- On December 7, 1941, an air attack led by Japan hit the American base at Pearl Harbor, located in the islands of Hawaii. Faced with this aggression, the Americans declared war on Japan on December 8, as well as on Germany on December 11.
- In an expansionist logic (desire to expand its territory beyond its borders), Japan triumphed in the Pacific at the start of the "Pacific War". While the British and Americans retreated while collecting some victories, Admiral Yamamoto (Japanese commander of the Imperial Navy) decided to launch an offensive against Midway Island (June 1942). Destroying a large part of the Japanese fleet, the Americans are victorious. The reconquest of the Pacific Islands by the Allies begins.
1942-1943
Characters
Emperor Hirohito
Franklin Delano Delano Roosevelt
Isoroku Yamamoto
Procedure
Located in the Solomon Islands archipelago, the island of Guadalcanal is mostly covered with virgin forest. In July 1942, the Americans discovered that the Japanese army was building an airstrip there.
The order was given to land on the island to take the airfield. On the morning of August 7, more than 6,000 American soldiers landed, supported by a military fleet. The effect of surprise on the Japanese in the minority allows the Americans to quickly take to the track:the soldiers are busy to complete the airfield and allow the arrival of reinforcements by air.
The battle of Guadalcanal continues until in February 1943:the Japanese army perseveres to regain control of the island:36,000 men in all are landed. The Americans deployed 44,000 men, and the fighting was made difficult in the jungle and the harsh climate.
But the battle of Guadalcanal was also played out at sea:the various naval battles turned to America's advantage, despite heavy damage on either side. Japan, in difficulty on the water and unable to ensure supplies, evacuated its soldiers from the island in February 1943.
Consequences
- The human toll is important. There are a total of 24,000 Japanese dead, 1,500 for the Americans, a certain number of whom die of tropical diseases.
- The Battle of Guadalcanal marks the beginning of the reconquest of the Pacific Islands for the Americans. If Midway was a defensive battle, the Americans proved with Guadalcanal that they had military superiority against the Japanese.
- Guadalcanal is part of a larger turning point in the Second World War. The British defeated the Germans at El-Alamein in November 1942, and the Soviets won the Battle of Stalingrad in February 1943. The Allies met with decisive victories on all military fronts.