Post on 17-Dec-2015
Japan is a densely
populated and
mountainous archipelago.
A lack of natural resources and
agricultural land push the country to seek wealth elsewhere.
How would Japan do this?During the 1920s, the
country was divided into two factions:
1. Liberals - bankers and
capitalists who believe they must trade for resources
2. Militarists – who thought
they must conquer to get new territories
In 1932, Japan invaded
Manchuria.
Fearing communism,
Japan signed an Anti-Comintern
Pact with Hitler in 1936.
In 1937, it captured more territory from
China.
American reaction?
The US limits its exports, which angers Japan.
A. Oil
B. Steel
C. Copper
D. Industrial equipment
In 1939, while the world watched
Hitler in Poland, Japan invaded
Indochina (present-day
Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam)
In 1940, Japan’s conquest continued.
A. French Indochina.
B. British Malaya & Burma.
C. The Dutch East Indies
Roosevelt reacts….
1.He sends his Pacific
Fleet to Pearl Harbour.
2.
He imposes an embargo on Japan.
• A. Create a sphere of influence in South-East Asia
• B. Force out the Europeans
• C. Gain control over natural resources
• D. To dominate all S-EAsian markets
Hirohito’s dream
…an empire
Faced with this crisis Japan has two
options:
1. Negotiate
2. Wage war
To win, Japan wanted a war that would be...
quickapidedecisive
and
Why?
1. America’s industrial superiority
2. Japan’s lack of natural resources
Japan would lose in a long and
drawn out conflict against the US
How can Japan
defeat an opponent
this powerful?
!
A surprise attack against a military and industrial giant
On December 7, 1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. It is a partial success. Much of the American
Pacific fleet is destroyed.
This allows Japan to
continue its conquests.
It takes a year for the US to regroup and rebuild its fleet and repel the
Japanese
The most important weapons in this theatre of war are aircraft
carriers
…and aircraft
The US must capture island after island, which is a long and a very
costly waste of human lives
The battles
1. Pearl Harbor - surprise Japanese attack December 7, 1941
2. Battle of the Coral Sea- first time the Japanese advance was stopped- May
1942
3.Battle of Midway – US destroys 4 of Japan’s aircraft carriers- June 1942
4.
Iwo Jima – The US captures the island but 20 000 marines are killed-
this allows easy bombing of Japan February1945
5.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki – The US drops 2 atomic bombs killing about 350 000 people – Japan surrenders
August 1945
Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima
Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki
Before the bomb After
The present-day park at the epicentre of the bombing in
Hiroshima.
I realize the tragic significance of the atomic bomb... It is an awful
responsibility which has come to us... We thank God that it has come to us,
instead of to our enemies; and we pray that He may guide us to use it in His
ways and for His purposes.
—Harry S. Truman August 9, 1945