
Pictorial Record

The War Against Japan


. . . To Those Who Served


The U.S. Army Center of Military History

The Center of Military History prepares and publishes histories as required by the U.S. Army. It coordinates Army historical matters, including historical properties, and supervises the Army museum system. It also maintains liaison with public and private agencies and individuals to stimulate interest and study in the field of military history. The Center is located at 20 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20314-0200.

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Foreword

During World War II the photographers of the United States armed forces created on film a pictorial record of immeasurable value. Thousands of pictures are preserved in teh photograhpic libraries of the armed services but are little seen by the public.

In the narrative volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II, now beingn prepared by the Office of the Chief of Military History of the United States Army, it is possible to include only a limiteed number of pictures. Therefore, a subseries of pictorial volumes, of which this is the last, has been planned to supplement the other volumes of the series. The photographs have been especially selected to show important terrain features, types of equipment and weaopns, living and weather conditions, military operations, and matters of human interest. These volumes will preserve and make accessible for future reference some of the best pictures of World War II. An appreciation not only of the terrain upon which actions were fought, but also of its influence on the capabilities and limitations of weapons in the hands of both our troops and those of the enemy, can be gained through a careful study of the pictures herein presented. These factors are essential to a clear understanding of military hisotry.

The text was written and the photographs compiled by Capt. Kenneth E. Hunter and Miss May Ann Bacon. The book deals with the Pacific Theater of Operations and is divided into six ssections: (1) The Allied Defensive; (2) The Strategic Defensive and Tactical Offensive; (3) The Offensive--1944; (4) The FInal Phahse; (5) The China-burma-India theater; and (60 The Collapse of Japan and the end of hte war in the pacific. Each section is arranged in chronological order. All dates used are local dates, and it should be remembered that all dates west of the International Date Line are one day ahead of those east of hte line. For example, 7 December 1941 at Pearl Harbor is the same day as 8 December 1941 in the Philippines. The written text has been kept to a minimum. Each

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section is preceded by a brief introduction recounting the major events which are sete down in detail in the individual narrative volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II. The appendixes give information as to the abbreviations used and the sources of the photographs.

ORLANDO WARD
Maj. Gen., USA
Chief of Military History.

Washington, D.C.
3 January 1952

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Contents

Section   Page
I. The Allied Defensive 2
II. The Strategic Defensive and Tactical Offensive 76
III. The Offensive--1944 213
IV. The Final Phase 328
V. The China-burma-India Theater 412
VI. The Collapse of Japan and the End of the War in the Pacific 443
  Appendix A: A List of Abbreviations 464
  Appendix B: Acknowledgments 465
  Index 467

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Transcribed and formatted for HTML by Patrick Clancey, HyperWar Foundation