The Battle for Tinian: Vital Stepping Stone in America's War Against Japan

by Nathan N. Prefer

Overview

This vivid history chronicles the decisive US naval campaign that secured the Japanese island of Tinian—the site that would launch the end of WWII.
 
In July 1944, the United States Navy and Marine Corps, Army, and Air Corps descended on the Pacific island of Saipan, just three miles away from the Japanese stronghold on the island of Tinian. There had been 20,000 Japanese troops on Saipan before the US unleashed a horrific all-arms campaign. The sudden silence indicated it was now Tinian’s turn.
 
When the battle for Tinian finally took place, the US acted with great skill. Historian Samuel Elliot Morrison called it “the most perfectly executed amphibious operation of the entire war.” Nevertheless, the Japanese shore batteries riddled the battleship Colorado, killing scores, and made multiple hits on a destroyer, killing its captain. On the island itself, the United States used napalm for the first time, paving the way for Marines rooting out strongpoints. One last banzai attack signaled the end to enemy resistance, as Marines fought toe-to-toe with their antagonists in the dark.
 
After Tinian was secured, the United States built the biggest airport in the world there—home to hundreds of B-29 Superfortresses. Among these, just over a year later, were the Enola Gay and Bockscar, which, with their atomic bombs, would quickly bring the Japanese conflict, and the Second World War, to an end.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781612001074
Publisher:	Casemate Publishers (Ignition)
Publication date:	04/04/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	865,512
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Nathan Prefer specializes in military history and non-fiction.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

1. TINIAN: THE ISLAND
2. THE DEFENDERS: THE JAPANESE GARRISON ON TINIAN
3. WHY TINIAN?
4. THE PLAN: “PLAYING BY EAR”
5. JIG DAY: JULY 24TH
6. JAPANESE COUNTERATTACK
7. 25 JULY 1944: EXPANDING THE BEACHHEAD
8. 26 JULY 1944: WHERE ARE THE JAPANESE?
9. THE MARINES ADVANCE SOUTH
10. TINIAN TOWN AND BEYOND
11. THE BITTER END
12. TINIAN TO NAGASAKI
13. CONCLUSION: THE IMPORTANCE OF TINIAN

Appendix A: Leading Personalities
Appendix B: Order Of Battle—U.S. Forces
Appendix C: Order Of Battle—Japanese Forces
Appendix D: Distribution Of Casualties
Appendix E: U.S. Marine Division, 1944
Appendix F: Medal Of Honor Citations
Appendix G: Ship Histories

Notes
Bibliographic Essay
Index

Editorial Reviews

"an excellent examination of the battle and planning. Persons interested in World War Two in the Pacific will enjoy its direct and easily understood style. The author is a master communicator. I highly recommend the book. Not only is it the tale of how to plan and execute a battle, it is a model on how to write the history of a battle."

Kepler’s Military History

…Tinian has received relatively scant attention from historians. Deemed on of the most successful amphibious assault landings in US military history, the swiftness and perceived ease of the operation has caused it to be overshadowed by more storied battles in the Pacific Theater. It has been dismissed as a rout conducted by a superior American force against a small garrison of demoralized Japanese troops, who had already been bombed into submission. Prefer gives the battle its due, beginning with the planning stage and concluding with mass suicides carried out by enemy troops and civilians. The author rescues Tinian from being a mere footnote to WWII history.

Toy Solder & Model Figure

"The prose reads as smooth as a good novel, with a mix of narrative, first-person accounts, and insightful analysis of the changing situations for the US Marines and the Japanese troops."

Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

…a competent account of the Tinian operation, placing it in its proper strategic context and giving appropriate emphasis to the planning and execution phases, with detailed descriptions of the decision making, the day by day tactical operations and the conditions under which the battle was fought…an instructive book, and easy read…liberally illustrated with extensive appendices. It is well worth the time…

The Journal of America’s Military Past

…a concise, informative, well balanced narrative that will introduce readers to an often overlooked battle that paved the way for US victory over Japan…a clear, accessible and engaging story…most engrossing in its analysis of the options available to US Navy and Marine planners invading the island, the details of the plan they ultimately chose for the amphibious attack and the actual execution of the invasion…I recommend the BATTLE FOR TINIAN to all readers for the light it shines on an otherwise neglected campaign.

Michigan War Studies Review

…Prefer delimits it well: evaluations of previous island assaults; improved beach and inner-island reconnaissance, intelligence gathering and assessment; combined planning; superb preparation and organizational logistics; staging; the actual bombardments and Marine attacks; perfect monitoring during the fighting; and the final evaluation by all for the next campaign. In short, there was absolute determination not to repeat the unnecessary casualties suffered on Tarawa, Guadalcanal, Guam, and Saipan. With the publication of "The Battle For Tinan — Vital Stepping Stone in America's War Against Japan", author Nathan Prefer has established himself as a first-rate military historian. Few know how to blend sound knowledge, military temperament, and combat atmosphere in placing the reader in the actual engagements — leaving this reviewer anxious to read his next effort due this Fall, an account of the U.S. Army's operations on Leyte.

Don DeNevi

Tinian is a significant location in the history of the war, but the invasion itself gets relatively scant attention compared to other island-hopping operations. This book redresses that imbalance with a detailed account of the planning, preparation, the invasion, and the aftermath."

WWII History

…a competent account of the Tinian operation, placing it in its proper strategic context and giving appropriate emphasis to the planning and execution phases, with detailed descriptions of the decision making, the day by day tactical operations and the conditions under which the battle was fought…an instructive book, and easy read…liberally illustrated with extensive appendices. It is well worth the time…

The Journal of America’s Military Past

"an excellent examination of the battle and planning. Persons interested in World War Two in the Pacific will enjoy its direct and easily understood style. The author is a master communicator. I highly recommend the book. Not only is it the tale of how to plan and execute a battle, it is a model on how to write the history of a battle."

Kepler’s Military History