D-Day in the Pacific: The Battle of Saipan

15. Tōjō and Tinian

c h a p t e r f i f t e e n Tōjō and tinian It was appropriate that General Tōjō Hideki resigned after the Battle of Saipan, as Japan’s chances for victory ended with the loss of the Mariana Islands. Tōjō, who entered the cabinet in 1940, was a prime mover in the decision to go to war with the United States and the symbol of Japanese militarism. As prime minister he exemplified the Japanese people’s commitment to diligence and self-sacrifice and their belief in ultimate victory. Despite the increasingly bad news from both the Pacific and European fronts throughout 1943, Tōjō continued to believe that hard work and unity could defeat the Allied powers. There was, however, no way for Tōjō to escape the consequences of the fall of Saipan. At first he intended to reconstitute his cabinet while remaining in office, but other powerful individuals in Japan, including elder statesmen and former prime ministers, had turned against his leadership . In a radio address on 18 July, he told the Japanese people of the loss of Saipan and then presented his resignation to Emperor Hirohito.1 When Tōjō went into retirement, the bravado that he represented, and which had been evident in Japanese forces at the beginning of the war, was replaced by a year-long attrition of Japanese soldiers who fought on despite the desperation of their military mission. The illusion that victory was still possible had been ripped away. From that moment on, Japan fought only to slow the American advance by inflicting massive casualties on the enemy, with some Japanese officials willing to fight to the death and others hoping 206 d-day in the pacific that the United States might seek a negotiated settlement. In reality, the only remaining questions were when the United States would win the war and what sacrifices Japan would be willing to endure in its own inevitable defeat. In the end, Japan would pay a very high price. Following Tōjō’s resignation, the news for Japan grew steadily worse as the United States extended the battle to the other islands in the Mariana chain. The Battle of Saipan officially ended on 9 July, but American forces involved in that bloody struggle were given little time to relax. Spruance, Turner, and Smith intended to invade and occupy Tinian as soon as possible after Saipan was secure. The reasons were obvious: Tinian was only three and a half miles from Saipan, and Japanese forces there posed a continuing threat to the American presence on Saipan. In addition, Tinian possessed an excellent airstrip, longer than the one at Aslito Airfield. A major reason for the American offensive in the Marianas was the desire to secure forward air bases for the B-29 Superfortress bomber. There was never any doubt that Tinian was a primary target after Saipan. Even as the battle for Saipan raged, American artillery forces moved to the southern end of the island and fired at Japanese installations on Tinian. The army’s XXIV Corps Artillery played a major role in this bombardment, firing more than seventy-five hundred rounds at the island. Unfortunately, the rainy season started in July. As J. William “Bill” Winter, a member of the 532nd Field Artillery, recalled, that rain was more of a nuisance than an impediment: “Rain is just one more enemy to contend with in combat. As for heavy artillery, the weapon itself is not particularly bothered by rain, as long as the optics and directional controls used for orientation are protected. However, in a prolonged period of rain, it was usually necessary to pull the guns (which weighed in at 13-tons) out of position, lay down a timbered bed over the gun position, and roll the guns back into position over the timbered beds.” Winter participated in the support fire for the Tinian invasion and celebrated the effectiveness of the artillery shelling: “With the range of our guns, it was easy for us to protect U.S. forces going ashore on the designated landing beaches of Tinian.”2 Simultaneously, battleships kept up a steady barrage on the small island while P-47 Thunderbolts strafed and bombed at will. While these efforts did not destroy the Japanese positions, they kept the enemy pinned down and prevented the reinforcement of defensive emplacements. American superiority on the sea and in the air helped soften the enemy for the weary marines preparing...