Appendix B: Bibliographical Notes
This history is based principally upon official Marine Corps records, i.e., the reports, diaries, journals, orders, plans, etc., of the units and commands involved in the operations described. Records of the other Services have been consulted and used when they pertained to the actions with which this book is concerned. On matters pertaining to activities and decisions at high strategic levels, the authors consulted the records of the Joint Chiefs of Staff or official publications which had made considerable use of JCS records.
To cover the inevitable gaps and inadequacies that occur in the sources consulted, extensive use was made of the knowledge of key participants in the actions herein described. These men, representing all Services, have been generous with their time in making themselves available for interviews, and in commenting critically on draft manuscripts, not only of this volume, but also of preliminary monographs. The historical offices of the Army, Navy, and Air Force have made detailed reviews of draft chapters and furnished much valuable material to the history. The War History Office of the Defense Agency of Japan has read and commented upon the passages dealing with the Okinawa operation and provided worthwhile information that has been incorporated into the narrative.
Because this volume deals with so many disparate, and yet related, subjects, many different sources were consulted in its preparation. Such sources have been fully cited in the text and are discussed here in relation to the particular operation or event for which they have the greatest pertinency. Unless otherwise noted, all records cited are obtainable through the Archives of the Historical Branch, G-3 Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps.
A number of published works of general interest have been consulted frequently in the writing of this volume. The more important of these are listed below.
Books
Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate, eds. The Pacific: Matterhorn to Nagasaki—The Army Air Forces in World War II, v. 5. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1953. The Air Force official history details the final year of the Pacific War. Well documented, the book is a reliable source for the actions of Air Force commands in the Pacific and the part they played in the defeat of Japan.
FAdm William F. Halsey and LCdr J. Bryan, III. Admiral Halsey’s Story. New York: Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, Inc., 1947. This popular treatment of one of the most spectacular figures in the Pacific War presents a fascinating and useful picture of the final naval operations of the war in the waters of the western Pacific and surrounding Japan.
Jeter A. Isely and Philip A. Crowl. The U.S. Marines and Amphibious War. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1951. An essential book and important source for the study of the development of amphibious tactics and techniques and their application in the Pacific during World War II. Additionally, the authors have commented on each major Marine amphibious assault landing of the war and present a number of pertinent conclusions relative to each campaign.
FAdm Ernest H. King and Cdr Walter M. Whitehill Fleet Admiral King: A Naval Record. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1952. Admiral King’s autobiography covers his entire naval career and provides revealing insights into the character of the man and his contributions to American strategy as well as an overview of the conduct of that strategy in the war.
FAdm William D. Leahy. I Was There. New York: Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1950. Another autobiography by a high-ranking naval officer who served as the wartime Chief of Staff to Presidents Roosevelt
and Truman. This account is based on the contemporary notes and diaries of the author.
Robert Sherrod. History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II. Washington: Combat Forces Press, 1952. Although this is an unofficial history, it was written with substantial Marine Corps research support and contains valuable aviation unit historical data unavailable elsewhere. Much of the very readable text is based upon interviews and eyewitness accounts that were not retained for later study.
The War Reports of General of the Army George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, General of the Army H. H. Arnold, Commanding General, Army Air Forces, Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander in Chief, United States Fleet, and Chief of Naval Operations. Philadelphia and New York: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1947. A convenient compilation of the official reports of the chiefs of the armed services issued during and just after the war, which provides an excellent overall review of U.S. operations in World War II. [The individual reports (the G.P.O publications) are available as: Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War, and U.S. Navy at War 1941–1945: Official Reports to The Secretary of the Navy by Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, U.S. Navy]
Part I: Prologue To the End
Official Documents
The minutes of the CominCh-CinCPac Pacific Conferences of mid-1944 were particularly helpful in developing the course that American strategy and tactics were to take in late-1944 and 1945. Added to these are the records of the JCS and CCS as cited in previously published official histories, which aided in tracing how the decision to invade the Ryukyus was determined. Intelligence surveys by higher headquarters were used extensively to build a picture of enemy troop strength and dispositions, and the nature of the terrain that the Japanese held.
The main sources for the status report on the FMF were the Annual Reports of the Commandant to the Secretary of the Navy and the operational diaries prepared at HQMC by the G-1 and G-3 Sections of the Division of Plans and Policies and by the Division of Aviation. An additionally valuable source were the monthly FMF air and ground status reports also prepared by the G-3 Section. A study of Marine ground training in World War II, prepared by the Historical Branch, and a history of FMFPac prepared at Pearl Harbor in 1951, present an excellent picture of the posture of the six Marine divisions at the beginning of 1945.
Other valuable official sources utilized in the writing of this part are: “History of United States Army Forces Middle Pacific and Predecessor Commands During World War II, 7 December-2 September 1945, History of the G-5 Section,” n.d., held by OCMH; “Department of the Army Estimate of Japanese Strength and Disposition of Forces,” October 1945, File No. 320.2, Geographic V-Japan, also held by OCMH; and Military Intelligence Division, United States Army, War Department, “Disposition and Movement of Japanese Ground Forces, 1941–1945,” 10 December 1945, held by the Operational Archives Branch, Naval History Division.
Japanese Sources
In the years immediately following the end of the war, former Japanese officials working under the auspices of General MacArthur’s headquarters prepared a series of monographs detailing Japanese actions in many Pacific and Asian campaigns and at the various headquarters in the Home Islands, In the middle 50s, a number of these original studies were revised and expanded, again by knowledgeable Japanese. The monographs vary considerably in their value, but, on the whole, they are honestly presented and useful in gaining an insight into Japanese actions. The Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, which has a complete file of these studies, has prepared an annotated guide and index, Guide to Japanese Monographs and Japanese Studies on Manchuria 1945 (Washington, 1961), which is an excellent aid in evaluating the individual items.
Among the several Japanese monographs that were used with this part, No. 45, the 382-page history of the Imperial General Headquarters, Army Section, was particularly helpful. It provides an overall view of the progress of the war as seen from Tokyo and contains appendices of Army orders. The operational record of the Thirty-second Army and its subordinate commands is embodied in Okinawa
Operations Record (No. 135 of the series), which is extremely valuable in developing how that command prepared for the inevitable invasion of Okinawa and how it fought the battle.
Books
The first three volumes of this series, Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal, Isolation of Rabaul, and Central Pacific Drive, as well as the draft manuscript of the fourth, “Operations in the Western Pacific,” were useful in reviewing how the Marine Corps fared in the first three years of the war and how it developed and employed amphibious warfare doctrine in that period. Among a number of other books concerning emerging American strategy in the last year of the war, the problems facing Japan, and the status of the FMF in the Pacific, the following were of great value.
Lt Robert A. Aurthur and Lt Kenneth Cohlmia. The Third Marine Division. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1948. A compact division history, this book is a good source for unit background.
Robert J. C. Butow. Japan’s Decision to Surrender. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1954. A scholarly dissertation to the steps leading from the Cairo Declaration to the Imperial Rescript and to the capitulation of Japan, and an excellent source for the diplomatic history of the Pacific War.
Bevan G. Cass, ed. History of the Sixth Marine Division. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1948. As the last of the wartime Marine divisions to be formed, the 6th—and its predecessor unit, the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade—were involved in only the Guam and Okinawa campaigns and the occupation of North China. By its very nature, the Ryukyus operation receives the fullest coverage in this work.
Ray S. Cline, Washington Command Post: The Operations Division—The War Department-United States Army in World War II. Washington: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, 1951. An official Army history relating the story of high-level war planning in the Operations Division of the War Department. An excellent background study based on the important primary sources in the subject area.
Howard M. Conner. The Spearhead: The World War II History of the 5th Marine Division. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1950. Although this unit history is primarily concerned with the Iwo Jima operation, the only campaign of the 5th Division in World War II, it contains some interesting background material, particularly concerning the status of the division at the beginning of 1945.
Richard W. Johnston. Follow Me! The Story of the Second Division in World War II. New York: Random House, 1948. This work contains considerable information on the organization of the division and its role as a diversionary force for the Okinawa campaign. Toshikasu Kase. Journey to the Missouri. David N. Rowe, ed. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1950. A first-hand account by a former Japanese official of the factors and considerations influencing Japan’s surrender and of the fateful day on which that country signed the instruments of capitulation.
George McMillan. The Old Breed: A History of the First Marine Division in World War II. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1949. This unit history, which concerns itself more with the spirit of the 1st Division than with a recital of details of its combat actions, is generally accorded to be one of the finest books of its type written after the war. Samuel Eliot Morison. History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, v. VIII, XII, and XIII. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1958, 1959, and 1960. These three volumes by Rear Admiral Morison, New Guinea and the Marianas, Leyte, June 1944–January 1945, and The Liberation of the Philippines—Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas: 1944–1945, comprise a highly readable account of Navy operations in the final stages of World War 11. Written with considerable assistance and cooperation from the Navy, the histories are, however, very much the personalized work of the author and are most effective in their description of American naval actions and personalities and of Japanese operations.
Carl W. Proehl, ed. The Fourth Marine Division in World War II. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1946. Of interest in a review of the status of the 4th Division at the beginning of 1945.
United States Army, War Department. Handbook on Japanese Military Forces. TM-E 30–480. Washington, 1 Oct 44. A basic source on the organization and equipment of Japanese land forces with useful detail on weapons characteristics’ and textbook tactics.
Part II: Okinawa
Official Documents
As the largest amphibious assault of the Pacific War, Okinawa resulted in the participants generating much paperwork which took the form of operation plans and orders, action reports, message files, unit journals, and the like, much of which has been preserved and is held in the archives of the individual Services or has been retired to a Federal Records Center. Because ICEBERG was to be the prologue to the invasion of Japan, all the tactical innovations developed in the Pacific to that time were employed together with whatever new military hardware was made available to Tenth Army units. It was a matter of the highest interest, therefore, that each major unit prepare a detailed evaluation of the way it had fought the campaign, and these evaluations are found in the action reports of the Tenth Army, III Amphibious Corps, and XXIV Corps. Division action reports, and, in the case of the Marines, regimental and battalion special action reports, provide a useful insight into the conduct of the battle on battalion and regimental level.
From the naval point of view, the action reports of the Fifth Fleet and subordinate task force and group commanders are an invaluable source of information concerning naval support of the land campaign as well as some stark facts and figures which in no way tell the whole story of the Navy’s desperate and magnificent fight against the Kamikaze menace. Additionally, the report of the British Combined Operations observers assigned to the Okinawa campaign provides an interesting insight into how our Allies viewed American conduct of a joint amphibious operation.
Unofficial Documents
While writing the monograph used extensively in preparing this account of the battle for Okinawa, .Major Nichols and Mr. Shaw sent copies of their preliminary draft to various individuals who had major roles in the operations. Many of these men replied and their comments have been cited throughout this part. Similarly, the draft manuscript of this volume was sent to key participants and to the historical agencies of the other Services, and the resultant replies have been used when applicable in revising the narrative. All such comments are retained in the files of the Marine Corps Historical Archives.
With the establishment of the Marine Corps Oral History Program, a new dimension was added to the techniques employed by Marine Corps historians. As a result, some of the first interviews conducted with retired prominent Marines by the author of this part of the book dwelled on matters concerning the Okinawa operation, and pertinent comments were incorporated into the body of the text with the permission of the individual interviewees. Particularly helpful were the comments of Generals Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr., and Gerald C. Thomas, Lieutenant General Pedro A. del Valle, and Major Generals Wilburt S. Brown and Ford O. Rogers.
Several other unofficial documents exist. Through the generosity of General Vandegrift, his personal correspondence for the period of his tour as Commandant was made available for Historical Branch use. The letters he received from Lieutenant Generals Holland M. Smith and Roy S. Geiger are invaluable for an overview of the Okinawa operation. Extracts from this correspondence together with copies of some of the letters are available in the Marine Corps Historical Archives for use by qualified researchers.
Another source is a personal narrative prepared immediately after the war by General Oliver P. Smith, who, as a brigadier general, was the Marine Deputy Chief of Staff of the Tenth Army. This document is particularly important because of the insight that General Smith gives to the operations of as large a joint command as the Tenth Army and the role of Marine officers on the joint staff. The resulting 152-page typescript goes far toward giving the reader a feeling of Marine participation in high-level staff operations on what was predominantly an Army command.
A third unpublished document of value in the study of ICEBERG is “A History of the 7th Marines on Okinawa Shima,” which was an ambitious project prepared at the behest of Colonel Edward W. Snedeker by his staff officers and battalion commanders. This work has some outstanding sketch maps which meld excellently with accounts of small unit actions in the regiment.
In no way has all of the material uncovered by draft comments or during the course of interviews been used in this book or in the Nichols-Shaw monograph which preceded it. The files contain much unpublished information that is of value to the student of the operation, particularly in regard to details of small unit action and the assessment of the accomplishments and character of individuals.
Japanese Sources
In addition to the previously mentioned Japanese monographs held by the Office of the Chief of Military History, two others were used: No, 86, History of the Fifth Air Fleet, which provided some data on the development of the Kamikaze as an offensive/defensive weapon, and No. 123, Homeland Defense Naval Operations, which related to confused and often thwarted Japanese preparations for the defense of the Home Islands, and Honshu, in particular.
A major Japanese source is: Takushiro Hattori, Dai Toa Senso Zenshi, v. IV [The Complete History of the Greater East Asia War]. Tokyo: Matsu Publishing Company, 1955. A manuscript translation of this excellent study is available at the Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army. The author, a ranking staff officer during the war and an historian afterwards, has written a comprehensive history which contains enough detail to provide a useful strategic review from the Japanese viewpoint of every major campaign of the war.
In terms of pertinent captured documents, by the time that ICEBERG became a reality, the Joint Intelligence Center, Pacific Ocean Area, and other Allied intelligence agencies had amassed a mountain of data concerning the enemy. While much of this was not directly concerned with Okinawa, the material contained a wealth of information relating to Japanese defensive doctrine and more than a hint of how Okinawa would be defended. A considerable volume of documents and prisoners—Okinawans primarily—were captured on the island itself. As noted in the narrative of this part, little fruitful information was gained, however, as a result of POW interrogation and translation of the documents, and the Japanese situation was very often not uncovered until after it had been met head-on by Tenth Army troops.
Books and Periodicals
Once again Craven and Cate, Matterhorn to Nagasaki, Isely and Crowl, Marines and Amphibious War, and Sherrod, History of Marine Aviation and the Hattori manuscript are invaluable sources. Among other works which shed considerable light on the Okinawa campaign are:
Roy E. Appleman, et al. Okinawa: The Last Battle—The War in the Pacific-U.S. Army in World War II. Washington: History Division, Department of the Army, 1948. Although generally concerned with the operations of the Tenth Army as a whole in the Okinawa campaign, this official Army history focuses primarily on the actions of XXIV Corps divisions. At the same time, it gives a balanced treatment to the role of III Amphibious Corps units in the fighting.
Maj Orville V. Bergren. “School Solutions on Motobu,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 12 (Dec 45). Written by the Operations Officer of the 4th Marines, this article gives a concise and clear account of the maneuvers and fighting involved in seizing Motobu Peninsula and Mount Yae Take.
RAdm Worrall R. Carter. Beans, Bullets, and Black Oil. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1953. An official Navy history of the massive logistic support of the fleet in the Pacific campaigns, with some emphasis on the Okinawa operation.
Chief of Naval Operations. Amphibious Operations—Capture of Okinawa, 27 Mar–21 Jun 45 (OpNav 34-P-0700). Washington: Government Printing Office, 22 Jan 46. A compilation of pertinent excerpts of action reports by the major unit commanders at Okinawa concerning American surface, ground, and air operations in the campaign.
Orlando R. Davidson, et al. The Deadeyes: The Story of the 96th Infantry Division. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1947. This history is an interesting account of an Army division which made a fine record for itself both in the Philippines and on Okinawa. MajGen Pedro A. del Valle. “Old Glory on Shuri,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 8 (Aug 45). The commander of the 1st Marine Division relates the story of the Marine battle for Shuri and how a member of the division placed the American flag over the ancient castle.
MajGen Pedro A. del Valle. “Southward from Shuri,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 10 (Oct 45). In this article, the author relates the breakout of his division following the fall of Shuri and the pursuit of the withdrawing Japanese forces.
Saburo Hayashi and Alvin D. Coox, Kogun. Quantico: Marine Corps Association, 1959. Originally published in Japan, this English language account of the Japanese Army High Command’s actions during the war in the Pacific was written by a former member of the Imperial General Headquarters.
Capt Rikihei Inoguchi and Cdr Tadashi Nakajima, former IJN, with Roger Pineau. The Divine Wind: Japan’s Kamikaze Force in World War II. Annapolis: United States Naval Institute, 1958. The Japanese coauthors of this work were intimately concerned with the formation of the Kamikaze corps and the concepts which led to its origin, and therefore shed much light on the operations of the suicide units.
Capt Edmund G. Love. The 27th Infantry Division in World War II. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1949. Written by an official Army historian who observed the division in combat, this is a work which narrates the operations of the division on Okinawa as well as on Saipan and in the Gilberts and Marshalls.
Samuel Eliot Morison. Victory in the Pacific, 1945—History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, v. XIV. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1960. This last-but-one volume of the highly readable unofficial account of Navy operations in World War 11 tells of naval support activities in the Iwo Jima and Okinawa campaigns as well as naval operations in the last year of the war. An especially interesting account of the Navy’s war with the Kamikazes.
LtCol Max Myers, ed. Ours to Hold It High. Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1947. The story of the 77th Infantry Division provides a good overall view of the fighting on Okinawa and helpful information on its training and personnel.
Maj Charles S. Nichols, Jr. and Henry I. Shaw, Jr. Okinawa: Victory in the Pacific. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1955. This official monograph, the last of 15 written concerning Marine Corps operations in World War II, covers the fighting in good style and considerable detail, and gives adequate coverage to Navy and Army participation in the Okinawa campaign.
Capt James R. Stockman. “Night Operations on Okinawa,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 30, no. 9 (Sep 46). A well-researched article concerning the many night operations conducted during the course of the Okinawa battle by Army as well as Marine Corps units.
Alexander A. Vandegrift and Robert B. Asprey. Once A Marine. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1964. The autobiography of the 18th Commandant of the Marine Corps written with the assistance of a former Marine officer. It contains particularly interesting details regarding the discussion of a second amphibious assault on the southeastern beaches of Okinawa.
Part III: The End of the War
Official Documents
Although Operation OLYMPIC was never launched, Allied forces were ready. Joint staff studies, plans, orders, and other paperwork had been prepared and published, and the assault forces, in most cases, had already staged and were ready to mount for the invasion. Considerable documentation, therefore, exists to assist the researcher in following the step-by-step, day-to-day preparation for the assault on Kyushu. The researcher is not so successful in determining what the final plans were for Operation CORONET, the invasion
of Honshu. When Japan capitulated, all assault planning became moot.
Because they are so well-documented, Cline’s Washington Command Post and Craven and Cate’s Matterhorn to Nagasaki were utilized extensively to determine CCS and JSC activities and decisions. The historical archives of the Service historical agencies maintain in good order all of the pertinent documents published at all levels of the proposed invasion force.
Concerning the advent of Marine carrier aviation, considerably more searching was required to develop the attempts of senior Marine officers to make fuller use of Marine pilots and planes in the war. Because the commissioning of Marine escort carriers was primarily a Navy decision on the highest levels, the minutes of the CominCh-CinCPac Pacific Conferences and the items for the agenda thereof provided considerable information. Additionally, the war diaries of the first escort carriers and carrier squadrons commissioned are also quite important.
Of invaluable assistance in tracing the reduction of the Fleet Marine Force following the Japanese surrender, and then its postwar development, are the Annual Reports of the Commandant to the Secretary of the Navy, the Administrative History of the United States Marine Corps in the Postwar Period, and the Administrative Activities of the Fleet Marine Force, Pacific. In addition, the reports of the Department of the Pacific, Marine Garrison Forces, Pacific, and the various Marine barracks activities in the Pacific provide considerable data regarding the many changes that took place in the composition and missions of Marine forces in the Pacific.
Tracing the activities of Marine organizations involved in accepting the surrender of Japanese Pacific garrisons is simplified to a great degree by the existence of reports submitted by the senior Marine officers of each surrender group. The reports of the naval commands responsible for supervising the surrender are also available.
Perhaps the most important document utilized in writing the story of the surrender of former Japanese holdings in the Pacific is CinCPac Report of Surrender and Occupation of Japan, dated 11 February 1946. This report, held in the Operational Archives Branch of the Naval History Division, is a tremendous source of information in relating how each island garrison was surrendered to American forces, what the condition of Japanese troops and civilians was in each case, and how the former enemy were repatriated home. There is some information about the search for war criminals in this document, but more on this subject is found in Historic Narrative of Special War Crimes Duties Performed by Personnel of the Marine Barracks, Guam. For the purposes of this section, the CinCPac report noted above is also a valuable source of information concerning surrender ceremonies at Tokyo Bay and the activities preceding this event—especially those relating to fleet activities.
Similarly, the Marine Corps Historical Archives holds considerable material relating to demobilization and the subsequent postwar development of the Marine Corps. Orders, bulletins, directives, and pertinent memoranda exist to enable researchers to trace the solution of personnel problems facing the Corps in this period.
Unofficial Documents
Again, the files containing General Vandegrift’s personal correspondence served as a fruitful source in determining the background of the problems facing the Commandant and his subsequent decisions in this difficult period for the Marine Corps. In addition, comments received on the draft manuscript of this section from senior commanders and staff officers filled in the gaps which exist in the documentation. Of great importance was certain information concerning the Marine carrier program developed in the course of several interviews with General Thomas for the Marine Corps Oral History Program.
Books and Periodicals
Used to great advantage in this section were Aurthur and Cohlmia, The Third Marine Division, Cass, History of the Sixth Marine Division, Conner, The Spearhead, Johnston, Follow Me!, King and Whitehill, Fleet Admiral King: A Naval Record, Leahy, I Was There, McMillan, The Old Breed, Morison, Liberation
of the Philippines, and Proehl, The Fourth Marine Division in World War II. In addition, the following books and articles proved fruitful for research.
LtCol Walter L. J. Baylor, Last Man Off Wake Island. New York: Bobbs-Merrill, 1943. An autobiographical account by the Marine officer who was the last man to leave Wake Island before it fell to the Japanese. The author was also the first American to set foot on Wake at the time of the Japanese surrender.
K. Jack Bauer and Alvin D. Coox. “Olympic vs Ketsu-Go,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 49, no. 8 (Aug 65). This is the combined effort of Dr. Bauer, who presents the Allied plan for the invasion of Kyushu, and Dr. Coox, who outlines the Japanese defensive plans.
Kenneth W. Condit, Gerald Diamond, and Edwin T. Turnbladh. Marine Corps Ground Training in World War II. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1956. A valuable study of the training of commissioned and enlisted Marines in the prewar and World War 11 periods. Contains detailed information concerning infantry and specialist training.
LtCol Henry G. Morgan, Jr. “Planning the Defeat of Japan: A Study of Total War Strategy.” This unpublished manuscript held in the Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, is an important source which depends to a great degree on CCS and JCS documents relating to the subject.
Harry S. Truman. Year of Decision—Memoirs, v. I. New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1955. In this, the first volume of his memoirs, President Truman relates the circumstances under which he first became aware of the American development of the atomic bomb, and the agonizing decisions facing him concerning its employment.
Part IV: Occupation of Japan
Official Documents
A wealth of material concerning the initial period of the occupation of Japan is available in the archives of the various Service historical offices, as well as in the National Archives. General MacArthur’s SCAP headquarters quite assiduously prepared and published detailed accounts covering the period he remained in Japan. Also, the Eighth Army published monographs relating its mission and responsibilities and how they were carried out. Equally important are the reports of the naval commands involved in the occupations of Yokosuka and Tokyo initially, and later of Sasebo and Nagasaki. Pertinent information concerning the conduct of Marine occupation duties is found in VAC Operation Report, Occupation of Japan, and the war diaries of the corps covering the period it remained in Japan. The operation reports and war diaries of the 2nd and 5th Marine Divisions and their subordinate commands are also valuable sources for this interesting period of the Corps’ history. From the historian’s point of view, documentary evidence of the last months of Marine occupation duties is not as ample as the material reflecting the first months in Japan, but it is sufficient to permit a full enough view of the period.
Unofficial Documents
Copies of the draft manuscript of this section were sent out for comment to the former commanders and staff officers of the Marine occupation force in Japan. With the advent of the end of the war, it was possible once more for individual Marines to maintain diaries and other personal records. From these documents and subsequent replies commenting on the draft, certain items of information not otherwise appearing in official reports were made available to the author. Because of the very real human interest stories which come out of an operation such as this, the occupation of a defeated nation, a vast mass of newspaper and magazine articles was written. Many such items relating to the Marines in Japan can be found in issues of Leatherneck for the period.
Books and Periodicals
Kenneth W. Condit and Edwin T. Turnbladh. Hold High The Torch: A History of the 4th Marines. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1960. An official history of one of the oldest infantry regiments in the Marine Corps, this work is particularly valuable for an accounting of the occupation of Yokosuka as well as other highlights in the
history of the unit.
LtCol Michael S. Currin. “Occupation of Kyushu” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 30, no. 10 (Oct 46). This article, written by the former Operations Officer of the 2nd Marine Division, relates some of the problems his organization faced while occupying and disarming Japan.
Henry I. Shaw, Jr, The United States Marines in the Occupation of Japan, Marine Corps Historical Reference Series No. 24. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1961. In reality a brief history of the subject, this well-researched booklet served as the foundation on which this part was written.
Part V: North China Marines
Official Documents
The plans, orders, and war diaries of III Amphibious Corps units provide the basis for the accounting of the movement to and landing of the Marines in North China. The general Chinese situation at that time is developed in the Wedemeyer papers and in dispatch traffic. Once the Marines were established ashore, the G-2 sections of the IIIAC and 1st Marine Division war diaries provide the most interesting reading and give the background on the civil war action. In general, the scope and quality of reports on Marine activity dropped in direct ratio to the reduction of Marine strength. By February 1947, the requirement for submission of war diaries was dropped and the records of Marines in China after that point (and for some months prior to that time) are scant. Extensive research in retired classified correspondence files of Marine Corps Headquarters, in classified records of Commander, Naval Forces, Western Pacific, and in State Department records of evacuation of American civilians from China was necessary to establish a meaningful narrative of the 1947–1949 period.
The researcher on this period of American involvement in North China will find the records of all Services excellent in 1945, and good in the first months of 1946. After that period, the experience will be frustrating, highlighted by an occasional and sometimes unexpected find of pertinent information. Many records that were submitted were destroyed; in a number of instances, the reports that survive provide a bare minimum of information. One exception to this observation is the multi-volumed report of General Marshall’s Executive Headquarters, held by the Office of the Chief of Military History, which provides a detailed picture of the unsuccessful peace mission’s activities.
Unofficial Documents
Without the active cooperation of a number of senior officers involved in Marine operations in North China, it would have been impossible to reconstruct a picture of the policy direction to commanders and to develop the rationale behind a number of deployments and decisions. In particular, General Worton’s account of his trip to North China in advance of the actual occupation and the several interviews with General Rockey and his letters concerning the whole span of his command were invaluable in filling gaps in the official records. The comments on the draft manuscript by the many participants in the China action, interviews with Generals Shepherd, Rockey, Woods, Peck, and Worton, Admiral Barbey, and others, comprise a unique source file on this period. Several letters from General Rockey to General Vandegrift reporting on the first days of IIIAC involvement provide a useful contemporary picture of the landings and movements once ashore.
Japanese Sources
For a reconstruction of the Japanese situation in China and Manchuria at the end of the war, three of the monographs prepared for the Office of the Chief of Military History, Nos. 129, 154, and 155, which deal with the situation of the China Expeditionary Army and the operations against Soviet Russia, are useful. The story of Japanese repatriation is developed mainly from American official records. Highly complimentary letters from Japanese repatriates to Generals Shepherd and Peck, commenting on the attitude and behavior of the Marines supervising repatriation activities, are filed with the interviews of these officers.
Books and Periodicals
While many secondary sources touch on the situation in North China during the 1945–1949 period, there is a surprising lack of comment or recognition of the presence of Marines. Useful in developing the public attitude toward this unusual occupation duty are a number of inserts and speeches in the volumes of Congressional Record for the period. The publications of most direct use in this section were:
LtCol Henry Aplington, II. “North China Patrol,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 33, no. 6 (Jun 49). An interesting account of the frustrating search for Marines captured near Chinwangtao by the Communists in July 1946.
John King Fairbank. The United States and China. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1958, rev. ed. A scholarly, but highly readable history of Sino-American relations.
Herbert Feis. The China Tangle. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1953. A largely successful attempt to present a coherent picture of the involved Chinese situation with emphasis on the last years of the Nationalist hegemony.
LtCol James D. Hittle. “On the Peiping–Mukden Line,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 31, no. 6 (Jun 47). A detailed accounting of the activities of 2/7 on rail and bridge guard during the winter of 1945–1946.
Chiang Kai-shek. Soviet Russia in China. New York: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1957. The Generalissimo’s own views of the role of the Soviets in the defeat of his forces and their forced retreat from mainland China.
F.F. Liu. A Military History of Modern China. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1956. Very helpful book on the organization, leaders, and actions of both Nationalist and Communist forces.
Charles F. Romanus and Riley Sutherland. Stilwell’s Command Problems—China–Burma- India Theater—United States Army in World Way II. Washington: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, 1956. The most pertinent of three Army histories on the China operations, this provides an excellent account of the final months of the war.
Henry I. Shaw, Jr. The United States Marines in North China, 1945–1949. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1968 ed. A preliminary study to this part which outlines the Marine participation.
Mao Tse-tung. Strategic Problems of the Anti-Japanese Guerrilla War. Peiping: Foreign Language Press, 1954. A primer for Chinese Communist guerrilla actions which provides insight into the activities of the units in North China.
U.S. Department of State. United States Relations with China. Washington, 1949. The China “White Paper,” which is replete with contemporary documents, some of which apply to the Marines. A necessary source work, but one which shows the strains of its hasty preparation.
U.S. Senate. Committees on Armed Services and Foreign Relations. Hearings on the Military Situation in the Far East, 3 May–17 August 1951. Washington, 1951. The “MacArthur Hearings” contains many interesting and revealing references to the situation in China prior to the American withdrawal.
Gen Albert C. Wedemeyer. Wedemeyer Reports! New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1958. A highly personalized and opinionated account of an officer deeply involved in the American actions in China at the highest levels.
Part VI: Conclusion
Official Documents
Many primary sources exist to enable the researcher to trace the Marine Corps and Navy development of amphibious warfare doctrine. These documents are to be found, for the most part, in the Marine Corps Historical Archives and the Operational Archives Branch, Naval History Division. The most valuable information on this subject, as well as for studies on the role of Marine Corps Headquarters in World War II and the development of tactical innovations and changes in tactical organization, etc., was developed from the Annual Reports of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Marine Corps orders and bulletins, Fleet Marine Force ground and air status reports, the World War II operational diaries of the Division of Plans and Policies (and of the G-2 and G-3 Sections therein) and the
Division of Aviation. In addition, the following files in the Historical Archives of the Marine Corps were used with great profit: subject, exercise reports, and tables of organization. Personnel statistics were derived from a study of contemporary muster rolls.
Unofficial Documents
Interesting and valuable comments pertaining to the prewar and World War H operations of Headquarters Marine Corps and the Division of Plans and Policies, and the major policy decisions emanating therefrom, were developed in the course of Oral History Program interviews with Generals Thomas, del Valle, and Peck. Other outstanding source material derived from first-hand knowledge is found in the letters of comment on the draft manuscript. Generals del Valle and Peck were again most cooperative, as were Generals Woods, Pfeiffer, and Fellows, among others. Admiral Moore, who was chief of staff to Admiral Spruance, contributed a useful insight into the problem of command relationships in the Pacific during the early part of the war and how it was subsequently solved to a degree. Dr. Elizabeth B. Drewry, Director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library at Hyde Park, New York, was most cooperative in providing copies of the correspondence between President Roosevelt and Major (later Lieutenant Colonel) Evans F. Carlson concerning the establishment of the Marine raider program. Not the least important of the documentation utilized in this part are the pertinent letters which exist in the Vandegrift Personal Correspondence File.
Books and Periodicals
To provide the basis for many of the conclusions drawn in this section, the first three volumes of this series and the draft manuscript of the fourth were invaluable because of the considerable research that went into their writing. Also used once again with great profit were Condit, Diamond, and Turnbladh, Marine Corps Ground Training in World War II, Isely and Crowl, Marines and Amphibious War, King and Whitehill, King’s Naval Record, Vandegrift and Asprey, Once A Marine, and War Reports. Additional sources were:
Capts Bennett F. Avery, Louis H. Roddis, and Joseph L. Schwartz (MC), USN, eds, The History of the Medical Department of the United States Navy in World War II, v. 1. Washington: Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Navy Department, 1953. This official Navy History is an extremely valuable source primarily for the statistics that it offers.
Adm William H. P. Blandy. “Command Relationships in Amphibious Warfare,” USNI Proceedings, v. 77, no. 66 (Jun 51). An expert in amphibious warfare, especially in the area of naval gunfire support of the landing force, writes tellingly of the real problems of command relationships which existed in the Pacific and how they were solved.
Maj Gen Pedro A. del Valle. “Cave Warfare,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 7 (Jul 45). The then-commander of the 1st Marine Division details the tank-infantry tactics employed by his Marines in reducing Japanese positions in the areas of Dakeshi and Wana Ridges on Okinawa.
Sgt George Doying. “The Buck Rogers Men,” Leatherneck, v. 23, no. 4 (Apr 45). An informative article concerning the men and operations of Marine Corps provisional rocket platoons.
Capt Clifford M. Drury (ChC), USN. The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States Navy, 1939–1949, v. II. Washington: Bureau of Naval Personnel, Department of the Navy, 1950. This official Navy history provides a good insight into the way the naval service ministers to the religious needs of sailors and Marines in combat.
VAdm George C. Dyer. “The Amphibians Came to Conquer.” MS. n.d. This is a preliminary draft of a partially completed biography of Admiral Richmond K. Turner, which is being prepared by Admiral Dyer under the auspices of the Naval History Division for publication by the Government Printing Office.
Gen Wallace M. Greene, Jr. “Shanghai, 1937,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 49, no. 11 (Nov 65). The 23rd Commandant of the Marine Corps recalls his days as a company grade officer with the 4th Marines in Shanghai and the development of a tactical formation for the controls of riots which possibly served as the forerunner of the World War II fire team.
Col Robert D. Heinl, Jr. “The Gun Gap and How to Close It,” USNI Proceedings, v. 91,
no. 9 (Sep 65). A recognized historian and writer, who served as a naval gunfire officer in World War II, utilizes his knowledge and experiences to make a plea for fuller use of larger gunfire support ships in the Vietnam war.
Maj Robert D. Heinl, Jr. “The U.S. Marine Corps: Author of Modern Amphibious War,” USNI Proceedings, vol. 73, no. 11 (Nov 47). A soundly written article tracing the role played by the Marine Corps in the development of amphibious warfare doctrine and techniques.
Maj Carl W. Hoffman. The Seizure of Tinian. Washington: Historical Division, HQMC, 1951. An official Marine Corps history which is particularly good in describing the development of tank-infantry tactics.
Lt Lee W. Holmes, “The Birth of the Fire Team,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 36, no. 11 (Nov 52). Lieutenant Holmes conducted considerable research in attempting to develop the genesis of the fire team concept adopted by the Marine Corps, and this article goes far in answering many questions.
LtCol Frank O. Hough and Maj John A. Crown. The Campaign on New Britain. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, 1952. This official Marine Corps monograph concerning the Cape Gloucester operation describes the many changes in tactics and weapons that took place in the 1st Division following the Guadalcanal campaign.
Maj John H. Johnstone. United States Marine Corps Parachute Units—Marine Corps Historical Reference Series No. 32. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1962. In addition to the detailed information about the formation, training, operations, and disbandment of the Paramarines, this useful booklet contains a brief history of the Marine Corps glider program.
Joint Board on Scientific Information Policy. U.S. Rocket Ordnance, Development and Use in World War II. Washington, 1946. This little study is valuable for the information it gives on the employment of rockets by Marine Corps aviation in the late stages of the war.
Capt Leonard G. Lawton, “Tank-Infantry Team,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 11 (Nov 45). A profitable article dealing further with the development and employment of tank-infantry teams in combat.
Lt Lewis Meyers, “Tactical Use of Flame,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 29, no. 11 (Nov 45). A very interesting and fruitful study concerning the research and development of flame as a tactical weapon with emphasis on the Marine Corps role in this area.
Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Department of the Navy. Landing Operations Doctrine, U.S. navy, 1938 (FTP-167). Washington, 1938. The basic document which governed Navy and Marine Corps conduct of amphibious operations in World War II.
Gen Holland M. Smith and Percy Finch. Coral and Brass. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1949. Reliable for the personal opinions and actions of General Smith, and not too accurate concerning details of small unit actions.
LtGen Holland M. Smith. “The Development of Amphibious Tactics in the U.S. Navy,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 30, no. 6 (Jun 46) through v . 31, no. 3 (Mar 47). General Smith contributed considerably to the developments which he discusses in this authoritative five-party article. The last five parts of this study—which was scheduled to be written in ten parts—were never completed; and General Smith’s conclusions unfortunately do not appear in what was published.
Adm Raymond A. Spruance. “The Victory in the Pacific,” Journal of the Royal United Service Institution, v. XCI, no. 564 (Nov 46). An interesting but brief survey of the Pacific War with emphasis on planning and strategy.
Capt James R. Stockman. The Battle for Tarawa. Washington: Historical Section, Division of Public Information, HQMC, 1947. One of the early official Marine Corps monographs which is valuable for a study of the development of assault team tactics.
Col Donald M. Weller, “Firepower and the Amphibious Assault,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 36, nos. 3–4 (Mar–Apr 52). A recognized Marine Corps naval gunfire expert writes about the employment of this supporting arm in combat.
Coll Donald M. Weller. “Salvo—Splash!,” USNI Proceedings, v. 80, nos. 8–9 (Aug–Sep 54). A valuable survey of the historical
development of naval gunfire training and operations in World War II with emphasis on Pacific operations.
LtCol Don P. Wyckoff. “Super Soldiers,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 47, no. 11 (Nov 63). The thesis of this author is that regular infantry organizations are as well or better equipped to conduct the type of operations for which such special organizations as the Commandos and Marine Raiders and paratroops were established.
Appendix A: Marine POWs
Official Documents
It is completely understandable that the so-called “fog of war” veils from view the condition, location, unit integrity, and well-being of combat organizations and individuals once they have been captured. It is a matter of record that the Services received information concerning hapless American prisoners only long after the fact of their capture. This information was acquired generally from the International Red Cross, as a result of escape reports, or, as most often was the case, at the end of the war when the POWs were recovered and interrogated. To a large extent, the material in this appendix is derived from the following files in the Marine Corps Historical Archives: POW, World War II; POW, World War H, Philippines; POW, World War II (USS Houston); Philippines Area Operations; and 4th Marines Unit History. Of great value to the researcher investigating the last days of Corregidor is the report of Lieutenant Colonel William T. Clement, who was the Fleet Marine Officer in the Asiatic Fleet (Miscellaneous Reports File, Philippines Area Operations File). The reports filed by Captain Austin C. Shofner and Lieutenant Jack Hawkins following their escape from the Philippines proved valuable in developing the events that transpired in the fall of Corregidor and their experiences following that time. Similarly, the escape reports of Captains Richard M. Huizenga and James D. McBrayer, Jr. and Lieutenant John F. Kinney were helpful in filling out the story of the Marines captured at Wake Island and in North China, and their subsequent adventures.
Conditions at the various prison camps are detailed in full in these escape reports and are also found in the sworn statements of Sergeant Douglas W. Bogue and Private First Class Glenn W. McDole, which shed light on the events leading to the Puerto Princess massacre and its aftermath. All of these escape reports are held in the Marine Corps Historical Archives.
For postwar events, most notably the dropping of supplies to the prisoners and their eventual recovery, fuller documentation exists. The Twentieth Air Force tactical mission report of its POW supply-dropping mission is in the archives of the Aerospace Studies Institute at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. Among the Navy documents relating to this period are the CinCPac Surrender and Occupation Report noted earlier, and the report of Task Group 30.6 concerning the evacuation of prisoners during the period 29 August-19 September 1945.
Although not used in the preparation of this appendix, certain classified documents were made available to the Historical Branch casting new light on the activities of Marines who were assigned to the 0SS in Europe and subsequently captured there.
Unofficial Documents
Without doubt, this appendix could not have been as extensive as it is without the outstanding cooperation and full accounts given by individuals to whom the draft manuscript was sent for comment, In addition to their accounts, photographs and documents hitherto unpublished were provided by Brigadier Generals Curtis T. Beecher and John F. Kinney, Colonels Luther A. Brown and James D. McBrayer, Jr., Chief Warrant Officer Earl B. Ercanbrack, and Mr. Walter W. Taylor, whose assistance is gratefully acknowledged by the author. Unfortunately, not all accounts or documentary and pictorial material could be included in this book, but they are filed appropriately in the Historical Archives of the Marine Corps as testimony to the very real heroism and courage exhibited by all Marines who became prisoners of war.
Books and Periodicals
In researching the fall of Wake Island and the Philippines and the capture of the North China Marines, the first volume of this series was used to good advantage. Condit and Turnbladh, Hold High the Torch provided additional material on the 4th Marines on Corregidor and Bataan. Other published sources utilized for this appendix are:
Hanson W. Baldwin, “The Fourth Marines at Corregidor,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 30, nos. 11–12 (Nov–Dec 46) and v. 31, nos. 1–2 (Jan–Feb 47). A journalistic account based on official documents and interviews concerning the role of the 4th Marines in the defense of the Philippines.
Col Gregory Boyington. Baa Baa Black Sheep. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1958. An interesting autobiography by a colorful personality who was in addition a Marine Corps ace awarded the Medal of Honor. What he has written about his capture and treatment later at the hands of the enemy is perhaps typical of what was experienced by other Marine pilots.
Martin Boyle. Yanks Don’t Cry. New York: Bernard Geis and Associates, 1963. Another autobiography by a former prisoner, in this case an enlisted Marine who was captured at Guam.
James P. S. Devereux. The Story of Wake Island, Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1947. General Devereux relates in this book the particulars of the fall of Wake Island and his later experiences in Japanese prison camps.
M.R.D. Foot. SOE in France: An Account of the British Special Operations Executive in France, 1940–1944. London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1966. The official British account of Allied covert activities in occupied France. The story of Peter J. Ortiz, a Marine officer assigned to the 0SS and a member of a joint Anglo-American undercover team, is covered in this work.
Col Jack Hawkins. Never Say Die. Philadelphia: Dorrance & Company, Inc., 1961. A personalized autobiography by one of the Marines who escaped from a Japanese prison camp in the Philippines.
Maj Orlan R. Lodge. The Recapture of Guam. Washington: Historical Branch, G-3 Division, HQMC, 1954. The official Marine Corps monograph concerning the Guam operation with some material on the loss of the island at the beginning of the war.
Lt Clifford P. Morehouse. “Prisoners of the Enemy,” Marine Corps Gazette, v. 28, no. 1 (Jan 44). A factual article written during the war by the Marine Corps member of the YMCA War Prisoner’s Aid Committee. Of interest in that the author provides considerable information on the wartime activities of the Casualty Reporting Division at Headquarters Marine Corps.
Robert R. Smith. Triumph in the Philippines—The War in the Pacific—United States Army in World War II. Washington: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, 1963. In this official Army history, full treatment is given to the activities of those Americans who remained in the Philippines after they had fallen and participated in guerrilla activities. It was with one of these underground units that Captain Shofner and Lieutenants Hawkins and Dobervich served until evacuated to Australia by submarine.
Fred Stolley. “Return to Mitsushima,” Leatherneck, v. XLV, no. 3 (Mar 62). A former Marine prisoner of war relates his return to the place in Japan where he had been held for most of the war.
U.S. Department of State. Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1942, v. I. Washington: 1960. In this collection of diplomatic documents are a number of interesting and important letters concerning Marine prisoners and North China Marines in particular.
Appendix C: Guide to Abbreviations (omitted)
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Appendix D: Military Map Symbols