Battle of Iwo Jima - World War II
A History from Beginning to End

After the shock and devastation of the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the Americans were determined to take their revenge on the Empire of Japan. The Japanese were just as determined to become the dominant power in the Pacific, a goal they were well on their way to achieving as they occupied China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaya, Burma, Northern Borneo, the Dutch East Indies, and the Philippines.As the Allied victories began to mount, the Pacific was no longer the guaranteed province of the Japanese. Yet for Japan, the American advance merely provided a reason to fight even harder. By the time the two adversaries were locked in battle on the island of Iwo Jima, the Americans had no idea that they would have to shed blood for every hard-earned inch of ground that they gained. In their mission to protect their homeland from the advancing Americans, the Japanese soldiers turned Iwo Jima into a graveyard for the Marines, as well as for themselves.