Start building your own website easily with Squarespace! Get a free trial and 10% off your first purchase using www.squarespace.com/?channel=youtube&subchannel=armchairhistorian&source=armchairhistorian *Sorry for mispronouncing Yamato & Kyūshū, it was a long day of recording. Japanese pronunciation is probably my worst. A big thanks to Squarespace for sponsoring!
Good video. I had two uncles who were offshore during the Battle of Okinawa. One was on the Bunker Hill & the other was on the Mullany. Both were hit by kamikazes.
I served in an Infantry Battalion in the Marine Corps in the '90s and was lucky enough to be rotated to Camp Hansen in Okinawa twice. Beautiful but rugged land. Always either too hot or too cold. Those rainy seasons are no joke. I spent many, many days and nights slugging around a 60mm Mortar in the mud and hills of NTA. Thankfully with no live rounds coming my way. I thought a lot about those Marines (and Soldiers) who took "The Rock". Great video. Thank you.
@@luiseduardopinheiroesilva9474 American Marines come in all sizes. We had big tall corn fed white boys from the Midwest, and little short Latino guys from South America and Mexico. And every height in between.
Yeah people who are used to Asia know how to fight a war there lol. The Japanese by this time had extensive experience in combat, especially on Islands. The Japanese imperialists were the last ones dumb enough to think they could conquer all of Asia. Even China today would prefer to buy it, despite being able to muster millions of troops.
My Great Uncle was one of the spotters on the Bunker Hill that day , he told me they called out "Meatball ! "Meatball!" Which was a nickname they used for the rising sun on the Japanese aircraft. Even though they opened up with all they had they got thru. He would tell us about what happened before the impacts but never really spoke about the aftermath. He kept a piece of the zero that remained stuck under the deck. Thanks for mentioning the Bunker Hill.
Thanks to him for his service. Yea, Okinawa was what our boys had to look forward to with the main islands. Many times over WITH more civies in the mix. Sorry, you'll get no remorse out of me. The Japanese went about murdering throughout east Asia and only lost a few hundred thousand civilians.
Kiyoshi Ogawa and Seizu Yasunori. Even though what the Japanese did was terrible, gotta respect someone willing to fearlessly ride through a torrent of fire, straight into an enemy ship.
I can respect the meaning behind it as well, I'd I was in his shoes, I too knowing I am at the end of my rope, put up a last Harrah before languishing myself
I often wonder how different my family's life in the 20th century would have been had my great uncle survived Okinawa. The stories he could have told me would have been the stuff of legend, I'm sure
Three of my family members were drafted, since they were Okinawan, into the Imperial Japanese Army and fought in this battle. Sadly Okinawans were treated as second class citizens in the Empire of Japan, but many still died and lost their homes in this battle.
I've heard that aspect, it's really quite something. Okinawans were quite brutally treated, they were really in a rather terrible middle between the two powers at the time, fight or be killed by your occupiers. Thank you for sharing.
@@mo-215if they were treated so badly, there should have been people within the home Islands that might of protested or fought their own countrymen I mean, come on! They were even doing experiments on their own people for Christ's sake! You'd think that there would be some who would oppose the way the Imperial Japs did things to their own people and how they treated them.
The Pacfic (sister show to Band of Brothers) had such a brutal and honest portrayal of this battle. I highly recommend anyone who liked Band of Brothers to watch this show too
Watching BoB & Pacific in chronological order is very interesting. It was good for my 6th and 4th rewatches respectively. Puts a lot of things in perspective. EDIT: As in wartime chronology, in-show.
@@randycheow4268 lolno, Christfagg Mad Mel shitshow. You can't convey the atmosphere, tone and characterization that miniseries do; let alone a singular perspective-in a tiny window of time-with unnecessary imagery and allegorical content. It's good in a vacuum, I guess. But The Pacific can't be beat. Maybe Flags/Letters duology can compete in film.
My Dad was aboard the USS Bunker Hill. He and two other men were locked in a small cubby off the boiler room. The ship burned for three days. He once said , the hardest thing he had to do in this life, was report to the flight deck and stand for role call. When he stood at attention in his spot, he looked around to see one hundred and fifty men, where just 3 days before stood 1,200 of his once dear friends.
Fun fact: I was talking to some of my Japanese friends and I told them I am impressed how tough Japanese were in WW2, especially in Iwo Jima and Okinawa Both of them had absolutely no idea what I am talking about :/
@@EsamforMEMES yes the Japanese government purposefully doesn't talk about what happen in WW2 to the point it is considered political/career suiside in Japan to talk about atrocities such as The Rape of Nanking.
Especially in iwo jima und Okinawa? Japan managed to basically conquer the entire Pacific and east Indies whilst fighting China, the USA, the UK and the commonwealth despites having a weak industry in comparisons and no natural resources
If they used Dr. Squach soap, thier smooth hydrated skin would have prevented infection casualties. And the various slim wallet designs would have given them a tactical mobility advantage.
My great uncle fought in this battle. Until the day he died, fifty years after it ended, he almost never talked about it. Left some horrible emotional scars. Rest in Peace, Otho Wayne Bishop. Cannon Company, 38st Infantry Regiment. 96th Infantry Division.
8:17 The Japane: It’s over americans we have the high ground The americans: you underestimate my power The japanese: don’t try *but this time the way of the sith actually worked and the americans didn’t get their legs cut off*
One of the key reasons for invading Okinawa (and Iwo Jima) was to secure forward bases to jump off from in what was considered the inevitable invasion of Japan.
@@JRyan-lu5im While yes the men on the ground do all the work, you have to give credit to the generals as well. Organization is as big of part of the war as the people who shoot the gun. I believe that its like a football game. The coach comes up with plans while the players try to excute that plan to their very best. While there is more to War its still similar
Old map animation style or old battle animation style? We changed the map style for this episode because I had to do it all in just a couple days, when I normally have two weeks. So instead of showing each little character on the map, I just went with flags.
"Everything that was asked of us - we've done. Every night we lay in a filthy foxhole - praying the enemy won't slit our throats. Every day we spent crawling through the mud and the dirt while bullets whistled all around. But this is the last time we're gonna have to put our lives on the line. This is the enemy's last stand. When we take Shuri Castle, we go home. All of us."
From media portrayals to stories from my grandma (who knew a British soldier who fought in the Pacific) it’s safe to say that fighting against the imperial Japanese sounds like it was overwhelmingly horrific. Obviously all wars are terrible and scary but the stories from the Pacific always seem to shock me the most. RIP to the brave allied troops who gave their lives in the Pacific and all other wars.
My Great Grandfather told me stories of this battle. He was a Marine Corps Engineer in 1st Marine Division ‘C’ Company 1st Engineers. His job entailed blowing up concrete structures to get rid of snipers, Building Bunkers, and even clearing caves and tunnels with a flame thrower. He always said that he had the most dangerous job in the world. He told me one story from right after the battle, when they we’re heading to Manchuria. One of his friends had gotten a letter from his girl back home. The letter said the his girl was pregnant. They’d been overseas for almost a year, and the guy proclaimed, “I’m gonna be a dad, look Jim!” (My Great Grandfather’s name was James) and my great grandfather had to explain to his friend that his wife cheated on him. He always laughs at that story. Guy is 97 now, and has prostate cancer sadly. But damn, what a guy.
The sad but truthful fact is that dropping the atomic bombs on Japan more than likely saved more lives that otherwise would have perished if the US had invaded mainland Japan. That fighting would have been brutal, the Japanese were banking on the idea that the American people would not be able to stomach such brutal fighting with colossal casualties therefore forcing the allies to concede to the demand of a conditional surrender of Japan rather than unconditional which the allies had demanded.
Any time the word, "fact," is followed by a phrase like, "more than likely," it isn't a fact. It's just an assertion. And in this instance, it's one supported by conjecture, not evidence. Further, we don't know what would have happened if the bombs weren't dropped because history took the course we know today, and to argue for one over the other is to miss the point. Speculation is not justification. Thus, arguing the nukings were justified only serves to justify such acts and, by the same token, arguing that they weren't only serves to diminish the peace brought about in their wake. Arguing either only makes light of the fact that people in power believed that for the war to be won, hundreds of thousands of lives, mainly civilians, were forfeit "for the greater good."
@Colin3z Yes, the 'greater good' argument. Let us kill few hundred thousand civilians now, so that later our troops won't have to face Japanese on the ground.
@Colin3z Facts... Not a single Japanese unit in its entirety surrendered during the whole Second World War until the Emperor told them to. Invading the Japanese mainland would have been a bloodbath and quite possibly a disaster and a failure. One of the reasons it's islands such as Okinawa weren't so defended as they could have been was because Japan was specifically bringing its most experienced troops home to the mainland in anticipation for an American invasion. There was hundreds of thousands of troops on Kyushu alone (which is where America planned to invade). So America had to pull off a similar amphibious invasion as D-Day, against a large number of well experienced troops who will not surrender. It's not hard to see how that could go awry.
I went to Okinawa this summer and i must say the island is beautiful. They have alot of really interesting memorial about WW2 and the battle of Okinawa
Former Marine here. I was in the Battle of Fallujah, Iraq in 2004. I was stationed in Okinawa for over a year (2002-2003) at Camp Schwab. The most northern base. Okinawa is a beautiful place. During our training there, it was very hot and humid. I would very much like to re-visit it again.
I just wanna compliment how much better you've become over the past two years compared to this era. That might sound backhanded but it's fully earnest praise because you've gone nowhere but up from here in pronunciations, clarity, and animations, and this was STILL a great video
Interesting side note on the death of Gen. Buckner. After he was killed Marine Gen. Roy Geiger took over command of the 10th Army, being the only US Marine general in history to have command of a field army. (Noted in "With the Old Breed" by E.B. Sledge)
So I am half-Okinawain and still go back to my village regularly as we own a home there. You need to edit the pronunciation of Japanese words like Kyushu and Yomitan. My mom experienced this invasion firsthand as a child. You can still see gun positions and artillery shells in the coral in our village. She described the wall of grey and smoke, felt like an alien invasion. They were on the beach, cheering the waves of Kamakazis attacking those ships. My grandfather was a medic conscript on the Japanese side, almost made it to the end, he was struck by a rocket in the shoulder fired by a fighter plane while carrying wounded during the last week. His brother witnessed his death, survived and brought his body home. About a third of the local population was killed, the Imperial army handed out grenades, thankfully my grandfather knew Americans from his business in the Philippines. Many of the civilians perished in the caves, scared to come out, meeting their end by flame thrower. Also, the shear amount of naval artillery was impressive. Ie-Jima was called the Mt. Fuji of the south. The Navy devastated that mountain, unlike it looked like a sad rock it is today. Same goes with the last stand, those cliffs were pounded so hard, it is impossible to imagine being the last troops. You could do a much better version of this as there is so much more to it than the more famous battles. News on how hard it was had to be subdued as the Soviets wanted to invade Japan very badly as revenge for the Japanese sinking their fleets a few years earlier. The Allies were under a time crunch and could not make it sound as bad as it really was. It is a story waiting to be told.
My Grandfather fought on Okinawa for the American side the only people that could know is the people who were there, it was long and hard and I hope these people never let their leaders lead to a war that caused so much destruction. The Soviets will punish their enemies hard and leave no survivors, the American's will just punish them that's the difference, because if we left up to the Soviets there would not be called a people called Japanese.
My grandfather served on the Bunker Hill. He had some pretty scary stories he rarely shared. Him and a buddy forcing open a hatch to free some trapped sailors. Diving into the sea and being there for a while while the battle still went on.
@@bucketboy8461 My grandfather passed over 20 years ago now. He only shared very little about the war. He didn't want to scare anybody and kept a lot of it to himself.
My Great grandfather was a Marine that fought on Okinawa and Iwo Jima as an Engineer, he told my grandfather such a fascinating story when the Japanese did night raids on Iwo Jima and the marines were ordered to use only knives to avoid friendly fire, a Japanese solider ran past his tent, He quickly slit his throat and then cut off his head, and then continued to cut out his Jaw as a Trophy. He also Helped Build the Run way on Iwo Jima where the B-29s would take flight and end the war.
RedDotBlackSquare it takes place on a ridge ON Okinawa, not on a fictional island off of it. Before entering the fight though, the 77th took and secured the island of Ie Shima off of the coast where Ernie Pyle was killed touring with them.
Great video guys, as always. Still want to visit Okinawa. Anyone ever been there? You see the traces of war there very well or did they remove most of it?
I was stationed there for a time in 2012 when I was in the Marines. You can take a battlefield tour which visits many of the old bunkers and areas that were heavily fought for.
I spent two years stationed in Okinawa. I loved that country. Originally Okinawa was its own country with its own language and culture. Obviously before ww2
Watching this from Okinawa right now, it is absolutely hellish terrain to fight and operate in, I literally could not imagine myself fighting in it, back then it would have been far worse with less open cultivated land, and less development.
@Britannic hayyomatt Japan never scared to Soviets during ww2 because they have a powerful navy to defend thier country,, compared to Soviets during ww2 they were no match to the powerfull Japanese navy and airforce
"The terrifying scream of 'Banzai!' echoed in the nightmare of many GIs..." Most GIs: "Oh thank God, that means they're about to lose. The battle is about to end!
The nukes probably saved my existence lol my grandfather was UDT in the Pacific. He didn't get deployed to Okinawa but he was in Saipan and Talagi (Guadalcanal) and was awaiting redeployment when the nukes went off
@Gene Hunt nah because of Russia they woulda folded anyways. Which reminds me I've heard narrow minded cuckery a bunch of times claiming that it's American exceptionalism to say Japan folded because of nukes, always side stepping the when for the who. Like cool bruh mainland invasion still woulda happened. The Japanese didn't go hory sheet we had no idea Russia going to be attacking Manchuria must surrender now instead of defending homerand. All publicly available info lol end rant
@@riskyfap8416 if you read through the exact reasons for the Japanese surrender written by the Japanese at the time you'll see that the Russians were more of a footnote. Sure they were mentioned but there was maybe 1 line written on them. The Russians probably couldn't invade the mainland if they wanted too as well, they had virtually 0 naval landing experience and had only a small handful of landing craft. The Russians were absolutely the main reason Europe was 'liberated' (i say it like this because of the brutal, inhuman rule in countries such as poland that was quite like the nazis) but they had virtually no influence on mainland japan
@@benis4958 Eh, their declaration of war was more of a shock to the Japanese than the nukes. The nukes changed very little as they were merely a faster and more efficient method of destroying cities. Just with conventional bombs, Eastern Tokyo was wiped out in March and the Japanese didn't care all that much.
Thank you, Griffin, for specifically mentioning the US casualty figure and how that led Truman to use atomic weapons, which saved both American and Japanese lives.
@@gabriel.b9036 I know it did but what I mean is that Japan still got the short end of the stick at the end of the day. Getting nuked isn't gonna make sure both sides come out unscathed.
@N0_1if3 You forgot the fact that America was the one who wanted to have war against us. It’s true that we are the one who started war against America. But it’s because we had no choice but to do so.
"They're not Japanese, they're Okinawites". ~ A line I just recalled from HBO's The Pacific, its mostly strong sequel to the masterpiece of Band of Brothers. And in related news, they are making "Masters of the Air" regarding the 8th Air Force, AKA The Mighty Eighth.
@Mustafa Alam Citizens yes, but they are small island many hundreds of miles south of the home islands, so they have always had strong sense of unique identity.
My guess is that the national flag are the local civilian conscripts/volunteers, the off center rising sun marines and the centered rising sun flag army troops. But I could be wrong
My father was in WWII and was familiar with the intelligence for this battle. Many subordinates wanted to isolate the Japanese in the south and starve them out while attacking Japan from the northern part of the island. The Generals saw this as delaying the end of the war and knew the Japanese would never surrender.
There's a scene in The Pacific (from With the Old Breed...) where the Japanese sent Okinawan civillians down a hill, some with explosives strapped to them, as a distraction before launching an attack that left all those civillians in the crossfire as human shields and a deterrent for shooting back. It's gut-wrenching to think about all the horrors that happened on Okinawa back then, when it's a subtropical vacation destination today.
13:04-13:16 historically we could say that gave America an excuses to show to others that they have a new different weapon... Japan was not far from surrendering and an invasion was probably not necessary anyway... I like the short representation of the battle, not the conclusion about the atomic bombing of Japan!
@@Jumpman6352 Look up what the Dutch submarines in the Pacific got up to. For a country under occupation fighting on the other side of the world, the Dutch subs did extraordinary things against the Japanese.
my great uncle died in this battle, and japan surrendered unconditionally while his brother, my great grandfather, was on a boat in the pacific heading to mainland japan for the potential Operation Downfall. He never saw active combat, and unfortunately spent the rest of his life holding extreme prejudice over the Japanese for taking his brother from him, and he himself not able to do anything about it. Can't say I blame him though, I doubt I could ever forgive a country for killing my sibling. On a lighter note, he got SUPER pissed at my grandpa, his son, for buying a Toyota in the 80's
After watching the Pacific Episode 9 and the movie Hacksaw Ridge, I realized how horrifying and brutal it must be for the U.S. forces to overcome the Japanese on Okinawa, just shows it was a lot worse than the European Western Front.
@TheDerpy Kitty The latter half of 1944 was defined by little gains and heavy losses. The Western Front had some very high attrition battles in that period that tend to go unnoticed by military history media for whatever reason.
@TheDerpy Kitty Yes, and the front ground to the halt because of intense German resistance at the border. SHAEF had planned to reach Germany's industrial interior before winter. They didn't actually breakout of Germany's border territories until April 1945. The battles on the German-French frontiers meant little for such heavy losses. Hurtgen Forest and Market Garden are prime examples. Even by early 1945, Germany still had a substantial holdout in Alsace, in the Colmar Pocket, that delayed 6th Army Group's advance across the Rhine until March. Okinawa is quite a large island. Large enough to justify landing an entire six-division Army, excluding floating reserves. Proportionally speaking, the losses weren't too high, and Okinawa was easily the most valuable territory gained for the planned invasion of Kyushu. Not every battle in the Pacific was for nothing.
We always learned that the Kamikazes were ineffective, but exchanging 1900 lives for 4300 of your enemies lives and hundreds of their ships seems like it worked.
Yeah but that's about 1900 elite irreplaceable pilots against an enemy who's entire battle doctrine is overwhelming force and can easily replace their pilots and quickly repair their damaged ships.
I just want to thank you young man for doing this video. It's refreshing to see a young person talking about world War 2. I bet you really liked history in school. Thank you again.
Okinawa is one of the few battles where both commanding Officers died. Buckner was on Sugar Loaf hill and rock fragments from the artillery shell struck him in the heart. My sister used to sit for an elderly lady who's husband was one of the non-combatant ranks killed their as well, and she virulently hated the Japanese to her dying day decades later. While the Japanese policy of making us pay such a high price for victory certainly was a key factor for the use of atomic weapons, they really had no other options to them.
My great grandpa used to at the Kure shipyard before he got drafted to China as a telegraph operater and he said that he couldn't believe that a human could build a ship the size of Yamato and was shocked when he found out that it sank. He did not get involved into building Yamato as he was in the communication center or something like that.
I was in the naval base of okinawa and its TRULY FUCKIN STUNNING. Even I as an army officers was stunned. The base is just huge and although you arent allowed to inspect the whole base, its still big. There are kilometers of underground tunnels and systems, a metropole in the earth. Best sight in japan
My Father was there, and stated they were still digging them out of the caves 6 months after the Island was declared secured. So, the fight went on. They came out, ambushed and went back in. Described them like moles, that pop up, ambush, and then hide again in the caves.
Everything that was asked of us - we've done. Every night we lay in a filthy foxhole - prayin' the enemy won't slit our throats. Every day we spent crawling through the mud and the dirt while bullets whistled all around. This is the enemy's last stand. When we take Shuri Castle, we go home. All of us." Sergeant Ben Roebuck ( 1915 - 1945) battle of okinawa.
Been stationed on Okinawa for over two years now. I don't plan on moving back to the States. Being able to read "With the Old Breed" by Eugene Sledge and following up with HBO's "The Pacific", you can literally trace the path of the battle. You can still see the old sites by the Shuri Line (RIP Shuri Castle) which saw the bloodiest engagements as Maeda Escarpment, a.k.a. "Hacksaw Ridge", and Kakazu Ridge along with Sugar Loaf Hill. The Japanese Underground Naval Bunker is still there as it was during the war and you can see facilites near Naha such as the Peace Memorial that is surround by more bunkers and artifacts from the battle. Motobu Hill and Ie Shima towards the north saw heavy engagaments and is availible to check out anytime. It's just astounding to be at a place where so much history has occured and also a place to respect the over 200,000 lives lost during those 2 terrible months. The Peace Memorial lists every name of Japanese troops, civilians (in Japanese), and American troops (in English) killed in the Battle. May God Bless Okinawa.
The reverse slop defense forces the offense to skyline themselves when they attack. The defense would see the maneuver before the maneuver sees the defense. The offense also does not have the advantage of utilizing their weapons at their maximum effective range if the defense is in a reverse slope. Great advantage to the Japanese.
I met a man named Richard at a retirement home who served in Leyte and Okinawa, he talked about how sudden the japanese were and that you could never see them. To him it was less scary and more annoying.
You should not forget that Japanese main objective in Okinawa was make American government to think "invade the mainland would be madness." If it was easy to invade the Iow jima and the Okinawa islands, they do not hesitate to invade mainland for sure, which we had to stop no matter what we scrifice.
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*Sorry for mispronouncing Yamato & Kyūshū, it was a long day of recording. Japanese pronunciation is probably my worst.
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The Armchair Historian Can You Do An Invasion Of Poland Video?
Do a video about the battle of Hong Kong
Good video. I had two uncles who were offshore during the Battle of Okinawa. One was on the Bunker Hill & the other was on the Mullany. Both were hit by kamikazes.
When I try to pronounce Kyūshū, I try to pronounce it as que-shoe as it gets pretty close to the actual pronunciation. I hope that helps out a bit.
The Armchair Historian you butcher some Mexican states when covering the battle of Puebla
I served in an Infantry Battalion in the Marine Corps in the '90s and was lucky enough to be rotated to Camp Hansen in Okinawa twice. Beautiful but rugged land. Always either too hot or too cold. Those rainy seasons are no joke. I spent many, many days and nights slugging around a 60mm Mortar in the mud and hills of NTA. Thankfully with no live rounds coming my way. I thought a lot about those Marines (and Soldiers) who took "The Rock". Great video. Thank you.
Semper fi dude I was 0341, a 60mm mortarman 2009-2013. Got some Camp Hansen time in during the 31st MEU in 2012....the humidity was the worst.
@@41tl Semper Fi brother. Mortars Up!
Hey can I ask you something?? What is height in meters to enter in Marines?? Semper Fi bro.
@@luiseduardopinheiroesilva9474 American Marines come in all sizes. We had big tall corn fed white boys from the Midwest, and little short Latino guys from South America and Mexico. And every height in between.
@@41tl Oh thanks man.
Griffin: Japan inflicted thousands of deaths by hiding in tunnels
Viet cong: write that down
Lol
Yeah people who are used to Asia know how to fight a war there lol. The Japanese by this time had extensive experience in combat, especially on Islands. The Japanese imperialists were the last ones dumb enough to think they could conquer all of Asia. Even China today would prefer to buy it, despite being able to muster millions of troops.
@@michaelheath2866 probably because that how many’s it would cost just for asia
Actually the VC recruited Japanese military officers who weren’t able to return after the war, so arguably these tactics lived on to the Vietnam war
rurounigensan the VC were trained in large part by the communist chinese who used guerilla tactics against the nationalists and the japanese.
America : we shall land on April 1
Japan thinking it's a prank: but will you really
Imma put a comment
Imma put reply to reply to reply
imma be unoriginal and put a reply to a reply to a reply to a comment
Imma be more unoriginal and put a reply and reply on a reply while i reply on a comment
Imma be original and say nothing
My Great Uncle was one of the spotters on the Bunker Hill that day , he told me they called out "Meatball ! "Meatball!" Which was a nickname they used for the rising sun on the Japanese aircraft. Even though they opened up with all they had they got thru. He would tell us about what happened before the impacts but never really spoke about the aftermath. He kept a piece of the zero that remained stuck under the deck. Thanks for mentioning the Bunker Hill.
Thanks to him for his service.
Yea, Okinawa was what our boys had to look forward to with the main islands. Many times over WITH more civies in the mix.
Sorry, you'll get no remorse out of me. The Japanese went about murdering throughout east Asia and only lost a few hundred thousand civilians.
I appreciate your Great Uncle’s sacrifice for his country.
Kiyoshi Ogawa and Seizu Yasunori. Even though what the Japanese did was terrible, gotta respect someone willing to fearlessly ride through a torrent of fire, straight into an enemy ship.
I can respect the meaning behind it as well, I'd I was in his shoes, I too knowing I am at the end of my rope, put up a last Harrah before languishing myself
I often wonder how different my family's life in the 20th century would have been had my great uncle survived Okinawa. The stories he could have told me would have been the stuff of legend, I'm sure
Three of my family members were drafted, since they were Okinawan, into the Imperial Japanese Army and fought in this battle. Sadly Okinawans were treated as second class citizens in the Empire of Japan, but many still died and lost their homes in this battle.
I've heard that aspect, it's really quite something. Okinawans were quite brutally treated, they were really in a rather terrible middle between the two powers at the time, fight or be killed by your occupiers. Thank you for sharing.
@@mo-215 the imperial japanese army strapped tnt to the civilains using them as human shields
"Sadly Okinawans were treated as second class citizens in the Empire of Japan"
Tell it to the rest of the Empire outside of Japan. HAHAHA
Us Americans, we respect y’all greatly. Here’s to worldwide peace 🥂
@@mo-215if they were treated so badly, there should have been people within the home Islands that might of protested or fought their own countrymen I mean, come on! They were even doing experiments on their own people for Christ's sake! You'd think that there would be some who would oppose the way the Imperial Japs did things to their own people and how they treated them.
“After we take shuri castle we go home, all of us.”
Ah, the good old days of call of duty world at war.
@@IceNinja18 I remember them. Always shtupping morphine in me and my friends balls to rez each other. On harder levels. Good times.
Ahhh but now Shuri castle burned down..
ImmortalHacksaw y’all pick Dempsey, or Sulivain?
I still remember Roebuck's voice.
My great grandfather served in this battle. He passed in 2013 at the age of 96 god rest his soul.
E Fig I’m not sure
He is a fucking god for fighting on that island
I thought the last ww2 vet died in 2012
@@landonkauffman.6786 no... there are millions of vets still alive. maybe youre thinking of WWI
@@KIMG69 oh yeah my bad
The Pacfic (sister show to Band of Brothers) had such a brutal and honest portrayal of this battle. I highly recommend anyone who liked Band of Brothers to watch this show too
CheddarBacon Couldn’t agree more, Sledgehammer..
Damn straight Sledgehammer.
Watching BoB & Pacific in chronological order is very interesting. It was good for my 6th and 4th rewatches respectively. Puts a lot of things in perspective.
EDIT: As in wartime chronology, in-show.
What about Hacksaw Ridge
@@randycheow4268 lolno, Christfagg Mad Mel shitshow. You can't convey the atmosphere, tone and characterization that miniseries do; let alone a singular perspective-in a tiny window of time-with unnecessary imagery and allegorical content. It's good in a vacuum, I guess. But The Pacific can't be beat. Maybe Flags/Letters duology can compete in film.
My Dad was aboard the USS Bunker Hill. He and two other men were locked in a small cubby off the boiler room. The ship burned for three days. He once said , the hardest thing he had to do in this life, was report to the flight deck and stand for role call. When he stood at attention in his spot, he looked around to see one hundred and fifty men, where just 3 days before stood 1,200 of his once dear friends.
I love that you had Admiral Spruance emerge from the sea like the water-type legendary pokemon he was.
"Spruance, I choose you!"
"Hi, I'm Griffon Johnson and the following is probably demonetized for some reason."
"Happy fun stories with Italy"
"Hi, I'm Griffin johnson and this is my beard... no I'm kidding. This is Okinawa."
@INERT lol
@INERT Now testify!!
I didn't noticed he uploaded a video last week. The algorithm doing its thing again
Fun fact:
I was talking to some of my Japanese friends and I told them I am impressed how tough Japanese were in WW2, especially in Iwo Jima and Okinawa
Both of them had absolutely no idea what I am talking about :/
Wait really ?
@@EsamforMEMES yes the Japanese government purposefully doesn't talk about what happen in WW2 to the point it is considered political/career suiside in Japan to talk about atrocities such as The Rape of Nanking.
Teach them how to Google.
@@DerekWelchElectric not everyone gets fascinated by war like me
Especially in iwo jima und Okinawa? Japan managed to basically conquer the entire Pacific and east Indies whilst fighting China, the USA, the UK and the commonwealth despites having a weak industry in comparisons and no natural resources
The Japanese lost because they didn't use square space.
Manager Boi well done
This is every message ever whenever there is a sponsor, you should feel proud of yourself
If they used Dr. Squach soap, thier smooth hydrated skin would have prevented infection casualties. And the various slim wallet designs would have given them a tactical mobility advantage.
Dashlane to. Their codes were tanken.
Is Square Space only for black people? I would think so from the ad.
My great uncle fought in this battle. Until the day he died, fifty years after it ended, he almost never talked about it. Left some horrible emotional scars.
Rest in Peace, Otho Wayne Bishop.
Cannon Company, 38st Infantry Regiment.
96th Infantry Division.
@Geba you fucking bastard
Geba you fucking bastard. Why?
@Geba lol
джефф картер Ignore him he wants attention
My grandpa fought at midway
8:17 The Japane: It’s over americans we have the high ground
The americans: you underestimate my power
The japanese: don’t try
*but this time the way of the sith actually worked and the americans didn’t get their legs cut off*
They did
@@user-bw9jo2iz5s if by legs cut off you mean won then sure
"If he doesn't see you chat, then that means he looks at chat every five minutes."
-me, literally yesterday
Lol i remember you, and you remember me, "Feuer!"
(tank explodes)
@@build2270 "Feuer!" *'nother tank explodes*
@@bubbalucas4036 "God damnit, put some smoke in his face"
@@build2270 *all of the REMAINING tanks throws smoke in the Tiger*
@@bubbalucas4036 *Tiger I moves forwards*
The only thing killed was this video's monetization
I don't really understand why ... Is history really taboo now?
@@lukijanbugarski3476 TH-cam thinks so, I guess. Its pretty sad
@@lukijanbugarski3476 I believe it's because TH-cam files war videos as politically controversial and ad-unfriendly
@@SentryWill should upcoming war movie trailers be demonetized too, if that's the case?
Well you see TH-cam doesn’t like people acknowledging that the axis powers lost the war
Kudos to whoever does the drawing
Kudos to the guy who blitzkrieged through France
@@trollege9618 ohh very funny
yes very funny
One of the key reasons for invading Okinawa (and Iwo Jima) was to secure forward bases to jump off from in what was considered the inevitable invasion of Japan.
It was never considered to be inevitable though...
US: we will land on april 1st
Japan: this is just a prank
US: *lands*
Japan: Oh sh-
Japan: Say SIKE right now!
"Surprise attacks are for the Japanese"
" i can't believe they used our own tactics against us....how dare they!"
I think that focusing on specific generals and their battles would be a very informational thing.
yes please!
@Gipsy Danger maybe not focus on a general in 1 battle but the general troughout the war
A very informational indeed.
I'd rather hear the stories of ground troops who fought the battles, not the old men who take credit for orchestrating them, imo.
@@JRyan-lu5im
While yes the men on the ground do all the work, you have to give credit to the generals as well. Organization is as big of part of the war as the people who shoot the gun. I believe that its like a football game. The coach comes up with plans while the players try to excute that plan to their very best. While there is more to War its still similar
Thanks for giving distances as KM also. It is much appreciated by non-US/UK viewers.
I miss your old animation style. It was really good.
Old map animation style or old battle animation style? We changed the map style for this episode because I had to do it all in just a couple days, when I normally have two weeks. So instead of showing each little character on the map, I just went with flags.
My father and uncle fought in Okinawa they had shapnerl in they're bodies until they died . We come from a long line of Marines, Semper Fi
Semper fei marine godpeed
"Everything that was asked of us - we've done. Every night we lay in a filthy foxhole - praying the enemy won't slit our throats. Every day we spent crawling through the mud and the dirt while bullets whistled all around. But this is the last time we're gonna have to put our lives on the line. This is the enemy's last stand. When we take Shuri Castle, we go home. All of us."
Good game, but Shuri Castle was far from their last stand on the island.
Call of Duty World at War flashbacks
World at War
When the "caves" start speaking Japanese
When the grass starts speaking ¥en
When the flamethrower starts speaking American.
When the snow starts speaking Finnish
When the trees start speaking Vietnam
'-----'
I always loved Okinawa. Pacific as well as World at War raised my interest
"BURN THE GRASS MILLER!!!"
@@41tl blowtorch and corkscrew
Liam O'Brien TAKE OUT THOSE FUCKING PT BOATS!
ありがとうございます
THEY KILLED SARGE! (Roebuck)
RIP Shuri Castle, destroyed once during WW2, destroyed again by fire like 3 days ago :(
World at war flashbacks*
Shuri castle burned down?
@@jillvalentinefan77 yep
It will be rebuilt in due time. At least US service members are at the forefront of the rebuilding project and funding.
Dwaine W I'm sure they will, but rebuilding it is no easy task and u can never replace the 400 art pieces that were lost to the fire
Gotta love the CoD WaW gun sounds being used
From media portrayals to stories from my grandma (who knew a British soldier who fought in the Pacific) it’s safe to say that fighting against the imperial Japanese sounds like it was overwhelmingly horrific. Obviously all wars are terrible and scary but the stories from the Pacific always seem to shock me the most. RIP to the brave allied troops who gave their lives in the Pacific and all other wars.
My Great Grandfather told me stories of this battle. He was a Marine Corps Engineer in 1st Marine Division ‘C’ Company 1st Engineers. His job entailed blowing up concrete structures to get rid of snipers, Building Bunkers, and even clearing caves and tunnels with a flame thrower. He always said that he had the most dangerous job in the world. He told me one story from right after the battle, when they we’re heading to Manchuria. One of his friends had gotten a letter from his girl back home. The letter said the his girl was pregnant. They’d been overseas for almost a year, and the guy proclaimed, “I’m gonna be a dad, look Jim!” (My Great Grandfather’s name was James) and my great grandfather had to explain to his friend that his wife cheated on him. He always laughs at that story. Guy is 97 now, and has prostate cancer sadly. But damn, what a guy.
Is he still alive
The sad but truthful fact is that dropping the atomic bombs on Japan more than likely saved more lives that otherwise would have perished if the US had invaded mainland Japan. That fighting would have been brutal, the Japanese were banking on the idea that the American people would not be able to stomach such brutal fighting with colossal casualties therefore forcing the allies to concede to the demand of a conditional surrender of Japan rather than unconditional which the allies had demanded.
Soviet invasion of Manchuria.
Any time the word, "fact," is followed by a phrase like, "more than likely," it isn't a fact. It's just an assertion. And in this instance, it's one supported by conjecture, not evidence.
Further, we don't know what would have happened if the bombs weren't dropped because history took the course we know today, and to argue for one over the other is to miss the point. Speculation is not justification. Thus, arguing the nukings were justified only serves to justify such acts and, by the same token, arguing that they weren't only serves to diminish the peace brought about in their wake. Arguing either only makes light of the fact that people in power believed that for the war to be won, hundreds of thousands of lives, mainly civilians, were forfeit "for the greater good."
Unparalleled war crime, overshadowing (with large margin) any and all other war crimes committed in both world wars.
@Colin3z Yes, the 'greater good' argument. Let us kill few hundred thousand civilians now, so that later our troops won't have to face Japanese on the ground.
@Colin3z Facts... Not a single Japanese unit in its entirety surrendered during the whole Second World War until the Emperor told them to. Invading the Japanese mainland would have been a bloodbath and quite possibly a disaster and a failure. One of the reasons it's islands such as Okinawa weren't so defended as they could have been was because Japan was specifically bringing its most experienced troops home to the mainland in anticipation for an American invasion. There was hundreds of thousands of troops on Kyushu alone (which is where America planned to invade). So America had to pull off a similar amphibious invasion as D-Day, against a large number of well experienced troops who will not surrender. It's not hard to see how that could go awry.
I went to Okinawa this summer and i must say the island is beautiful. They have alot of really interesting memorial about WW2 and the battle of Okinawa
All the money Squarespace makes goes straight to paying Idris Elba
This bloke is great. Thank's for telling history in such a well presented format. Big respect mate
Former Marine here. I was in the Battle of Fallujah, Iraq in 2004. I was stationed in Okinawa for over a year (2002-2003) at Camp Schwab. The most northern base. Okinawa is a beautiful place. During our training there, it was very hot and humid. I would very much like to re-visit it again.
Much respect to you and thank you for serving our country! 🇺🇸
And thank u for destroying mine
@@yosefm170 your welcome
I just wanna compliment how much better you've become over the past two years compared to this era. That might sound backhanded but it's fully earnest praise because you've gone nowhere but up from here in pronunciations, clarity, and animations, and this was STILL a great video
Those World at War sound effects are giving me flashbacks.
Adolf Hitler oh no don’t think about it
@YUSUF HUSSEIN O h. Y e s
Browning and Springfield
99% of comments: Wow this is nice
Dressell: 0:58
Boeken1
But what about Papa New Guinea?
This is such an underrated comment
Bangkok square massacre
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
南部は激戦中の激戦でした😢
ゆいレールのおもろまち駅から徒歩数分のところにシュガーローフの戦いで有名な丘があります。
周辺はサンエー那覇メインプレイスや免税店、タワーマンションなどがあり、副都心として発展しています。
Interesting side note on the death of Gen. Buckner. After he was killed Marine Gen. Roy Geiger took over command of the 10th Army, being the only US Marine general in history to have command of a field army. (Noted in "With the Old Breed" by E.B. Sledge)
Love interesting facts like this by commenters
So I am half-Okinawain and still go back to my village regularly as we own a home there. You need to edit the pronunciation of Japanese words like Kyushu and Yomitan.
My mom experienced this invasion firsthand as a child. You can still see gun positions and artillery shells in the coral in our village. She described the wall of grey and smoke, felt like an alien invasion. They were on the beach, cheering the waves of Kamakazis attacking those ships.
My grandfather was a medic conscript on the Japanese side, almost made it to the end, he was struck by a rocket in the shoulder fired by a fighter plane while carrying wounded during the last week. His brother witnessed his death, survived and brought his body home. About a third of the local population was killed, the Imperial army handed out grenades, thankfully my grandfather knew Americans from his business in the Philippines. Many of the civilians perished in the caves, scared to come out, meeting their end by flame thrower.
Also, the shear amount of naval artillery was impressive. Ie-Jima was called the Mt. Fuji of the south. The Navy devastated that mountain, unlike it looked like a sad rock it is today. Same goes with the last stand, those cliffs were pounded so hard, it is impossible to imagine being the last troops.
You could do a much better version of this as there is so much more to it than the more famous battles. News on how hard it was had to be subdued as the Soviets wanted to invade Japan very badly as revenge for the Japanese sinking their fleets a few years earlier. The Allies were under a time crunch and could not make it sound as bad as it really was. It is a story waiting to be told.
Mark Vilimek I smell 🧢
Chris Roberts Trying to help them make this stuff better. Ya’ll are so easily triggered.
@@christophertheconqueror8751 "mf capping" lmao
My Grandfather fought on Okinawa for the American side the only people that could know is the people who were there, it was long and hard and I hope these people never let their leaders lead to a war that caused so much destruction. The Soviets will punish their enemies hard and leave no survivors, the American's will just punish them that's the difference, because if we left up to the Soviets there would not be called a people called Japanese.
My grandfather served on the Bunker Hill. He had some pretty scary stories he rarely shared. Him and a buddy forcing open a hatch to free some trapped sailors. Diving into the sea and being there for a while while the battle still went on.
This is the second time I’ve seen a comment about a relative who was one the bunker hill. It would be cool if they knew each other.
@@bucketboy8461 My grandfather passed over 20 years ago now. He only shared very little about the war. He didn't want to scare anybody and kept a lot of it to himself.
@@josephrcase Well that sucks. War is horrible.
The Battle of Okinawa is raging. 75 years ago. May those who fought rest in peace.
My Great grandfather was a Marine that fought on Okinawa and Iwo Jima as an Engineer, he told my grandfather such a fascinating story when the Japanese did night raids on Iwo Jima and the marines were ordered to use only knives to avoid friendly fire, a Japanese solider ran past his tent, He quickly slit his throat and then cut off his head, and then continued to cut out his Jaw as a Trophy. He also Helped Build the Run way on Iwo Jima where the B-29s would take flight and end the war.
What was the name of his outfit?
Okinawa, a Stitch anime takes place there. Japan’s Hawaii
I like K-pop too
It takes place on a fictional island off the coast of Okinawa, not on Okinawa.
End Communism
Kim Jong-un yeah one of my favorite shows why do you want to kill us
RedDotBlackSquare it takes place on a ridge ON Okinawa, not on a fictional island off of it. Before entering the fight though, the 77th took and secured the island of Ie Shima off of the coast where Ernie Pyle was killed touring with them.
Great video guys, as always. Still want to visit Okinawa. Anyone ever been there? You see the traces of war there very well or did they remove most of it?
I was stationed there for a time in 2012 when I was in the Marines. You can take a battlefield tour which visits many of the old bunkers and areas that were heavily fought for.
@@41tl Interesting! Thanks. Love to go there some day.
TH-cam NO SWIPPING
TH-cam NO SWIPPING
TH-cam NO SWIPPING
Aww man.
@@mr.normalguy69 Creeper?
I can't believe I found a Dora the explorer reference
A Dora the Explorer reference, lovely.
Where is the video I can't see it
Great Grandfather served in the 27th ID from Makin to Saipan and Okinawa. This channel always does great work with military history, thanks!
"Its over Simon Bulevar I have the High Ground"
~~Mitsuru Ushijima
*Bolivar
"You underestimate our power"
~~ Simon Bolivar
@@fi4re Simon Bolivar: hey wtf america why did you name your general after me
8:55
That boy •W I D E•
Thicc
Thicc
Thicc
Thicc
A rare footage of a Thiccus Yeetus in battlefield, colorized
Your Source of info : Books and stuff..
My Source of info : *CoD WaW*
Same
I spent two years stationed in Okinawa. I loved that country. Originally Okinawa was its own country with its own language and culture. Obviously before ww2
Luv this channel
Watching this from Okinawa right now, it is absolutely hellish terrain to fight and operate in, I literally could not imagine myself fighting in it, back then it would have been far worse with less open cultivated land, and less development.
Japan: "Let's show them the cost of invading our mainland!"
USA: "So we got this new toy.... it's big, fat, and angry... just like us!"
*KNOCK KNOCK, ITS THE UNITED STATES*
@Britannic hayyomatt lmao no. Maybe the Army, but the Navy were the intelligent ones in the Japanese military.
@Britannic hayyomatt Japan never scared to Soviets during ww2 because they have a powerful navy to defend thier country,, compared to Soviets during ww2 they were no match to the powerfull Japanese navy and airforce
@Britannic hayyomatt do some research dude "Pacific war documentary" and the speech of emperor hirohito after the second atom.
@Britannic hayyomatt nonsense... Japanese imperial army never afraid to the Soviets.
"The terrifying scream of 'Banzai!' echoed in the nightmare of many GIs..."
Most GIs: "Oh thank God, that means they're about to lose. The battle is about to end!
The nukes probably saved my existence lol my grandfather was UDT in the Pacific. He didn't get deployed to Okinawa but he was in Saipan and Talagi (Guadalcanal) and was awaiting redeployment when the nukes went off
@Gene Hunt nah because of Russia they woulda folded anyways. Which reminds me I've heard narrow minded cuckery a bunch of times claiming that it's American exceptionalism to say Japan folded because of nukes, always side stepping the when for the who. Like cool bruh mainland invasion still woulda happened. The Japanese didn't go hory sheet we had no idea Russia going to be attacking Manchuria must surrender now instead of defending homerand. All publicly available info lol end rant
@@riskyfap8416 if you read through the exact reasons for the Japanese surrender written by the Japanese at the time you'll see that the Russians were more of a footnote. Sure they were mentioned but there was maybe 1 line written on them. The Russians probably couldn't invade the mainland if they wanted too as well, they had virtually 0 naval landing experience and had only a small handful of landing craft. The Russians were absolutely the main reason Europe was 'liberated' (i say it like this because of the brutal, inhuman rule in countries such as poland that was quite like the nazis) but they had virtually no influence on mainland japan
@@benis4958 Eh, their declaration of war was more of a shock to the Japanese than the nukes. The nukes changed very little as they were merely a faster and more efficient method of destroying cities. Just with conventional bombs, Eastern Tokyo was wiped out in March and the Japanese didn't care all that much.
Yamato, not the “Yamoto”.
Sad to see that you copied my comment, mmm
@@build2270 you are right.
@@build2270 but who does know? Either way almost anybody didn't see my comment
@@אוריאלגואטה-פ5ה it was top comment for 1 hour.... And after that you could still seee it at 3rd place
You are right
Thank you, Griffin, for specifically mentioning the US casualty figure and how that led Truman to use atomic weapons, which saved both American and Japanese lives.
Maybe not Japanese lives, but definitely American lives
@@N0_1if3 ehh 100,000 people dead to me its pretty low number compared to japan did to china
@@N0_1if3 It saved Japanese lives too, imagine what a naval invasion of mainland Japan would've been like.
@@gabriel.b9036 I know it did but what I mean is that Japan still got the short end of the stick at the end of the day. Getting nuked isn't gonna make sure both sides come out unscathed.
@N0_1if3
You forgot the fact that America was the one who wanted to have war against us. It’s true that we are the one who started war against America. But it’s because we had no choice but to do so.
7:00 me when I forget my homework
The japanese when they get bombarded.
"They're not Japanese, they're Okinawites".
~ A line I just recalled from HBO's The Pacific, its mostly strong sequel to the masterpiece of Band of Brothers. And in related news, they are making "Masters of the Air" regarding the 8th Air Force, AKA The Mighty Eighth.
@Mustafa Alam Citizens yes, but they are small island many hundreds of miles south of the home islands, so they have always had strong sense of unique identity.
Out of interest, what do the 3 different flags for the Japanese mean? Ie the national flag, the rising sun and the off centre rising sun?
My guess is that the national flag are the local civilian conscripts/volunteers, the off center rising sun marines and the centered rising sun flag army troops. But I could be wrong
@@commanderwolf1182 I'm late, but you were close, the off the center one is the Navy not the Marines
8:14 “It’s over American! I have the high ground!”
My father was in WWII and was familiar with the intelligence for this battle. Many subordinates wanted to isolate the Japanese in the south and starve them out while attacking Japan from the northern part of the island. The Generals saw this as delaying the end of the war and knew the Japanese would never surrender.
This was super well done and the animations were very useful!
The overall quality of your videos keeps improving by quite a lot, good job!
TheAllooSk thank you
There's a scene in The Pacific (from With the Old Breed...) where the Japanese sent Okinawan civillians down a hill, some with explosives strapped to them, as a distraction before launching an attack that left all those civillians in the crossfire as human shields and a deterrent for shooting back. It's gut-wrenching to think about all the horrors that happened on Okinawa back then, when it's a subtropical vacation destination today.
I read somewhere that afterwards Japanese soldiers tried to sneak away wearing local clothing. The locals pointed them out to the Americas in a flash.
13:04-13:16 historically we could say that gave America an excuses to show to others that they have a new different weapon... Japan was not far from surrendering and an invasion was probably not necessary anyway... I like the short representation of the battle, not the conclusion about the atomic bombing of Japan!
The British Pacific Fleet fought at Okinawa . Larger than the Japanese fleet but smaller than the US . Still deserves a mention .
World War II in the Pacific is mostly a American and Japanese war. European powers besides Britain was barely involved.
@@Jumpman6352 Look up what the Dutch submarines in the Pacific got up to. For a country under occupation fighting on the other side of the world, the Dutch subs did extraordinary things against the Japanese.
@@Cailus3542 screw the Dutch. Glad they got invaded by the Germans
@@marcoAKAjoe Shame.
@@generationm2059 the Dutch were harassing & invading Indonesia & other territories in the Pacific. No shame here
I love how Admiral Spruance popped out of the sea lol
you forgot the fact that Desmond actually saved a Japanese soldier
He never did they just added that to make him look like a hero.
@@mynamejeff8401 but he is a hero
new name correct
@@mynamejeff8401 Make him look like a hero??? like Daniella said he IS a hero
@@mynamejeff8401 proof?
*Kills enemy general*
General Ushijima: "Better go out even."
my great uncle died in this battle, and japan surrendered unconditionally while his brother, my great grandfather, was on a boat in the pacific heading to mainland japan for the potential Operation Downfall. He never saw active combat, and unfortunately spent the rest of his life holding extreme prejudice over the Japanese for taking his brother from him, and he himself not able to do anything about it. Can't say I blame him though, I doubt I could ever forgive a country for killing my sibling.
On a lighter note, he got SUPER pissed at my grandpa, his son, for buying a Toyota in the 80's
After watching the Pacific Episode 9 and the movie Hacksaw Ridge, I realized how horrifying and brutal it must be for the U.S. forces to overcome the Japanese on Okinawa, just shows it was a lot worse than the European Western Front.
More US troops died in Europe.
@TheDerpy Kitty The latter half of 1944 was defined by little gains and heavy losses. The Western Front had some very high attrition battles in that period that tend to go unnoticed by military history media for whatever reason.
@TheDerpy Kitty Yes, and the front ground to the halt because of intense German resistance at the border. SHAEF had planned to reach Germany's industrial interior before winter. They didn't actually breakout of Germany's border territories until April 1945. The battles on the German-French frontiers meant little for such heavy losses. Hurtgen Forest and Market Garden are prime examples. Even by early 1945, Germany still had a substantial holdout in Alsace, in the Colmar Pocket, that delayed 6th Army Group's advance across the Rhine until March.
Okinawa is quite a large island. Large enough to justify landing an entire six-division Army, excluding floating reserves. Proportionally speaking, the losses weren't too high, and Okinawa was easily the most valuable territory gained for the planned invasion of Kyushu. Not every battle in the Pacific was for nothing.
We always learned that the Kamikazes were ineffective, but exchanging 1900 lives for 4300 of your enemies lives and hundreds of their ships seems like it worked.
Yeah but that's about 1900 elite irreplaceable pilots against an enemy who's entire battle doctrine is overwhelming force and can easily replace their pilots and quickly repair their damaged ships.
Fantastic. I had a Grandfather who fought there. He said it was hell. He supported the bomb and said it was the best way.
Buckner was actually in the fight. That is impressive.
Love to see you back in business
I just want to thank you young man for doing this video. It's refreshing to see a young person talking about world War 2. I bet you really liked history in school. Thank you again.
Reminds me of Tomiko Higa, the girl with the white flag. Sad story about that battle
Check out the video made by Rare Earth describing how the famous image came to be
@@flatlad I think that may be where they already learned about the story
Watched that video earlier myself
Hello again.
Okinawa is one of the few battles where both commanding Officers died. Buckner was on Sugar Loaf hill and rock fragments from the artillery shell struck him in the heart. My sister used to sit for an elderly lady who's husband was one of the non-combatant ranks killed their as well, and she virulently hated the Japanese to her dying day decades later. While the Japanese policy of making us pay such a high price for victory certainly was a key factor for the use of atomic weapons, they really had no other options to them.
My great grandpa used to at the Kure shipyard before he got drafted to China as a telegraph operater and he said that he couldn't believe that a human could build a ship the size of Yamato and was shocked when he found out that it sank. He did not get involved into building Yamato as he was in the communication center or something like that.
Don’t take this the wrong way but i love how much you have improved , your videos were and persist to be amazing
I was in the naval base of okinawa and its TRULY FUCKIN STUNNING. Even I as an army officers was stunned. The base is just huge and although you arent allowed to inspect the whole base, its still big. There are kilometers of underground tunnels and systems, a metropole in the earth.
Best sight in japan
My Father was there, and stated they were still digging them out of the caves 6 months after the Island was declared secured. So, the fight went on. They came out, ambushed and went back in. Described them like moles, that pop up, ambush, and then hide again in the caves.
At 4:00 i really like how the slaughtered cows become Wagyu steak.
Before the Japanese knew that Wagyu Beef is rare
What’s awkward is that a few minutes ago I was eating Wagyu.
Everything that was asked of us - we've done. Every night we lay in a filthy foxhole - prayin' the enemy won't slit our throats. Every day we spent crawling through the mud and the dirt while bullets whistled all around. This is the enemy's last stand. When we take Shuri Castle, we go home. All of us." Sergeant Ben Roebuck ( 1915 - 1945) battle of okinawa.
Been stationed on Okinawa for over two years now. I don't plan on moving back to the States. Being able to read "With the Old Breed" by Eugene Sledge and following up with HBO's "The Pacific", you can literally trace the path of the battle. You can still see the old sites by the Shuri Line (RIP Shuri Castle) which saw the bloodiest engagements as Maeda Escarpment, a.k.a. "Hacksaw Ridge", and Kakazu Ridge along with Sugar Loaf Hill. The Japanese Underground Naval Bunker is still there as it was during the war and you can see facilites near Naha such as the Peace Memorial that is surround by more bunkers and artifacts from the battle. Motobu Hill and Ie Shima towards the north saw heavy engagaments and is availible to check out anytime. It's just astounding to be at a place where so much history has occured and also a place to respect the over 200,000 lives lost during those 2 terrible months. The Peace Memorial lists every name of Japanese troops, civilians (in Japanese), and American troops (in English) killed in the Battle. May God Bless Okinawa.
Good comment, Sir. I'm glad you've read about the battle.
the detail in these vids in unreal, i love that you include even more info in the visuals, outside of the script. thanks!
The Japanese rainy season is no joke. Frequent rain, and it makes campaigning almost impossible.
Don't mind me. I comment just for the algorithm.
Do replies count too?
@@ViktorBengtsson I think so
@@fives0238 Good!
The reverse slop defense forces the offense to skyline themselves when they attack. The defense would see the maneuver before the maneuver sees the defense. The offense also does not have the advantage of utilizing their weapons at their maximum effective range if the defense is in a reverse slope. Great advantage to the Japanese.
I met a man named Richard at a retirement home who served in Leyte and Okinawa, he talked about how sudden the japanese were and that you could never see them. To him it was less scary and more annoying.
Nice channel as a history lover i like watching this channel
For those of you wondering what that awesome score was, it was "Dawn without end" by Zach Heyde.
“Once we take Shuri Castle we go home. All of us.”
*moments seconds before disaster*
More of these please! Guadalcanal or Pelieu next
8:43
Only Hacksaw Ridge viewers remember 👌
You should not forget that Japanese main objective in Okinawa was make American government to think "invade the mainland would be madness." If it was easy to invade the Iow jima and the Okinawa islands, they do not hesitate to invade mainland for sure, which we had to stop no matter what we scrifice.
Nah, the U.S. would just bomb the hell out of japan until they surrender. Even if the 2 nukes didn't do it's job, famine, poverty and disease will.
Just what I was waiting for. Thanks for your good videos.