eBook History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 7: Aleutians, Gilberts and Marshalls, June 1942-April 1944 ePub

Continuing on with the events in the Pacific Ocean during World War 2, this eighth volume in the series covers parts of the two-pronged assaults that the U.S. conducted: One headed by General MacArthur along the coast of New Guinea as his forces were getting ever closer to the Philippines, and the other going from atoll to atoll to island and island in the more northerly parts and specifically the Marianas culminating in the battles and events around Saipan and Guam. As far as timelines go, this volume covers the time period between March 1944 and August 1944.

Along MacArthur's route, the focus was on getting air strips and bases where fighters could be staged for the next hop. If there were Japanese there, then they were to be mopped up. If between two points, then they were left in place but starved through a combination of a naval blockade and regular aerial bombings. As far as the Japanese high command was concerned, these soldiers were to try and slow down the advance and pay with their lives by taking as many Americans down with them as they could. The first part of the book covers the various amphibious operations that hopscotched up the spine of New Guinea until the very northern tip is reached. Which is where this story ends, for now.

Along the islands further north, the examination focuses on similar operations. The Japanese reaction when the invasion of Saipan started was markedly different. The main Japanese battle fleet came out and the Battle of the Philippine Seas took place. Since it was almost exclusively an aerial battle, you may know this better as "the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot." Why it was named this way has to do with the different level of tactical training between the American and Japanese pilots. The end result, though, was that the Japanese lost heavily and retreated while ceding Saipan and Guam to the Americans.

The land battles along both theaters are also described as they were heavily supported by the U.S. Navy via carrier planes as well as by bombardments from Battleships, Cruisers, and Destroyers.

A particularly interesting set of sections as far as I was concerned were the parts of this book that described a bit of the logistics involved in sustaining these invasions and efforts. When the author described what it took to put on an invasion, or why it was not possible to change this or that operation, it really resonated with me and gave me a much better appreciation of how complex these endeavors were. Along those lines, the description of the one faux pas, where fires along the beach were allowed to burn while ammunition and fuel were being piled up nearby, that eventually acted as a beacon to a Japanese bomber, was timely and well placed. So were the descriptions of the actions that commanders of future invasions took to ensure this did not happen again.

Overall, this is a more interesting book than its predecessor although it seems to cover similar grounds. The big differences being that there is a great naval battle, and the additional descriptions of the ground operations made this feel more complete rather that a straightforward accounting of various small actions which was boring. In this volume, the writing is also more interesting and engaging. Therefore, this book gets four stars.

The seventh volume in this comprehensive history focuses on the first series of opposed landings in the Pacific when the U.S. Army, Navy and Marines started taking back territory from the Japanese and were developing the techniques, tactics, doctrine, and specialized craft required for amphibious landings. As the title describes, this volume covers the recovery of the Western Aleutians (a string of islands stretching southeast from Alaska which and which Japan conquered a few months earlier and established some forward bases on); Then it moves on to the recovery of the Gilbert Island chain - including Tarawa!; and completing the circuit by describing the taking of the Marshall islands. The time period covered by this volume really goes from June 1942 until April of 1944 but that is somewhat misleading as most of the action took place in the latter half of that time period.

Since this series is trying to be comprehensive, the stories of these battles must be told. Also, as this history has proven, the author was trying to be balanced in his approach and therefore he tells the stories of what went wrong as well as of the achievements. This makes for an interesting and satisfying reading, even though the nature of this book is somewhat repetitive.

The recovery of the Aleutians is almost comical. The Japanese got a foothold on them and therefore the Americans felt they had to take them back. Even though both sides knew that there was no value whatsoever in those islands. The back and forth between the navies who were severely constrained by what they could get in terms of equipment from higher commands and the stories of how difficult it is to operate in those waters with the period airplanes and ships makes you wonder even more why either side bothered. There was a significant naval battle that took place which does need to be remembered, and the final evacuation of the Japanese soldiers right from under the noses of the U.S. Navy is a neat reminder that the Japanese were not completely incompetent.

The next section deals with the Gilbert Islands and the most famous operation there was on Tarawa. The Marines rightly remember Tarawa as a major operation and the author does not avoid telling the story here as well. In the author's descriptions one can tell how poorly prepared and unlucky were the Marines and Navy who attempted this landing. The reasons for why the landing was almost aborted and the American troops recalled are explained and it is obvious that the planning and capabilities of the U.S. were not as sharply honed as they became later. About the best you can say about Tarawa is that the U.S. learned some very difficult lessons there, but learned them so well that from then on those mistakes were not repeated and the landings went much smoother.

The story of the conquest of the Marshalls is almost repetitive. The U.S. decides to invade an atoll; occupies some small islands to the sides of the main target; lands and occupies those islands with artillery units; lands on the main targets and clears out the Japanese holed up there; and then sends small forces to all the other islands on the atoll to clear or capture the Japanese who are on those other islands - unless there are too many Japanese there and then the U.S. basically starves them out for the remainder of the war. This repetitiveness shows a war machine becoming stronger and stronger, but from the reader's point of view it is rather repetitive and boring where the only apparent changes are the names of the various islands in Micronesia.

This volume was originally published in 1951 which was rather soon after the end of the war. The nature of the fighting was such that not many Japanese survived on islands that were taken by U.S. forces and so there is a dearth of information told from the Japanese side. While some anecdotes dot the story, it would be interesting to compare the Japanese version to that American one presented here.

Another point that comes to light is that the U.S. war machine had gotten going in earnest during this time frame. From a landing that was almost botched because of lack of proper equipment to the end of this book when there are hundreds of craft involved and many tons of ammunition expended in softening up islands by air and sea, it is clear that the Japanese are outmatched materially and by now the war's conclusion is certain. Also, the tempo of the landings increases as you read the book which also gives the reader an indication of the industrial might that was unleashed.

I decided to give this book a three star rating because of the repetitive nature of the stories told herein. While previous volumes had some very strong opinions stated and was livened up by the way the text was written, this volume lacks that. Maybe the reason is that the author and his team were not as involved in these operations so they did not have those anecdotes, opinions, and stories to share? It's not clear to me, but this book suffers in comparison with some of the others in the series which are much more fun to read. Therefore I see this book as required to the comprehensiveness of the story but not much more.

You need the whole series if you have more than a casual interest in WWII. This is some of the best history writing I've ever read. If you aren't sure about such an investment in money and shelf space, get Morrison's "Two Ocean War" as a teaser. You can always give it to a friend if you buy this series.

Morrison wrote these books immediately after the war when some important information was still classified. He knew but he couldn't tell. Notably the breaking of the Enigma cypher and the Japanese codes, Purple etc. The battle of Midway and the long battle against the U-boats in the Atlantic, for example, don't seem to make sense without knowing about the cryptography. So get a couple of the books about the codes, but get these first. There's nothing like them.

Professor Morison writes in an older, more correct style of English...it is pleasing to read. His admiration for the US Navy is evident and warranted. At the time he wrote this 15 volume history of naval operations in WW II, not all the facts were known so there are some historical inaccuracies, as noted by other reviewers. Nevertheless, there are no other such histories, in such detail, available. This volume (7) deals with the Alaskan operations and those of the Gilbert and Marshall Islands earlier in the war which shaped the Navy's response to island combat. Well worth reading.

Morison's multi-volume history of the US Navy in World War Two is a must have for the history buff. It's very interesting to compare what he wrote immediately after the war (he was an observer in many of the battles) with what has been written in years since that have benefited from research and multiple sources.

Excellent.

Excellent.

If you like reading out the Navy during World War 2, there is no better series of books.