The next day a reply was drafted by the US which insisted that any imperial authority would be in the hands of the Supreme Commander of the Allied powers. It was Germany's largest invasion force. In preparation for the invasion, an air campaign against Japanese airfields and transportation arteries had commenced before the Japanese surrender. Proposed Invasion of Japan - Imperial War Museums The main attack was carried out by the Fourteenth Army, comprising 340,000 Indian troops, 100,000 British and 80,000 African soldiers, which defeated the Japanese defending forces in central Burma. "[87] This assessment included neither casualties suffered after the 90-day mark (US planners envisioned switching to the tactical defensive by X+120[88] ), nor personnel losses at sea from Japanese air attacks. The most transformative conflict in history, World War II impacted the entire globe and set the stage for the Cold War. [34] The main message of "The Glorious Death of One Hundred Million" campaign was that it was "glorious to die for the holy emperor of Japan, and every Japanese man, woman, and child should die for the Emperor when the Allies arrived". Widespread chemical warfare was considered against Japan's population[65] and food crops. [34] From the Battle of Saipan onward, Japanese propaganda intensified the glory of patriotic death and depicted the Americans as merciless "white devils". 372-374, 391, atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific, debate over the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, U.S. Army, Sixth Army Field Order 74, 28 July 1945, Staff Study Operations "Coronet" 15 August 1945, Combined Arms Research Laboratory: Downfall, "USSBS Report 62, Military Analysis Division, Japanese Air Power | PDF p. 25", "Okinawa, Harry Truman, and the Atomic Bomb", "By any means necessary: the United States and Japan", "World War II plan to poison Japanese crops revealed", "America Nearly Attacked Japan With Chemical Weapons in 1945", "Did Hiroshima Save Japan From Soviet Occupation? There was no mention of the Emperor in the declaration as public opinion was not in favour of his retention, although it had previously been decided in committee. [citation needed], In March 1945, there was only one combat division in Kysh. It was followed by a second bomb on 9 August on Nagasaki. Zaloga, Steven (2011). 9 Aug 1945 - 2 Sep 1945. Russia planned to attack Japan in 2021 according to leaked FSB letters The Horribles: American Strategic Options Against Japan in 1945 On 10 August Japan offered to surrender unconditionally under the terms of the Potsdam Declaration as long as the emperor remained sovereign ruler. "These [six] divisions have since made their appearance, as predicted," he observed, "and the end is not in sight." ", Henry L. Stimson, "The Decision to use the Atomic Bomb" p. 11, "Okinawa: The Final Great Battle of World War II", "The Final Months of the War with Japan. If a clock were drawn on a map of Kysh, these points would roughly correspond to 4, 5, and 7 o'clock, respectively. General Umezu Yoshijiro, the army chief of staff, signed on behalf of the Imperial Japanese Army in front of the newly appointed Supreme Commander, Allied Powers in Japan, General Douglas MacArthur. Historians and the public continue to debate if the bombings were justified, the causes of Japan's surrender, the casualties that would have resulted if the U.S. had invaded Japan, and more. [95] Admiral King thought that casualties in the first 30 days would fall between Luzon and Okinawa, i.e., between 31,000 and 41,000. On 8 May 1945, the Allies celebrated VE Day, marking the end of the war in Europe. In Hell To Pay, military historian D.M. Ending the war quickly would prevent Russian participation in the fighting and expansion into parts of Asia. The Soviet invasion of the Kuril Islands (18 August 1 September 1945) took place after Japan's capitulation on 15 August. the Kanmon Tunnel) and for gaining and maintaining air superiority over the beaches. [67], Although chemical warfare had been outlawed by the Geneva Protocol, neither the United States nor Japan was a signatory at the time. In preparation for Operation Olympic, the invasion of southern Kyushu, various figures and organizations made casualty estimates based on the terrain, strength, and disposition of known Japanese forces. In May, Admiral Nimitz's staff estimated 49,000 U.S casualties in the first 30 days of Operation Olympic, including 5,000 at sea. As for the second bomb on Nagasaki, that was just as unnecessary as the . Operation Barbarossa: Date & Significance - HISTORY The combined Allied naval armada would have been the largest ever assembled, including 42 aircraft carriers, 24 battleships, and 400 destroyers and destroyer escorts. American support included Sherman tanks armed with flamethrowers. Up to 2,000 kamikaze planes launched attacks during the Battle of Okinawa, achieving approximately one hit per nine attacks. . Reinforcements would have been available from those countries, as well as other parts of the Commonwealth. For the failed Mongol invasion attempts, see, "Soviet invasion of Japan" redirects here. The Japanese planned to commit the entire population of Japan to resisting the invasion, and from June 1945 onward, a propaganda campaign calling for "The Glorious Death of One Hundred Million" commenced. If Downfall had taken place, it would have been the largest amphibious operation in history, surpassing D-Day. [2], Japan's geography made this invasion plan quite obvious to the Japanese as well; they were able to accurately predict the Allied invasion plans and thus adjust their defensive plan, Operation Ketsug, accordingly. 20 Steps in Planning for the Invasion of Japan in 1945 Operation Olympic, the invasion of Kysh, was to begin on "X-Day", which was scheduled for 1 November 1945. Operation Downfall was the proposed Allied plan for the invasion of the Japanese home islands near the end of World War II. How Russia Was Humiliated by Japan When They Fought Before - Newsweek The Japanese would have lost at least 12 million men killed, due to the enormous losses fighting, from the nuclear bomb, and the mass of Kamikaze attacks. The key assumption was large-scale participation by civilians in the defense of Japan. One staff study estimated that the kamikazes could destroy a third to half of the invasion force before landing. Korea 247,000 War against Japan, 1945 In South East Asia, by late 1944, British and Commonwealth, US and Chinese forces had begun the reconquest of Burma (Myanmar). [5], The Pacific War was not under a single Allied commander-in-chief (C-in-C). Following the end of the war in Europe in May 1945, plans were also made to transfer some of the heavy bomber groups of the veteran Eighth Air Force to airbases on Okinawa to conduct strategic bombing raids in coordination with the Twentieth. The Japanese estimated that the planes would sink more than 400 ships; since they were training the pilots to target transports rather than carriers and destroyers, the casualties would be disproportionately greater than at Okinawa. The Soviets planned an invasion of Hokkaido in August 1945 At the Yalta Conference, Franklin Roosevelt secured a promise from Stalin to invade Japan, which was reiterated to Truman during the Potsdam Conference. Kanto 1,280,000, US military intelligence initially estimated the number of Japanese aircraft to be around 2,500. These redeployments would have been complicated by the simultaneous demobilization and replacement of highly experienced, time-served personnel, which would have drastically reduced the combat effectiveness of many units. Pushing back against U.S. attempts to limit Japan's aggressive expansion, Japan launched a . Airbases would be established, which would give cover for Operation Coronet, the attack on Tokyo Bay. [citation needed] The Australian government had asked at an early stage for the inclusion of an Australian Army infantry division in the first wave (Olympic). 11 World War II in Eastern Europe, 1942-1945. Emperor Hirohito, in a meeting with his Imperial Council, stated that he wished to surrender as long as the role of the emperor was not compromised. Plan 1 (shown below) detailed a German-Japanese invasion with each faction attacking an American coast. The advancing Soviets claimed to have killed 84,000 Japanese soldiers and captured almost 600,000. [citation needed], The Japanese had kamikaze aircraft in southern Honshu and Kyushu which would have opposed operations Olympic and Coronet. This page was last edited on 30 April 2023, at 20:51. Proposed Soviet invasion of Hokkaido - Wikipedia Kyle Palmer, war correspondent for the Los Angeles Times, said half a million to a million Americans would die by the end of the war. [citation needed], Fears of "an Okinawa from one end of Japan to the other"[64] encouraged the Allies to consider unconventional weapons, including chemical warfare. When the Western Allies began planning for the invasion of Japan's home islands, they asked for Soviet assistance to keep the large Kwantung army in Manchuria tied down so the troops could. Further blockade and urban destruction would have produced a surrender in August or September at the latest, without the need for the costly anticipated invasion or the atomic bomb. The US had successfully tested the first atomic bomb in New Mexico 10 days earlier. For the Decisive Battle On that list was a modest amphibious capability: * 30 Tacoma-class patrol frigates * 24 Admirable-class minesweepers * 36 auxiliary motor minesweepers . While some totals (particularly for items such as swords and small arms) may be inexact because of the problems of collection and the activities of the black market, the amount of military equipment available to the Japanese in and around the Home Islands by August 1945 was roughly as follows: "Invasion of Japan" redirects here. [41] However, the IJN lacked enough fuel for further sorties by its capital ships, planning instead to use their anti-aircraft firepower to defend naval installations while docked in port.
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