1. Ineffective Defence of Overextended Japanese Empire
1.1. By 1942, Japan had occupied almost the whole of Southeast which was a large territory for the Japanese forces to manage
1.2. The Japanese Empire had overstretched itself & it was difficult for the Japanese forces to maintain and defend the newly occupied Southeast Asian territories
1.3. Key military defeats by the Allies against the Japanese forces decimated the numbers of experienced Japanese pilots and aircraft carriers & Japan was struggling to keep up with the war effort with its limited funds, resources and manpower
1.4. The combined resources and manpower of the Allied forces allowed them to recover quickly fromt he Japanese attacks
1.5. Key military defeats experienced by the Japanese
1.5.1. August 1942: Guadacanal and the Solomon Islands
1.5.1.1. First major Allied attack on Japanese-occupied territory
1.5.1.2. The Allies aimed to regain control of the Solomon Islands and New Guinea to remove Japan's threat against Australia and the southern Pacific Ocean
1.5.1.3. US greatly outnumbered the Japanese and Japan lost 25k men and 600 planes in the battle
1.5.1.4. Mid-1944: Allies had surrounded and cut the Japanese naval and air bases off from the rest of the Japanese forces through "island hopping" strategy (attack and take control of one island & move onto the next one)
1.5.2. June 1944: The Marianas Islands
1.5.2.1. Allies sought to seize the Marianas Islands to establish air force capabilities
1.5.2.2. Close to Japan to allow American heavy bomber planes to attack the Japanese mainland
1.5.2.3. During the naval battle (known as the battle of the philippine sea, 19 to 20 June 1944) Japan lost 2 more carriers and 300 airplanes
1.5.3. October 1944: The Philippines
1.5.3.1. American forces under General Douglas MacArthur wanted to regain the Philippines from the Japanese
1.5.3.2. Oct 1944: American forces began their campaign to retake the Philippines and battled with Japanese ground forces in the island of Leyte --> naval battle known as Battle of the Leyte Gulf, the Japanese navy lost 4 carriers, 3 battleships, 10 cruisers and 9 destroyers
1.5.4. February 1945: Iwo Jima
1.5.4.1. Americans wanted to build an airfield on Iwo Jima to launch & supply large long-range bombers that could reach Japan and return safely
1.5.4.2. Aim: to destroy Japan's industry and economy through bombing
1.5.4.3. American battleships bombarded the island but 21k strong Japanese garrison there stayed hidden in bunkers and survived to fight the American landings
1.5.4.4. Over 7k American soldiers were killed & 17l wounded in the attack --> island was captured
1.5.5. April 1945: Okinawa
1.5.5.1. Okinawa provided an ideal base for launching attacks on the main islands of Japan --> good harbour that allowed for loading transports for any invasion of Japan by the American army
1.5.5.2. Okinawa was well defended by 77k Japanese soldiers & 24k Okinawan conscripts
1.5.5.3. Japanese launched over a thousand kamikaze attacks in addition to several thousand convential air attacks
1.5.5.4. USA and Britain lost 36 ships while over 60k Japanese soldiers and 100k Okinawan civilians died or committed suicde and American had 12.5k died and 44k wounded
1.6. The battles inflicted heavy damages to the strength of the Japanese military + weakened its ability to continue to effectively defend the empire. As a result of its ineffectiveness in defending an overstretched empire, the defeat was imminent as they couldn’t fight a long-drawn war against the Allies. Key mil defeats by A a/g J forces decimated the numbers of experienced J pilots and aircraft carriers • J struggled to keep up with WE w/ limited funds, rez and manpower • However, combined rez and manpower of A forces allowed them to recover quickly from J attacks
2. Desire of Allies to secure a quick victory in the Asia Pacific
2.1. In the attempt to defend its empire, the Japanese turned to forced labour and the use of kamikaze fighters --> both approaches worked against it & made the Allies even more determined to fight and end the war quicky
2.1.1. Minimise Allied losses from kamikaze attacks
2.1.1.1. the kamikaze spirit of the japanese fighters was another consideration that influenced the allied desire for a quick solution to the war
2.1.1.2. Kamikaze is a suicide mission by the Japanese air pilots against the Allied ships with the intention of inflicting maximum damage
2.1.1.3. First used in the defence of Leyte in the Philippines --> became increasingly used as a tactic to attack the Allies when they tried to gain control of Japanese territories
2.1.1.4. Kamikaze brought about high rate of casualties hence, the Allied leaders would want a quick end to the war to minimise losses
2.1.2. Liberation of Allied Prisoners-of-War
2.1.2.1. Japanese turned to forced labour to solve the shortages of manpower and resources --> largest forced labourers came from the Japanese satellite state of Korea --> thousands of workers from Asia were also forced to work in factorie or construction projects --> Thai-Burma Railway
2.1.2.1.1. Forced labourers worked in harsh conditions, were malnourished and even were denied of basic health facilities
2.1.2.1.2. Thai-Burma Railway: - Project initiated by the Japanese in 1942 - Sought to support their occupation of Burma through the supply of resources and troops - Forced Asians from the occupied territories & Allied POWs to work on the project --> harsh working conditions: work w/o rest, food or water - Project estimated duration was 5 years but the workers were forced to complete it in 18 months - Not provided with proper equipment for construction - Those attempted to escape were killed - 61k POWs forced to build the railway, 13k died of disease, hunger or mistreatment
2.1.2.2. POWs used as forced labourers
2.1.2.2.1. over 100k POWs were captured in the fall of SIngapore while more than 27k POWs were captured during the war
2.1.2.2.2. Over half of the POWs became forced labourers in the Japanese war effort
2.1.2.2.3. Secret police unit called Kempeitai: specialised in torturing prisoners Japanese hostility towards Allieds POWs was frequently highlighted in Allied propaganda and strengthened determination of the Allied powers to end the war to liberate the POWs and the Japanese-occupied territories
2.2. Due to the heavy damage and large losses faced by the Allies, they were spurred on to resolve the war in the Asia Pacific region as fast as possible against the Japanese
3. Allied Victory in Europe
3.1. The Japanese relied on Hitler's armies in Europe to distract the Allies --> Japan had limited resources & overextension of its empire and USA strength --> USA entered the war formally --> Churchill and Roosevelt agreed that they should defeat Germany first because Japan would lose its major partner in the war --> Japan faced the Allies alone --> even before Germany's defeat in may 1945, it was obvious to leaders of both japan and the allies that japan could not win the war --> Japanese emperor looked for new ministers who would secure a peace settlement but none of them were willing to accept Allied demands for unconditional surrender --> preferred to continue fighting and hoped to negotiate peace terms with the Allies
3.1.1. Allies' demand for unconditional surrender was due to their desire for complete victory and to avoid the situation which existed after WW1 in Europe
3.1.2. Fear that if Japan was humiliated by a peace settlement but remained in control of its militarist elite, it would try to rise again and seek revenge and to threaten its neighbours like Germany had done before
3.1.3. popular opinions at home also influenced the democratic leaders' desire to bring home complete victory to their people
3.1.4. The Allies were enraged: - stories of japanese atrocities, esp against the POWs many of them resented the Japanese and wanted to see them totally defeated
3.1.5. Allies saw that the japanese were determined to never surrender --> their leaders could not bring themselves to reveal their weaknesses to the Allies let alone accept unconditional surrender
3.2. Hence, with the Allied victory over Germnay, Japan’s fate was sealed as it had to stand alone and was no match for Allied who then focused all their attention and resources to Japan, which led to the defeat of Japan in 08/45.
4. Strengths of the USA
4.1. Japan launched a surprise attack on Southeast Asia in 1941--> hope that its quick and early successes would convince the Allies to negotiate for peace --> Admiral Yamamoto warned the Japanese leaders that Japan could win early but not a long war --> USA's industrial capacity was larger than Japan's & the USA would be able to rebuild its Pacific Fleet and strike back with even greater force --> Japanese leaders took a gamble in 1941 that the USA would be unwilling to pay for the price of a long and total war --> Japan underestimated USA's determination once it had been roused to action by the Pearl Harbour attack --> Japanese were also relying on the continued success of Hitler's armies in Europe to distract the USA When the USA formally entered the war: Churchhill & Roosevelt agreed to defeat Germany first and once Germany was defeated, Japan's fate was sealed.
4.1.1. Economic Strength
4.1.1.1. USA was the largest industrial power in the world during that time. Even though it mostly produced goods for consumption, & not military equipment, it could transform into military production quickly.
4.1.1.2. After the Great Depression, USA had many unemployed people who were eager to work --> willing citizens proved to be far better than workers who were forced into labour in the facist state
4.1.1.3. Japan did not have strong industrial foundation or capabilities to support their war effort --> could not protect their merchant fleet from attacks by American submarines --> American attacks weakened Japan's economy with the war continued
4.1.1.4. Japan people had less food & its factories had fewer resources because the Allies crippled Jap's raw materials amd production
4.1.1.5. Allies worked hard to sink Japanese merchant vessels & to bomb their factories
4.1.1.6. American factories were well out of range and its merchant ships were better protected by military convoys
4.1.1.7. Statistics here :D
4.1.1.8. Therefore, the USA's involvement ultimately led to the defeat of Japan, as economic strength of USA gave it the capacity to fight a long-drawn war, which Japan was unable to do.
4.1.2. Contribution of Women to The War Effort
4.1.2.1. Women played an integral part in boosting the Allies' industrial machine, esp USA
4.1.2.2. The Allied countries actively encouraged women to contribute to the war effort through propaganda campaigns
4.1.2.2.1. Eg: In USA, Women Ordance Workers (WOWs) worked in factories to produce weapons, vehicles and military supplies neccessary for the war effort
4.1.2.2.2. Some joined the armed forces as nurses and even soldiers
4.1.2.3. In Japan, like Germany, emphasised the role of women as mothers and child-bearers and stressed that they should stay at home Later in the war, Japan made efforts to encourage women to eneter the workforce but by then Japan's industries and supply routes were already crippled
4.1.2.4. Therefore, the women's involvement had greatly contributed to USA's military strength in machinery and capacity to sustain themselves during the long-drawn war with Japan. Meanwhile, Japan was late on this bandwagon which placed them in a disadvanatge causing them to lack in military strength and lose out to the opposing nations.
4.1.3. Military and Naval Strength
4.1.3.1. Even though Japan attacked on Pearl Harbour, USA was still determined and militarily strong enough to fight back against the Japanese & they were able to effectively use their military strength against the Japanese
4.1.3.2. The Pearl Harbour attack didn't totally destroy the USA's capacity to retaliate in the Asia Pacific --> 3 aircraft carriers of the US Pacific Fleet were not at Pearl Harbour during the attack
4.1.3.3. 3 Key events which proved that Japan had failed to break USA's resolve: - The Doolittle Raid on Tokyo - The Battle of The Coral Sea - The Battle of Midway **The seat battles in particular helped to stall Japan's advance throughout Southeast Asia
4.1.3.3.1. Doolittle Raid on Tokyo
4.1.3.3.2. The Battle of The Coral Sea
4.1.3.3.3. The Battle of Midway
4.1.3.4. Therefore, US involvement contributed to the defeat of Japan as its military and naval strengths not only prevented Japan from expanding southward to secure a decisive victory but also crippled Japan's economy, which further weakened them and led to its defeat.
4.1.4. Continued bombings on mainland Japan
4.1.4.1. Continued aerial bombings of mainland Japan in the later years of the war --> made possible by the capture of strategic island bases such as the Philipines and Iwo Jima
4.1.4.2. November 1944: the Allies bombed an aircraft factory in Tokyo --> campaign intensified on 9 March 1945 where a quarter of Tokyo was destroyed --> 250k buildings were destroyed and 185k civilians were killed --> over 8 million of civilians fled Japanese cities for the countryside.
4.1.4.3. Japanese factories were already struglling with shortage of resources due to American submarine attacks on Japanese merchant fleets
4.1.4.4. The flight of its workers and the destruction of its factories brought Japanese's econmy (which was needed to sustain the war effort) to the brink of collapse
5. Dropping of the atomic bomb
5.1. Significant factor that led to the defeat of Japan in WW2
5.2. Allied scientist had begun working on the bomb since 1942 under the Manhattan Project
5.3. War in the Asia Pacific became violent and the Americans considered using the bomb to end the war once and for all + when japan showed that it was unwilling to accept the unconditional surrender, allied leaders also considered using the bomb instead of sending more troops against japan
5.4. the Allies wanted to impress the Soviet Union and defeat Japan without the Soviet help --> soviet union played a major role in the liberation of Europe and was occupying half of Europe when germany surrendered
5.4.1. Soviet joined forces with Britain and the USA but were deeply divided by their ideologies
5.4.1.1. Stalin wanted a communist post-war order while Churchill and Harry Truman (succeeded Roosevelt in 1945) wanted to contain the spread of communism
5.4.1.2. Stalin demanded a share in the occupation of Japan in the same way he had in the occupation of Germany
5.4.1.3. US received reports that Soviet scientists were also working on a similar project to Manhattan Project --> USA wanted to gain an edge over the Soviet Union by being the first to use the atomic bomb successfully
5.5. Hiroshima & Nagasaki
5.5.1. 6 August 1945: American bomber "Enola Gay" flew over Hiroshima and dropped the atomic bomb, "Little Boy", at 8.15 am as the city lay sleeping
5.5.1.1. 70k or more Japanese citizens were injured with many whom died after
5.5.1.2. a third of the city's population (over 66k people) including women and children were killed instantly & many of them evaporated by the incredible heat and blast wave of the explosion
5.5.1.3. Firestorm incinerated everything within 7km of where the bomb fell & destroyed two-thirds of the city's building in an instant. 30 min later, black radioactive rain fell over the surrounding areas, poisoning more land and people
5.5.2. USA then announced to the world its discovery of the atomic bomb & repeated its demand for Japan to surrender --> Stalin declared war on Japan on 8 Augst --> japan still did not surrender immediately --> 9 august: USA dropped the second atomic bomb "Fat Man" on Nagasaki
5.5.2.1. 40k people were killed instantlu and 25k burnt by this explosion
5.5.3. Thousands were affected by the long-lasting effects of the atomic bomb --> nuclear radiation --> severe effects on the human body --> nausea, vomitting, skin disease, genetic mutations, hair loss and cancer
5.5.4. 15 August 1945: Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced his country's unconditional surrender to the Allies --> Formal "instrument of surrender" was signed on board the American battleship, USS Missouri, on 2 September 1945