Battle of Okinawa
April 1945
Battle of Okinawa
A battle that lasted eighty-two days, from early April until mid-June 1945. The Allies approached Japan and wanted to use Okinawa as a place for air operations and planned invasion on Japan's mainland.
Event Information
Battle of Okinawa
When?
Sunday, Apr 1, 1945, 09:00 PM
Where?
Ryukyu Islands, Japan
The U.S. put together 300 warships. April 1st, 60,000 American personnel landed at Hagushi Bay. By April 20th, all Japanese resistance in the north of the island had been eliminated. The Machinato line was finally breached on April 24th. However, it then had to confront the Shuri Line. On May 3rd, Ushijima ordered a counter-attack but this failed. May 21st, Ushijima ordered his men to pull back from the Shuri Line. It was only into June that it became obvious that the Japanese had lost the fight for Okinawa. July 2nd, Okinawa was declared secure by the Americans – Ushijima had committed suicide some days before this.
Okinawa
The American Lieutenant-General Simon Bolivar Buckner was head of 180,000 men. The bay selected for the American landing was Hagushi Bay.