Battle of Midway
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
The Battle of Midway was an important naval battle of World War II, between the United States and the Empire of Japan. It took place from June 4, 1942 to June 7, 1942, more or less one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea, and about six months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor that had made war break between the United States and Japan. During the battle, the United States Navy defeated a Japanese attack against Midway Atoll (located northwest of Hawaii) and destroyed four Japanese aircraft carriers and a heavy cruiser, and losing a carrier and a destroyer.
The battle was a clear victory for the Americans, and usually considered the most important naval battle of World War II.[1] The battle weakened the Imperial Japanese Navy for the rest of the war, mostly because Japan lost more than 200 pilots.[2]
Both nations suffered losses in the battle, but Japan could not build up its forces again. The Japanese industry had little resources and was very poor compared to the American. For this reason, the United States replaced their lost ships and planes with better ones, very quickly; but Japan could only make few, and of poor quality.
The Japanese plan of attack was to bring America's carriers into a trap and sink them.[3] The Japanese also tried to take Midway Atoll, to build Japan's defenses as far away from their homeland as possible. This operation was considered a previous step before attacking Fiji and Samoa, as well as an invasion of Hawaii.[4]
The Midway operation, like the attack on Pearl Harbor, was not part of a campaign for the conquest of the United States, but was made by the Empire of Japan to destroy the American strength in the Pacific Ocean. This way, Japan could become the biggest power in the area and create a great government of Asia, under its rule. It was also hoped that another defeat would force the U.S. to ask for peace soon, with good terms for Japan.[5]
After the clear victory, the American forces retired. Japan's loss of four out of their six carriers, plus many number of their best air pilots, stopped the expansion of the Japanese Empire in the Pacific, and the Americans slowly began to advance towards Japan.
[change] References
- ↑ A Brief History of Aircraft Carriers: Battle of Midway. U.S. Navy. Retrieved on 12 June 2007.
- ↑ Dull, The Imperial Japanese Navy: A Battle History, p. 166; Willmott, The Barrier and the Javelin, pp. 519-523; Prange, Miracle at Midway p. 395; Parshall & Tully, Shattered Sword, pp. 416-430
- ↑ H.P. Willmott, Barrier and the Javelin; Lundstrom, First South Pacific Campaign; Parshall & Tully, Shattered Sword, pp. 19-38
- ↑ Parshall & Tully, pp. 43-45, & Stephan, Hawaii under the Rising Sun.
- ↑ Parshall & Tully, Shattered Sword, p. 33
[change] Other Websites
- WW2DB: Battle of Midway
- The Course to Midway Turning Point in the Pacific
- Schlesinger, James R., "Midway in Retrospect: The Still Under-Appreciated Victory", June 5 2005. (An analysis by former Secretary of Defense Schlesinger.) Available from the Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy.
- After Midway: The Fates of the U.S. and Japanese Warships by Bryan J. Dickerson
- Animated History of The Battle of Midway
