A Brief History
On February 19, 1945, the most cracked battle in history of the United States Marine Corp (USMC) began with 30,000 Marines hitting a beach.
Digging Deeper
Digging deeper, and we mean digging deeper, we find the small Pacific Island of Iwo Jima fortified by about 22,000 Japanese soldiers who had spent the previous year creating an amazing array of tunnels and fortifications to prepare for the inevitable American assault.
The battle that would follow would result in the only time in USMC history where Marine casualties would outnumber those of the enemy! Although only 216 Japanese would survive the battle as prisoners (the other 22,000 having died), Americans suffered 26,000 casualties, of whom 6,821 were killed.
Despite targeting Iwo Jima with bombardment by air and sea for months in advance, the Japanese and their equipment were dug in so effectively that the preparation had little effect. Marine commanders had stated a requirement of 10 days of heavy naval bombardment (especially by the heavy guns of battleships), but always overestimating the effectiveness of their guns, the skeptical Navy brass only agreed to 3 days’ worth, and even then poor visibility resulted in even less pre-invasion “softening up,” which would have dire consequences as Japanese defenses were left mainly intact.
In this surreal battle of concealment, many Marines never saw a live Japanese soldier! Few Japanese were killed by bullets, with almost all of them killed by explosives, flame weapons or by being entombed in the tunnels!
Fighting to the death, neither side was interested in taking prisoners, and the ferocity and brutality of the fighting is considered the most extreme in Marine Corps history. Of the 82 Medals of Honor awarded to Marines in World War II, 22 were earned at Iwo Jima! (5 Navy corpsmen also were awarded Medals of Honor.)
Among the most famous photographs in all of history is the photo of Marines (and a corpsman) raising the American flag on top of Mount Suribachi. A little known part of that historic event is that the photo and moving-picture film taken at the same time are actually of the second flag raising!
The first flag was deemed too small, so a second larger one was raised. Three of the six men raising the flag died in battle at Iwo Jima. A famous statue based on the flag-raising photo and known as the Iwo Jima Memorial stands in Washington, D.C. and bears the words of Admiral Nimitz, “Uncommon valor was a common virtue.”
The legacy of this horrific battle includes the very survival of the Marine Corps as a distinct branch of the armed forces, with Secretary of the Navy Forrestal saying, “the raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next 500 years!”
Taking Iwo Jima meant Japanese fighter planes lost a base to attack American B-29 bombers that were on their way to bomb Japan, and conversely, American fighters could now be based there to protect the bombers. It also provided an emergency landing place for damaged U.S. planes.
So many books and movies and cultural references have been made about Iwo Jima that it is impossible to list them all here! Among the most notable include the John Wayne film Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), the two sister films Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima (both 2006), both of which are based on the book Flags of Our Fathers, and the Johnny Cash song “Ira Hayes” (native American flag raising Marine). Semper Fidelis.
Question for students (and subscribers): Did you or any of your relatives fight in the Pacific Theater of World War II? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For both sides of the battle, please see…
Eastwood, Clint, dir. Letters from Iwo Jima [Blu-ray]. Warner Home Video, 2007. Blu-ray.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="1255 http://www.crackedhistory.com/?p=1255">124 Comments
It’s unbelievable how many people died as a result of all of this.
God bless the Marines!
It’s incredible the amount of causalities that came from this battle on both the U.S. and Japanese sides. It’s also interesting how many American’s never saw a Japanese fighter.
It’s incredible that some Americans never saw a Japanese person the whole time. Rip to the many lives lost in these casualties
It is amazing to me that battles like this one were the norm during the Pacific front of WWII. Ferocious fighting from island to island with every piece of land being fought over as though it was sacred.
I will never be able to understand this amount of brutality and loss of life. I do understand the need for force at times but wrapping my mind around that many dead bodies on one island is impossible.
I’m amazed by the tenacity of the Japanese fighters in this battle. I think that’s one of the things that made fighting Japan so hard and eventually lead to the use of Atomic bombs. They were a breed of warriors Americans had never seen before. Possibly the only reason we won this fight was that we had the slightly larger force.
That’s crazy that many never saw an actual Japanese soldier. What a horrific battle!
How was it such a bloody battle if nearly all the Japanese were dead before they arrived on the island? None the less it was an intense battle.
That was a picture worth a thousand words. What a great symbol of pride for our armed forces
God bless our military, our veterans and the United States of America! — DAVID WARDLE
Pictures are amazing, captures the actual acts of amazing people. God bless our military and veterans.
This is by far the most important battle against the Japanese, who knows what the outcome would be if the Americans lost.
These battles are incredible and the pictures and stories that come out of them are just as crazy!
Call him Drunken Ira Hayes, he won’t answer anymore
Not the whiskey drinkin’ indian or the marine who went to war
Man, I forgot all about that song. Thanks for bringing it up at the end.
Iwo Jima was one of my favorite memorials in DC. Except I’m not a fan of it being an outlier location wise compared to the other memorials.
I read the book about the men who raised the flag. Very good book!
I did not know that the flag raising was, in fact, the second flag. I am glad they felt so proud of their accomplishments that they thought a bigger flag was needed in claiming the victory. I have been to the monument in Washington D.C. It was when I was in eighth grade, so a while ago; however, it is truly amazing and pays great tribute the marines. I also did not know that it was a Marine-only battle. I think that by sending in so many Marines, it just shows how difficult the United States thought it would be to win this battle.
I had no idea that the famous video and picture of the marines lifting the flag came from this battle. I also did not know that it was the second flag. I had always known it was very significant battle but not to the extent that this article explains. You would also think that during battle you would never underestimate your enemy. Especially after the Japans succeeded in surprising the US in such a drastic way.
Japaneses had the secret of the atomic bomb that’s what made them such a threat.
It’s crazy that all the Japanese were dead before the battle began.
It’s interesting that this was the only battle in which Marine deaths outnumbered enemy deaths.
There are many more Iwo Jima Memorial’s including one at the Marine Corp in Paris Island South Carolina. If you ask any Marine they will speak proudly of Iwo Jima and how it set the stage for future Marines.
I was always familiar with the picture and memorial of the flag raising at Iwo Jima, but I don’t think I really knew that much about the battle itself. It sounds like quite the victory for the Marines and for America in WWII in general.
Interesting that of the 81 Medal of Honors awarded to Marines during the war, 22 were earned at Iwo Jima. A testament to the bravery shown in the battle.
For being an important battle in the war, I am surprised that my high school did not spend a lot of time on it.
When I seen the statue in person I thought it was very neat. That’s a great honor for the men that did that and a statue to be made for them.
It’s crazy that this was the only battle to have more Marine deaths than deaths of the enemy.
I was aware of the memorial in Washington D.C. but never knew what it stood for.
It’s crazy to think this was the only time that Marine casualties exceeded that of the enemy.
It’s pretty weird to find out that there were more marine deaths then there was of the enemy.
I can’t believe that this was the only time there were more marine deaths than the enemy.
It’s fascinating how the Marines suffered so many casualties but still emerged victorious.
I didn’t know that the legacy of this battled ensured the future of the Marine Corps. It should given what they faced and the outcome.
Just shows what marienes can do with numbers
There is no better sight on earth than seeing that flag being raised.
all hail devil dogs.
The problem with going underground is that you are not always covered if they use heavy weapons like bombs. Even if they miss the first times, if they are consistent they will eventually get their mark.
The marines earned their reputation thats no doubt
Iwo Jima was an amazing win for not only the Marines, but also for America. The courage and determination that the soldiers must have had is incredible. I love seeing the picture of the men with the flag!
Iwo Jima was an interesting battle that the US won but took on more causalties than the enemy. Not too often in battle do you see a fight won by the country who had more deaths. This legendary battle goes down as one of the biggest in US history for good reason.
I have seen the statue of the flag being raised and I have to say its very moving to look at. The Marines definitely had a disadvantage going into this battle, despite a higher number of forces, yet they managed to destroy almost the entirety of Japanese forces. This only demonstrates how strong the American resolve truly was.
It’s crazy that with all the wars the USMC has been involved in, that is was the only time in their history that the Marines casualties outnumbered the enemy’s. Although it was very sad, its also pretty remarkable in a sense.
I never knew the battle at Iwo Jima was so terrible with more marine casualties than Japanese causalities. if the navy hadn’t overestimated their weapons and “softened up” the Japanese for 10 days instead of 3, maybe less american soldiers would have died.
It was clearly a brutal battle, and the flag raising photograph is probably the most iconic photo taken of the war. I never knew that the US Marines never even saw a live Japanese solider. It would have been terrifying to have so many of your fellow Marines killed by an enemy that you never saw.
Iwo Jima was such a historical battle, growing up when I thought of the battles in the Pacific the picture of the flag raising was the first thing that came to mind. It was also an extremely strange battle, one of the likes we will never see again.
the article stated that many marines that fought in Iwo Jima would tell you they never saw a live Japanese soldier. Almost all of the Japanese soldiers that were on that island had died. 22,000 of them by the end of this battle. The fact that they had barely been seen by a U.S. Marine is unbelievable.
How strange it would have been to barely see the enemy you were fighting! Although the Marines came out of Iwo Jima with more casualties than the Japanese, it was a major victory for the US. The famous photo from Iwo Jima is still recognizable today and still stands as a symbol of American perseverance and triumph.
The raising of the flag was an iconic moment and is still very well-known today. I never knew that many of the marines never saw a live Japanese soldier while they were there though.
Iwo Jima was one of the most famous battles of the Pacific theater during WWII. It showed the true strength and bravery of the US Marines in fighting the enemy. It is interesting that they rarely encountered the Japanese when so many soldiers were involved.
It was interesting to read some of the trivia from this famous event, such as the fact that the famous flag raising was actually a second flag. It is also astonishing that most Marines never saw a live Japanese soldier at this time!
I couldn’t imagine a battle today that would include 30,000 people. Warfare has always changed, but results are always the same.
I have seen the Iwo Jima Memorial that stands in Washington, D.C. but never knew the story behind it. This battle showed the true strength and courage of the US Marines. It is crazy to believe that many Marines never saw a living Japanese soldier!
The Marines deserve so much respect and admiration for the fighting they displayed at Iwo Jima. They fought ferociously against an enemy that at times they could not even see. The picture of the men raising the American flag is symbolic even to this day.
Iwo Jima was an important battle for the United States. The Americans were already dominate in the air, but now they had a new base when flying over Japan, and the Japanese could not attack from the island.
I never knew that the famous picture and statues of the soldiers raising the flag was from this battle. These marines showed so much courage going into Iwo Jima knowing that the Japanese have been preparing for this battle for awhile. It is amazing how many lives were lost during this battle.
This moment in history with the raising of the flag is truly iconic and will be remembered forever. I never knew that the Marines suffered more casualties and still won.
Before reading this article I was never quite sure the relevance behind that statue.
It is hard to grasp the concept that so many people died during this battle. When I saw this picture as a statue in Washington D.C., our tour guide said that when you circle around the statue, it looks as if the marines in it are pushing the flag up which I thought was pretty interesting! This is just another battle that we, as Americans, can be grateful for the men in uniform that fought so hard to win it.
Such a proud moment in American History.
I was shocked to read that out of the 82 Medals of Honor awarded to Marines in WWII, 22 of them were at Iwo Jima. Interesting that the raising of the flag was the second flag because the first one was too small.
The fact that we suffered more casualties and STILL proceeded to win, shows how powerful and dedicated our military forces are. A very symbolic moment in our history.
It was interesting to learn about the second flag raising. I can’t believe the USMC won with having more casualties than the Japanese.
Normally who suffers more causalities loses the fight. Interesting.
This was a sad time for the USMC, because this was the battle that killed the most Marines. But from this battle came the famous statue and picture of the three marines raising the American flag. Sadly those three men died in the battle.
This may have been the bloodiest battle for the USMC, but they literally out-killed the Japanese 7:2. That is an incredible victory,
That is crazy that many marines never saw a live Japanese soldier! This memorial in Washington DC is amazing and it is great to read the story behind it.
Such a symbolic moment for America.
I had alway’s heard of Iwo Jima but I never actually new what the battle was about as well as a battle that lasted 10 days long! It’s funny American’s never saw a Japanese solider until then!
Interesting article. So many marines lost their lives, but they prevailed. I love old John Wayne moves and I’ve see the Sands of Iwo Jima.
I have never heard of Americans never seeing a Japanese solider before. This is such a great piece of American history.
Such a great moment in American history. It is great to read articles about our patriotism during such difficult times.
Iwo Jima is a very interesting battle to me and I the numbers of troops that we had compared to Japan was more than what may have been necessary to win the battle, being that we had more casualties than they had troops.
Surprisingly, the Japanese were not mainly killed by bullets but with flames, explosives, and destroyed tunnels.
What really struck me was that no marine actually saw a living Japanese soldier. This shows the importance of atomic bombs in WWII.
When I was a senior in high school, my government teacher took my class to see the Iwo Jima statue in Washington D.C. Overall, this statue was a breath taking remark of what happened in history. It amazes me that so many books and references have been made about Iwo Jima that it is impossible to list all of them! Overall, this is a very impressive feat in United States history.
The physicality that was required in this fight was something to be greatly admired. I have also been to the statue that honors Iwo Jima in Washington DC.
I’ve seen this statue in person a few times and never knew the full history behind. It was interesting to learn that the event was so historical that so many movies were made about it and Johnny Cash even has a song associated with a soldier raising the flag.
i dont think we would of won this battle without flame weapons. it is inhuman but i feel it greatly affected the war in our favor
I love reading articles like these that represent the passion that our people have for America. As tragic as it is for the other countries you cannot help but to be proud of our country. I had no idea that the statue was associated with this until reading this article.
I was not aware there were two flags.
Iwo Jima was a great battle. Japanese soldiers in the period of the World War II did a lot of crimes. I always believe that evil can never prevail over good.
Iwo Jima was an interesting battle.
Interesting article. It is hard to believe that war like this was normal.
It is amazing to see that battles like this were normal during the Pacific front of WWII.
I’m glad we don’t live in a time where wars like this are normal.
All these battles seem so tragic. I did not know the significance of the U.S. obtaining this island but it makes sense.
I did not realize how many battles there were during this time over land.
That raising of the flag on Iwo Jima to me symbolizes everything America stands for it’s just such a powerful and strong image.
IT is incredible to think that battles like this one were the standard practice during WWII. Fighting from island to island made every piece of land worth fighting for.
Iwo Jima the name of the island had been burned into my mid before this, its even more so now.
this article is one of the most powerful because that video of raising that flag was with blood sweat and tears and standing up fighting , would been easier tho if the Japanese wasn’t prepared for invasion.
I remember seeing a memorial statue of this in Washington DC. It’s crazy thinking about how many times they battled like this.
I never knew this about the Marine corp, that goes to show how strong of a military we have. Only battle we have more casulties then our enemy!
My favorite memorial in Washington D.C. is the Iwo Jima memorial of the Marines raising the flag.
Battles over land were very common back then. I really enjoyed the video of them raising the flag.
It is absolutely crazy to see all the casualties and the time it took the marines to take this tiny island.
I really enjoyed reading this article about some of the fights over land.
The Japanese had great defenses.
I have been the the Iwo Jima memorial in Washington D.C. It really takes you back and makes you stop and thank all the veterans/ones serving today.
Again, it was purely amazing that most of the deaths were not caused by bullets but inhumane and now outlawed methods.
The Iwo Jima memorial of the Marines raising the flag was my favorite memorial to visit in Washington D.C.
22 of 82 Medals of Honor earned in Iwo Jima….what an amazing accomplishment and great representation of the sacrifice & dedication.
This was an interesting read! I never knew about this taking place.
Iwo Jima stands as a testament to the bravery and resolve of the Marine Corps.
The Japanese preparation got the best of the US soldiers. Those who survived were lucky to say the least.
The Japanese set up quite the fortress, still penetrable though, much to their dismay. I cannot imagine fighting a foe you cannot see!
A lot of history was made on Iwo Jima. A legacy for the Marine Corps which has become legendary. My visit to Iwo Jima was memorable and the experience surreal.
Thats sad that many Marines never saw a live Japanese soldier
It’s sad that so many lives were lost on that island. It’s amazing that the U.S. won that battle even though the number of U.S. casualties outnumbered the Japanese casualties.
That had to be incredibly scary not being able to see who you are trying to fight against, our military is amazing.
Stories such as this one really makes you stop and think about what our men and women go through during a time of war. The things they see and do that we at home have no clue about. I understand that war sometimes can not be prevented nevertheless, it is still sad not just for the ones killed but for the ones that lived through it and have to live the rest of their lives with these images in their heads.
When the United States invaded Iowa Jima they greatly underestimated the Japanese. Which makes little sense to me because they had been making that mistake the entire war, and losing mass amounts of marines in battle. This war was fought so much more brutally than any war will be for the rest of history.
With the tremendous preparation that the Japanese had made at Iwo Jima, it’s a surprise that the Marines came out on top. Being outmanned and outgunned yet somehow standing victorious, is remarkable.
I must say the sight of 30,000 United States Marines storming a beech would be an impressive sight to see. The bravery exhibited by the Marines that day is to be commended. I was also shocked to learn that the Marines never saw a live Japanese solider that day.
When we think of war what really comes to your mind? Is that just a word to you? Without truly thinking about it most people tend to forget just how much our men and women put their lives on the line to protect our country, and their brothers and sisters out there fighting with them.
I have gotten to see the memorial in person so reading all this back story is really interesting.
It was crazy to see all the lives lost and how long it took for this little island to be taken over.
I could not see an attack like this occur today. I do not think our military or society would every line up 30,000 troops and know that the first ones off the boat will be slaughtered. Different today. RIP.
An iconic picture with a statue indeed! I cannot fathom the amount of lives lost, not only in Iwo Jima but in every battle.
When I was in Washington D.C. I seen the Iwo Jima memorial site.
I actually seen this memorial before.. it is very beautiful.
it was an powerful and perfect war in the history, amazing
I was surprising by knowing that a small Pacific Island can hold that many japanese military. The war made a lot of American solider and Japanese military died in the past.