Example research essay topic: European And Pacific Wars - 1,488 words

NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote

European and Pacific Wars World War II was fought across more land and involved more men than any other war in the history of human civilization. Never before or since has there been a war of such vast importance and of such a large scale. The United States had an absolutely crucial role in the outcome of this war. The U. S. was faced with the colossal challenge of waging two wars at the same time on two very different parts of the planet.

The European front was, of course, the more obvious of the two considering the undeniable atrocities and evils that were being committed by Adolf Hitler. Involvement on the European front was inevitable and, generally more accessible for U. S. forces. Less than thirty years before, the United States had fought in Europe, so we were familiar with the terrain and appropriate strategy. However, the Pacific Campaign of World War II presented a unique challenge for United States Armed Forces.

Never before had we fought in the South Pacific or even on terrain that resembled that of the Pacific islands. With the Army heavily involved in Europe, in December of 1941 the United States were forced into a war that it was not familiar with nor knew how to fight. Luckily, however, for the U. S. , the Marine Corps were the perfect outfit for the kind of fighting need in the Pacific Campaign. Because of their training in land to sea combat, the Marines were uniquely prepared for the war that faced them, whereas, the Army could never have successfully waged war in the Pacific.

Without the Marine Corps fighting in the Pacific, the whole war against Japan would not have succeeded. From 1939 - 1941, at the dawn of Adolf Hitler's war machine in Europe, the United States seemed above the rest of the world. Separated by the vast Atlantic Ocean, the U. S. enjoyed an incredible amount of security. We were almost entirely untouchable from the flames of war rapidly growing in Europe, and the majority of American citizens were happy to not be involved.

To them, the European conflict was too far away to have any direct or meaningful impact on their lives. In fact, public opinion did not think that it was even necessary to enter the war at all. However, Roosevelt saw otherwise. He knew that a war in Europe could very well mean a war in the States. Only thirty years before, in World War I, the same kind situation had evolved into the "war to end all wars", where the United States had played a key role.

So, Roosevelt desperately wanted and needed to change the minds of nearly the nearly the entire American public; this task presented an almost impossible challenge. The beginning of the Pacific Campaign was the Battle of Guadalcanal. At the beginning of the war with Japan had an empire reaching frighteningly close the Australian coastline. The Japanese advance had to be brought to a halt if the American forces hoped to assert dominance in the Pacific. Coming off the recent "win" at the Battle of Midway, the American troops were filled with increased vigor and enthusiasm about the war.

The Battle of Guadalcanal or Operation Watchtower was hasty and ill prepared assault. Most, if not all, intelligence that the Marines had on the island were from outdated German maps from World War I. "Even its commanders would derisively refer to it as 'Operation Shoestring'. In fact, the only reason the Marines were able to land so easily was because of a weak initial defense on the part of the Japanese army. Nevertheless, on August 6, 1942 at midnight, the Pacific assault campaign began.

The reason the Marines were successful in the face of such a dire situation on Tarawa was the fact that the Marines never quit. They fought on and on until the last Japanese soldier was dead or captured. They displayed tenacity unmatched by any other fighting force in the war, except maybe the Japanese themselves. Had Tarawa been in the hands of any other part of the U. S. military force, it would never have been taken.

In taking Tinian, the U. S. forces would move in three waves. In the center there was an Army division under the command of Ralph Smith. He was flanked on both sides by Marine divisions. The plan was to move forward, all three units at the same time, and sweep the island clean of any Japanese threat.

However, the advance did not happy quite as planned. At the operation's commencement both of the Marine divisions moved forward successfully. But, Smith's Army units moved nearly an hour late. They moved forward a little and were stopped in their tracks. Since the Marines continued to advance steadily, the operation took to a horseshoe shape with the Army sagging in the middle. Okinawa was the last big battle of the Marine Corps in the Pacific War.

This battle was to be the last draw for Japan. Okinawa was frighteningly close to Japan and was very heavily fortified. If captured, Japanese power and control would be destroyed. Up until 1944, there was never an assault from the sea. Normally, in order to take sea fortresses, capturing it from the land in was the way to go. But, D-Day was created to assault a heavily defended area, the German Atlantic Wall, from the sea to the land.

In order to perform, special equipment was needed to overcome the beach defenses, to clear the minefields, and move inland rapidly. The airborne forces had gadgets galore. The British designed, and American manufactured "Eureka" was a radar beacon, which was carried by the paratrooper pathfinders, and to help the aircraft approaching to find the drop zone with a little more ease. Another invention which was cheaply made was the "cricket. " This little piece of metal helped the paratroopers to recognize who was a part of their division. Rupert, were dummy parachutists which were dropped in thousands all over the Northern part of France, to coincide with the real men. Other inventions consisted of the bridge-laying tank known as the "Great Eastern. " The "Great Panjandrum" was a failure, but was created to clear all the mines on the beach.

The "tank dozer" and the Crab helped to explode mines successfully. On June 6 th at dawn, eighteen thousand British and American parachutists were on the ground in Normandy seizing essential bridges and ruining German lines of communication. At 6: 30 a. m. , the first American troops landed ashore at Utah beach with the amphibious tanks. At 7: 25 a. m. , the first British soldiers came ashore at Gold and Sword beaches, and then the Canadians followed and landed at Juno.

At 10: 15 a. m. , Rommel, who had flown back to Germany a few days before, becomes aware of the attack and flies back to France. At midnight, more than 155, 000 Allied troops had come ashore. Omaha had been the only beach where the Germans assaulted 35, 000 American soldiers within a mile perimeter.

German naval units were informed to be on guard in case of any other surprise attacks. The message that was sent out was intercepted by the British, which helped them to know that June 7 th wouldnt have the full force of the German defense. General Eisenhower once said that he doubted Marines were better fighters than his own army Rangers. In a sense he was probably right; if you tell picked men they are crack troops, they are likely to fight like an elite. They difference is that Ike's Rangers were small bands of commandos, while the Marine Corps, a corps d'elite, fielded six divisions in the Pacific -- three corps, a whole army. The United States Marine Corps gave an entire fighting force of the most "elite" troops to the Pacific Campaign.

They fought some of the most ugly and most horrific battles in all of World War II. Their training in land to sea combat gave them an edge over the U. S. Army's land-only combat training. In sending the Marine Corps into the Pacific Campaign, the United States proved it's military dominance and resourcefulness and shocked the enemy by showing that we could actually fight a two front war and win. Without the determination, strength, and aggressiveness of the Marine Corps in World War II, the Pacific "Island Hopping" Campaign very well could have been lost to the Japanese.

There was no other outfit in all the worlds' armies more capable of fighting in the Pacific than the Marines. Bibliography: Spencer, Richard. D-Day. New York: Random House Inc. , 1987 Winker, Allan M. Home Front U. S.

A: America in World War II. Wheeling, Illinois: Harlan Davidson, 2000. Planned and Salmon. Great Commanders of World War II, Vol. III - The Americans. New York: Zebra Books, 1981.

Research essay sample on European And Pacific Wars