Battle of Tarawa
Part of World War II, Pacific War
Lt Alexander Bonnyman {4th from right} and his assault party storming Japanese stronghold. Bonnyman received Medal of Honor posthumously.
Date November 20 – November 23, 1943 Location Tarawa Result U.S. victory
Combatants
United States	Empire of Japan
Commanders
Holland Smith	Keiji Shibazaki  †
Strength
35,000 troops	3,000 troops, 1,000 Japanese and 1,200 Korean laborers
Casualties
990 killed 2,296 injured	4,713 killed 17 Japanese and 129 Koreans captured

Map of Tarawa Atoll

Map of Betio, Tarawa Atoll

The Battle of Tarawa was a battle in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, largely fought from November 20 to November 23, 1943. It was the second time the United States was on the offensive (the Battle of Guadalcanal had been the first), and the first offensive in the critical central Pacific region. Combatants  United States Empire of Japan Commanders Chester Nimitz, Evans Carlson Koso Abe, Kanemitsu Strength 211 83-160 Casualties 21 killed, 9 captured (executed later) 83-160 killed 2 aircraft destroyed 2 small ships sunk[1] The Makin (muggin) Island raid occurred on August 17-August 18, 1942, and was... Combatants United States Japan Commanders Richmond K. Turner Ralph C. Smith Seizo Ishikawa Strength 6, 470 400 troops, 400 labourers Casualties 66 killed, 185 wounded 700 killed, 3 Japanese captured, 101 Korean labourers captured The Battle of Makin was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought... Combatants United States Empire of Japan Commanders Richmond K. Turner, Holland M. Smith Monzo Akiyama Strength 2 divisions (about 42,000 soldiers) About 8,100 Casualties 372 killed, 1,592 wounded 7,870 Japanese dead, 105 captured, 125 Korean laborers captured The Battle of Kwajalein was a battle of the... Attack on Truk Conflict World War II, Pacific War Date 17 February 1944 – 18 February 1944 Place Truk, Caroline Islands Result Decisive American victory In World War II, Operation Hailstone was a massive naval air attack launched on 17 February and 18 February 1944 against the Japanese naval and... Battle of Eniwetok Conflict World War II, Pacific War Date 17 February 1944 – 23 February 1944 Place Eniwetok Atoll, United States Japan Commanders Harry W. Hill Yoshimi Nishida Strength 2 regiments 2,000+ Casualties 339 killed or missing, 757 wounded 2,000+ dead, 16 captured The Battle of Eniwetok... Download high resolution version (1000x1087, 148 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1000x1087, 148 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (800x602, 77 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (800x602, 77 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... For other uses, see Pacific War (disambiguation). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... is the 324th day of the year (325th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 327th day of the year (328th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Operation Watchtower On August 7, 1942, the 1st Marine Division performed an amphibious landing east of the Tenaru River. ...

It was also the first time in the war that the United States faced serious Japanese opposition to a U.S. amphibious landing. Previous landings met little or no initial resistance. The 4,500 Japanese defenders were well-supplied and well-prepared, and they fought almost to the last man, exacting a heavy toll on the American Marines. Medals of Honor were awarded to Lt. Alexander Bonnyman, Sgt. Norman Greber, Pfc. John Jackson, and Lt. Jacob Frye. Alexander Sandy Bonnyman, Jr. ... John Jackson may refer to: Politics: John Jackson (Gold Coast), colonial governor in Gold Coast, (now Ghana) John Jackson (Tampa), mayor of Tampa, Florida John Jackson (UK Politician) (1851–1919), Member of Parliament for Plymouth Devonport 1910 to 1918 Science: John Hughlings Jackson (1835–1911), neurologist, namesake of Jacksonian seizure...

Background

In order to set up forward air bases capable of supporting operations across the mid-Pacific, the Philippines, and into Japan, the U.S. needed to take the Marianas Islands. The Marianas were heavily defended, and in order for attacks against them to succeed, land-based bombers would have to be used to "soften up" the defenses. However, the nearest islands capable of supporting such an effort were the Marshall Islands, northeast of Guadalcanal. Taking the Marshalls would provide the base needed to launch an offensive on the Marianas, but the Marshalls were cut off from direct communications with Hawaii by a garrison on the small island of Betio, on the western side of Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands. Thus, to eventually launch an invasion of the Marianas, the battles had to start far to the east, at Tarawa. Mariana Islands (sometimes called The Marianas; up to the early 20th century sometimes called the Ladrone Islands) are a group of islands made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the Pacific Ocean. ... For other uses, see Bomber (disambiguation). ... This article is about the island in the Pacific Ocean. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... Map of Betio from WWII Betio is an island at the extreme southwest of South Tarawa. ... Map of the Tarawa atoll Tarawa is an atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, previously the capital of the former British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. ... It has been suggested that Central Gilberts be merged into this article or section. ...

The Japanese forces were well aware of the Gilberts' strategic location and had invested considerable time and effort fortifying the island. The 7th Sasebo Special Naval Landing Force of 2,619 men under the command of Commander Takeo Sugai was an elite Japanese marine unit. This unit possessed 14 Type 95 Light Tanks led by Ensign Ohtani. In order to bolster the defenses, the 1,247 men of the 111th Pioneers (similar to American Seabees) along with the 970 men of the Fourth Fleet's construction were brought in as well; approximately 1,200 of the men in these two groups were Korean workers. A series of fourteen coastal defense guns, including some 8-inch guns bought from the British before the war, were located around the island and placed in concrete bunkers. A total of 500 pillboxes, "stockades" built from logs, and forty artillery pieces were scattered around the island. An airfield was cut into the bush along the high point of the island. Trenches connected all points of the island, allowing troops to move where needed, under some sort of cover. Rear-Admiral Keiji Shibazaki, who commanded the garrison, had boasted that "it would take one million men one hundred years" to conquer Tarawa. The Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF), (海軍陸戦隊 Tokubetsu Rikusentai) were the marine troops of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and was only part of the IJN Land Forces. ... Type 95 can refer to: Type 95 Ha-Go, light tank Type 95 recon car Type 95 torpedo Category: ... The official motto of the Seabees, the United States Navy Construction Battalions, is Construimus, Batuimus—We Build, We Fight. ... A bunker is a defensive warfare fortification to protect oneself. ... This is a Japanese name; the family name is Shibazaki Keiji Shibazaki , 9 April 1894 – 25 November 1943) was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and the commander of the Japanese garrison on the island of Betio of the Tarawa atoll during the World War II. // Shibazaki was born...

Betio is shaped roughly like a long, thin triangle, with the point to the east and the base on the west. The lagoon of the atoll lies to the north and east, with the entire northern coast of the island in the shallow waters of the atoll, and the southern and western sides in deeper waters. An attack would almost certainly have to approach from the lagoon; the deeper waters on the south offered no reasonable landing areas. In order to prevent this, a huge wall was constructed across the lagoon just in from the high water mark, behind which a series of machine gun posts and pillboxes could fire on anyone trying to get over the wall. A long pier was constructed pointing north from the western end of the island, allowing cargo ships to be unloaded out past the reefs and shallow waters, while still allowing them to anchor in the protected waters of the black lagoon.

The battle

November 20

The American invasion force was the largest yet put together for a single operation, consisting of 17 aircraft carriers (6 CVs, 5 CVLs, 6 CVEs), 12 battleships, 8 heavy and 4 light cruisers, 66 destroyers and 36 transports. The force carried the 2nd Marine Division and a part of the Army's 27th Infantry Division, for a total of about 35,000 soldiers and Marines. Four aircraft carriers, (bottom-to-top) Principe de Asturias, amphibious assault carrier USS Wasp, USS Forrestal and light V/STOL carrier HMS Invincible, showing size differences of late 20th century carriers An aircraft carrier is a warship designed to deploy and in most cases recover aircraft, acting as a sea... For other uses, see Battleship (disambiguation). ... HMS Raleigh a Hawkins class cruiser around which the treaty limits for Heavy cruisers were written. ... A light cruiser is a warship that is not so large and powerful as a regular (or heavy) cruiser, but still larger than ships like destroyers. ... USS McFaul underway in the Atlantic Ocean. ... Shoulder sleeve patch of the 27th Infantry Division. ...

The naval forces opened fire on November 20, 1943, shelling continually for over an hour and a half, stopping only briefly to allow dive bombers from the carriers to operate against the fixed positions. Most of the larger Japanese guns were knocked out during this period. The island was at most points only a few hundred yards wide, and the bombardment turned much of it into rubble. By the time of the invasion, it was thought that no one would remain to defend what was left of the tiny island. is the 324th day of the year (325th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy. ...

The attack plan consisted of three major beaches along the northern coast of the island, Red 1 through 3; Red 1 on the extreme west at the "toe" of the island and Red 3 to the east against the pier. Beaches Green and Black were the western base and southern shore respectively, and not considered suitable for initial landings. The airstrip, running roughly east-west, divided the island into north and south.

The Marines started their attack on the lagoon at 09:00, later than expected, and found themselves stuck on a reef some 500 yards off shore. Marine battle planners had allowed for Betio's neap tide and expected the normal rising tide to provide a water depth of five feet over the reef, allowing larger landing craft, with drafts of at least four feet, to pass with room to spare. But that day and the next, in the words of some observers, “the ocean just sat there,” leaving a mean depth of three feet over the reef. (The neap tide phenomenon occurs twice a month when the moon is near its first or last quarter, because the countering tug of the sun causes water levels to deviate less. But for two days the moon was at its farthest point from earth and exerted even less pull, leaving the waters relatively undisturbed.) This article is about tides in the ocean. ... This article is about tides in the Earths oceans. ...

US LVTs and a Japanese Ha-Go tank on Tarawa beach after the battle.

The Japanese, hiding in deep shelters during the bombardment, quickly manned their guns when the naval fire stopped to allow the Marines to unload. Japanese fire from the island soon started up, and the boats caught on the reef were soon burning. Troops jumped out and started making their way ashore, under machine gun fire the entire time. The small number of Amtrac amphibious tractors were able to make it over the reef, with some difficulty, but many were knocked out by larger guns as they climbed over, and half were out of action by the end of the day. The first wave was only able to land a few men, who were pinned down against the log wall on the beach. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT) was an amphibious vehicle used by the United States Navy, Marine Corps and Army during World War II. It was widely known as amphtrack, amtrak, amtrac etc. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT) was an amphibious vehicle used by the United States Navy, Marine Corps and Army during World War II. It was widely known as amphtrack, amtrak, amtrac etc. ...

Several early attempts to land tanks and break through the wall failed when the landing craft were hit on the run in and either sank or had to withdraw while taking on water. Two tanks eventually landed on the east end of the beach but were knocked out of action fairly quickly. Three were able to land on the western end and helped push the line in to about 300 yards from shore, but one of these fell into a shell hole and another was taken out by a magnetic mine. The remaining tank was used as a portable machine gun pillbox for the rest of the day. A third platoon was able to land all four of their tanks on Red 3 around noon and operate successfully for much of the day, but by the end of the day only one tank was still operable. “Minefield” redirects here. ...

By noon the Marines had successfully taken the beach as far as the first line of Japanese defences. By 15:30 the line had moved inland in places but was still generally along the first line of defenses. The arrival of the tanks started the line moving on Red 3 and the end of Red 2 (the right flank, looking south towards the island), and by nightfall the line was about half-way across the island, only a short distance from the main runway.

During the later hours the Japanese defenders continued harassing fire. In one action, one of the Japanese Marines swam out to one of the disabled amtracs and brought its .50 caliber machine gun into action against the rear of the Marine lines. By the time the U.S. forces retook the vehicle, several men had been injured or killed.

November 21

A Marine from 1st Marine Division uses a flamethrower to clear a path through what was once a thick jungle.

With the Marines holding a line on the island, the second day turned to cutting the Japanese forces in two, by expanding the bulge near the airfield until it reached the southern shore. Meanwhile the forces on Red 1 were instructed to secure Green beach, the entire western end of the island. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 720 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2965 × 2469 pixel, file size: 889 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: A Marine from 1st Marine Division uses a flamethrower to clear a path through what was once a thick jungle in Tarawa - 1943 Source: US... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 720 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (2965 × 2469 pixel, file size: 889 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: A Marine from 1st Marine Division uses a flamethrower to clear a path through what was once a thick jungle in Tarawa - 1943 Source: US... The 1st Marine Division is the oldest, largest (active duty), and most decorated division in the United States Marine Corps representing a combat-ready force of more than 19,000 men and women. ...

In the end, taking Green proved somewhat easier than expected. With heavy resistance all through the area, the commander decided to avoid direct combat and instead called in naval fire from offshore. Inching their way forward during the day, the artillery spotters were able to take out machine gun posts and remaining defenses. After the fire stopped, the troops were able to take the positions in about an hour with few losses.

Operations along Red 2 and Red 3 were considerably more difficult. During the night the defenders had set up several new machine gun posts between the closest approach of the forces from the two beaches, and cut them off from each other for some time. By noon the U.S. forces had brought up their own heavy machine guns, and the Japanese posts were put out of action. By the early afternoon they had crossed the airstrip and had occupied abandoned defensive works on the south side.

Around 13:00 a message arrived that some of the defenders were making their way across the sandbars from the extreme eastern end of the islet to Bairiki, the next islet over. Portions of the 6th Marines were then ordered to land on Bairiki to seal off the retreat path. They formed up, including tanks and pack artillery, and were able to start their landings at 16:55. They received machine gun fire, so aircraft were sent in to try to locate the guns and suppress them. The force landed with no further fire, and it was later found that only a single pillbox with 12 machine guns had been set up by the forces that had been assumed to be escaping. They had a small tank of gasoline in their pillbox, and when it was hit with fire from the aircraft the entire force was burned. Meanwhile other units of the 6th were sent onto Green north (near Red 1). South Tarawa (in Gilbertese and English: Teinainano Urban Council or abr. ... The 6th Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. ...

By the end of the day, the entire western end of the island was in U.S. control, as well as a fairly continual line between Red 2 and 3 around the airfield aprons. A separate group had moved across the airfield and set up a perimeter on the southern side, up against Black 2. The groups were not in contact with each other, with a gap of over 500 yards between the forces at Red 1/Green and Red 2, and the lines on the northern side inland from Red 2/Red 3 were not continuous. Nevertheless it is at this point, as seen in retrospect, that the U.S. began to gain the advantage.

The atoll commander, Rear Admiral Keiji Shibasaki, was killed in his concrete command post, complicating Japanese command issues.

November 22

The battle for the third day consisted primarily of the consolidation of existing lines and moving onshore of additional heavy equipment and tanks. During the morning the forces originally landed on Red 1 made some progress towards Red 2 but at some cost. Meanwhile the units of the 6th landed on Green to the south of Red 1 formed up while the remaining battalion of the 6th landed.

By the afternoon the 1st Battalion 6th Marines was sufficiently organized and equipped to start an offensive. At 12:30 they started and were soon pursuing the Japanese forces across the southern coast of the island. By the late afternoon they had reached the eastern end of the airfield and formed a continuous line with the forces that had landed on Red 3 two days earlier. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1200x1988, 546 KB) The graphic above is a representation of a U.S. military badge, created by the U.S. military and/or the Department of Defense. ... 1st Battalion 6th Marines (1/6) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. ...

By the evening the U.S. clearly had the upper hand. The remaining Japanese forces were either squeezed into the tiny amount of land to the east of the airstrip, or located in several pockets near Red 1/Red 2 or near the eastern edge of the airstrip.

Realizing this, the Japanese forces formed up for a counterattack, which started at about 19:30. Small units were sent in to infiltrate the U.S. lines in preparation for a full-scale assault but were beaten off by concentrated artillery fire, and the assault never took place. Another attempt was made at 23:00 and made some progress.

November 23

At 04:00 the expected assault finally took place, in the location of the earlier probe at 23:00 the night before. After the battle ended about 1 hour later, 200 of the 300 men involved were found dead in front of the U.S. lines, the vast majority killed by artillery fire. The Japanese had little left with which to defend the island.

Aftermath

Sign on Tarawa illustrates Marine humor and possible lack of optimism as to duration of war.

For the next several days the 2nd Battalion 6th Marines landed on Bairiki, moved up the remaining islands in the atoll to clean up, completing this on November 28. Portions of the 2nd Marine Division started leaving soon after and were completely withdrawn by early 1944. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... 2nd Battalion 6th Marines (2/6) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. ... is the 332nd day of the year (333rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The U.S. 2nd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground-force component of the II Marine Expeditionary Force. ...

Only one Japanese officer, 16 enlisted men and 129 Koreans were alive at the end of the battle. Total Japanese and Korean casualties are about 4,713 killed in action. For the U.S. Marine Corps, 990 were killed and a further 2,296 wounded. Although the United States's forces were seven times larger than the defending garrison, the Japanese were able to inflict substantial damage upon the U.S. force. These heavy casualties sparked off a storm of protest in the United States, where the high losses could not be understood for such a tiny and seemingly unimportant island in the middle of nowhere. The losses at Tarawa can be explained by the difficulty of coordinating combined amphibious operations, one of the most demanding military missions. At the time, Tarawa was the most heavily defended atoll invaded by Allied forces in the Pacific. Later the lessons learned at Tarawa would pay off for the Marines in the Battle of Iwo Jima. Combatants  United States  Empire of Japan Commanders Holland Smith Tadamichi Kuribayashi â€  Strength 110,000 21,000 Casualties 6,821 dead 19,189 wounded,[1] 494 missing[1] Total: 26,504 20,703 dead,[1] 216 captured[1] Total: 20,919 yeah it was touching. ...

See also

• USS Tarawa, for U.S. Navy ships named for the battle of Tarawa
• With the Marines at Tarawa, a 1944 short propaganda film directed by Louis Hayward, which won the 1945 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject.

Two United States Navy ships have borne the name Tarawa, after the Pacific atoll that was the scene of a bloody fight in the Pacific War. ... With the Marines at Tarawa was a 1944 short propaganda film directed by Louis Hayward. ... The Why We Fight Series depicts the Nazi propaganda machine. ... Louis Hayward, born Seafield Grant, (March 19, 1909-February 21, 1985), was a British actor born in Johannesburg, South Africa. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... This is a list of films that have received an Oscar and nomination for best documentary short subject. ...

References

Books

• Alexander, Joseph H. (1995). Utmost Savagery: The Three Days of Tarawa. Naval Institute Press. 
• Gregg, Howard F. (1984). Tarawa. Sein and Day. ISBN 0-8128-2906-9. 
• Hammel, Eric; John E. Lane (1998). Bloody Tarawa. Zenith Press. ISBN 0-76032-402-6. 
• Wukovitz, John (2007). One Square Mile of Hell: The Battle for Tarawa. NAL Trade. ISBN 0451221389. 

Web

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Battle of Tarawa

• Tarawa on The Web

United States Marine Corps Portal

• "Defense of Betio Island," Intelligence Bulletin, U.S. War Department, March 1944.
• - The Assault of the Second Marine Division on Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll, 20-23 November, 1943
• Timeline of the Battle
• Eyewitnesstohistory.com - The Bloody Battle of Tarawa
• Marines in World War II Historical Monograph: The Battle for Tarawa
• Animated History of The Battle of Tarawa
• Heinl, Robert D., and John A. Crown (1954). The Marshalls: Increasing the Tempo. USMC Historical Monograph. Historical Division, Division of Public Information, Headquarters U.S. Marine Corps. Retrieved on 2006-12-04.
• United States Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific), Naval Analysis Division (1946). Chapter IX: Central Pacific Operations From 1 June 1943 to 1 March 1944, Including the Gilbert-Marshall Islands Campaign. The Campaigns of the Pacific War. United States Government Printing Office. Retrieved on 2007-06-11.

Coordinates: 1°25′37.00″N, 172°58′32.00″E Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Image File history File links USMC_logo. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 338th day of the year (339th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 162nd day of the year (163rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...

• ["Tarawa" cat survivor adopted by US Coast Guard]