War has played a key role in the history of the United States from the nation’s founding right down to the present. Wars made the U. S. independent, kept it together, increased its size, and established it as a global superpower. Understanding America’s wars is essential for understanding American history. In the Key Battles of American History, host James Early discusses American history through the lens of the most important battles of America’s wars. James is an Adjunct Professor of History at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, TX. He has published one book and two scholarly articles. He is also the cohost (with Scott Rank) of the Presidential Fight Club, Key Battles of the Civil War, Key Battles of the Revolutionary War, and Key Battles of World War I podcasts.
On February 19, 1945, 40,000 Marines landed on Iwo Jima, and many more would follow. Within four days, they had taken the summit of Mt. Suribachi, a key position that commanded the entire island, and had raised an enormous flag (an event made famous in the iconic photo by Joe Rosenthal). But the battle was far from over. The Japanese defenders were determined to exact as heavy a toll as possible, while kamikazes wreaked havoc on the US Navy off the shore. Join James and Scott as they conclude their discussion of the key battle of Iwo Jima.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In order to make the strategic bombing runs over Japan more effective, General Curtis LeMay and other USAAF leaders wanted the B-29s to be escorted by fighters. In order for this to happen, the US needed a base much closer to Japan, because no fighter at the time could make it from Saipan or Guam to Japan and back. To meet this need, American military planners decided to launch an invasion of Iwo Jima, which is only 750 miles from Japan. Iwo Jima was only 8 square miles in size and was covered with black volcanic ash rather than sand. More significantly for the American invaders, the Japanese defenders had dug deep into a network of underground caves and tunnels that were impervious to American bombs and shells. The fight would be slow and bloody. Would the Americans be able to root out the Japanese and take the island? Join us and see!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In May 1944, the US unveiled a new weapon, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber. It was bigger and faster than the B-17, it had a greater range, and it could carry a heavier bomb load (8-10 tons). Despite many early problems, by early 1945, B-29s were causing heavy damage on Japanese cities in the firebombing campaign led by General Curtis LeMay. In this episode, James and Scott discuss the controversial policy of firebombing, including its background, its execution, and its results.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In this episode, James and Scott take a break from the narrative of battles to take a deep dive (pun intended!) into the topic of American submarines in the Pacific War. Due to technical problems, early submarine torpedoes seldom destroyed their targets. By mid-1944, however, these problems had largely been solved, with devastating results for Japanese merchant vessels. From then on, US submarines destroyed 200,000 tons of Japanese shipping per month and were threatening Japan’s war industries. According to historian Max Hastings, “No other combatant force as small as the U. S. Navy’s submarine flotillas and their 16,000 men achieved a comparable impact upon the war anywhere in the world.” Join James and Scott as they discuss the fascinating world of submarines.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In the last episode, we saw that the Japanese fleet, despite suffering some initial setbacks at the hands of the Americans, were still pressing hard toward the American invasion fleet in Leyte Gulf. Due to a major communication breakdown, the US Navy had left the San Bernardino Strait unguarded, so the way to the American invasion fleet was wide open. Would the Japanese fleet be able to capitalize on the American mistake? In this episode, James and Scott discuss the final stages of the battle of Leyte Gulf, as well as the American effort to recapture Leyte, Luzon, and the other Philippine Islands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
After their overwhelming victories at the Philippine Sea and the Mariana Islands, American military leaders faced several options for their next target. Due in large part to lobbying by General MacArthur, they chose the Philippines. Japan’s leadership knew that losing the Philippines would mean the severing of the supply line from the Dutch East Indies to the home islands, so they were determined to stop the American invasion. Join James and Scott as they discuss the Japanese navy’s attempt to destroy the American invasion fleet in a “decisive battle.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
While the American attack on Saipan was still in progress, the Japanese Pacific fleet launched an attack on the American fleet, hoping to halt the invasion and to destroy the American fleet in a final, decisive battle. The Japanese fleet was powerful, but it was no match for Admiral Raymond Spruance’s Fifth Fleet, which destroyed so many Japanese planes and ships that the battle became known as the “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.” In this episode, James and Scott discuss this dramatic and epic battle, along with the subsequent American capture of the islands of Guam and Tinian.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In June 1944, the U. S. launched its Marianas campaign, beginning with an amphibious assault on the key island of Saipan. After more than three bloody weeks of fighting, culminating in a massive banzai charge and the horrific suicides of thousands of civilians, the Americans controlled the island. Join James and Scott as they discuss the bloodiest battle of the Pacific Theater up to that point, a battle which gave the U. S. an air base within bombing range of the Japanese home islands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In the fall of 1943, top Japanese leaders decided to pull Japan’s defensive perimeter back closer to Japan, in an effort to stop the American juggernaut. American and other Allied forces continued to press forward, taking Biak in the southwestern Pacific and the Caroline Islands (including the key Japanese air/naval base of Truk) in the central Pacific. After these victories, American planners set their sights on a key target even closer to Japan: The Mariana island chain. In this episode, James and Scott discuss Japan’s “New Operational Policy” and the allied conquests of Truk and the Caroline Islands. They conclude with a comparison of the main American and Japanese fleets that would be facing off in the next campaign.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In June 1943, American forces kicked off Operation Cartwheel, an attack on additional islands in the Solomons chain and parts of New Britain and New Guinea, under the command of General Douglas MacArthur. At the same time, Admiral Ernest King decided to launch a second major offensive under Admiral Nimitz’ command that would work its way across the Central Pacific. This new invasion force would be supported by the Third Fleet, the most powerful naval force ever assembled at the time. Join James and Scott as they discuss Operation Cartwheel, the invasion of the Gilbert Islands (most notably the bloody Battle of Tarawa), and the attack on the Marshall Islands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
James is an Adjunct Professor of History at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, TX. He has published one book and two scholarly articles. He is also the cohost (with Scott Rank) of the Presidential Fight Club, Key Battles of the Civil War, Key Battles of the Revolutionary War, and Key Battles of World War I podcasts.
