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On August 14, 1945, Japan announced their surrender to the Allies, ending WWII, this day is referred to as VJ Day. This is significant because the war is over and the US managed to end the war in a way that did not involve an amphibious landing and lots of American lives being lost. VJ Day can also refer to September 2, 1945 when Japan formally surrendered on board the USS Missouri. This is significant because it was the very official end of WWII.

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When Japan did not surrender after the US dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima the US decided that they needed to drop another one so Japan would surrender. On August 9, 1945, a B-29 bomber planned to drop the bomb over Kokura but Kokura was covered in thick clouds so they dropped the atomic bomb on their second target, Nagasaki, killing around 40,000 people. This is significant because after this this bombing, on August 14th, 1945, Japan's emperor Hirohito announced Japan's surrender.

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On August 6th 1945 the US dropped the first atomic bomb ever used in wartime on Hiroshima Japan. Around 80,000 people were killed with the detonation of bomb and 35,000 were injured, while 60,000 died from radiation exposure by the end of that year. This was significant because it was a step in the direction for Japan to surrender the war without the US having to land an amphibious invasion.

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Started on July 16th 1945, two scientists detonated an atomic bomb for the first time. People who lived the 150 mile radius were the first victims of a nuclear bomb. This is significant because it showed that nuclear bombs were possible and it gave the US a way to end the war without invading Japan and wasting millions of American lives.

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On the night of March 9, 1945, U.S. went on the offense against Japan. The war planes dropped 2,000 tons of incendiary bombs on Tokyo. Tokyo was flattened between 80,000 and 130,000 civilians were killed. This is significant because it caused a huge hit to the Japanese moral, before the Japanese had been told that they were invincible but with the Americans attacking and basically destroying their capital the Japanese knew that there was no way for them to win this war.

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It happened on April 1, 1945; the last major battle and one of the bloodiest battles of WWII. The Americans had around 49,000 casualties, while 110,000 Japanese were killed, and between 40,000 to 150,000 Okinawa citizens were killed, making the Battle of Okinawa one of the bloodiest battles in history. The island of Okinawa was the U.S.'s last stop before attacking Japan and they knew if Okinawa fell, so would Japan. This was significant because it allowed U.S. troops to get close enough to Japan to attack it and make them surrender.

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<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/aenetworks/image/upload/c_fill,ar_2,w_3840,h_1920,g_auto/dpr_auto/f_auto/q_auto:eco/v1/gettyimages-3318907?_a=BAVAZGDX0" alt="Battle of Okinawa: U.S. Marines of the 1st Division wait on the crest of a hill in southern Okinawa, as they watch phosphorous shells explode over Japanese soldiers dug into the hills.">

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Iwo Jima, Iōjima, Ogasawara, Tokyo, Japan

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The Battle of Iwo Jima was a big battle in the war because Iwo Jima was a very statically valuable island. It was very close to Japan so if the Americans could take it over it meant that they had easy access to the Japanese mainland and could bomb it as much as they wanted. It was also a very costly battle and one of the most costly battles of the entire war in both the Pacific and Europe. It is very significant because once the Americans won the battle they were able to use the airfield to attack the Japanese mainland easily, and it was the battle that cemented that the Japanese would never be able to come back in the war because they just lost so much during and before the battle that there was no way they could win against the Americans.

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September 2, 1945, this was the largest urban struggle during WWII and resulted in the deaths of 100,000 people, it killed 1,500 civilians. This is significant and a turning point because it severed Japan's vital supply lines and it eliminated around 400,000 enemy troops along with large numbers of Japanese pilots and aircraft.

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This battle started June, 1944 and lasted till the capture of Guam. This Battle included a pre-invasion on Japanese positions, airplanes, and ships. This is significant because it cut off supply lines between the Caroline Islands and Japan.

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The Battle started on June 19, 1944 and was the greatest aircraft carrier battle of the war. The U.S. shot down 300 Japanese aircraft and sank two aircraft carriers; and the US only lost 29 airplanes. Overall, the Japanese lost almost 600 aircraft and most of their crew. The Japanese lost 26,600 men and U.S. lost 3,500 men. This is significant because the U.S. captured the islands of Tinian and Guam and the government of Premier Hideki Tojo resigned in disgrace.

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Marshall Islands Resort, Delap-Uliga-Djarrit, Majuro Atoll, RMI

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Battles fought in the Marshall Islands starting in August 1942 and ending in February 1944. They were the first battles fought by the US when they were on the offensive in the Pacific. This is significant because the US was able to establish airfields and naval bases that would help support future operations in the Pacific by the US.

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It was a costly US Marine Operation that started in November 1943. The US tried to seize the Japanese controlled island of Betio. Almost 6,400 people were killed on both sides. It is significant because it was the first major US offensive in the Central Pacific, it was also the first time that the US faced serious Japanese opposition to an amphibious landing.

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The Battle started in August 1941 and was a series of land and sea battles between Allied forces and Japanese forces, on and around Guadalcanal. This is significant because it made it able for the US to start island hopping and getting closer to Japan.

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Midway Atoll, United States Minor Outlying Islands

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The Battle started on June 3, 1942. It was a successful defense against Midway and destroyed Japan's hopes of turning the tide of WWII. It put all four Japanese carriers out of commission and Japan couldn't produce more, also losing 3,000 men and almost 300 aircraft. This is significant because it destroyed all of the Japanese aircraft carriers so they were no longer able to protect their territory as much.

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On May 3, 1942, the Japanese and the US met up in the Coral Sea for the first modern naval battle. The U.S. had broken some of Japan's secret war codes and attempted to intercept the Japanese attack. The battle lasted 4 days, and 70 Japanese and 66 American war planes were destroyed. Japan occupied the Solomon islands but it cost Japan lots of experienced pilots and aircraft carriers. Japan lost the Shoho and the Shokaku was damaged, the US lost USS Lexington and the USS Yorktown was damaged. This is significant because this battle made Japan cancel expeditions to South Pacific targets because they lost so much weaponry and was a boost to the US's morale.

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Around the same time as Pearl Harbor Japan attacked Wake Island and started bombing it. They then tried to invade the island but 2 Japanese destroyers were sunk and other ships got damaged and the Japanese retreated. This is significant because it was the first win-ish after Pearl Harbor and helped boost the nation's moral.

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Japan attacked the Philippines on December 8, 1941 which led to the Battle of Bataan and the Bataan Death March. Japan tried to eliminate the US forces stationed there and control the resources. This is significant because it was a serious loss for the Americans.

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Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Japanese fighter planes and bombers flew over the military base and dropped bombs that destroyed almost 20 American ships and over 300 airplanes, with more than 2,400 Americans died. This is significant because it made the U.S. declare war on Japan and enter World War 2.

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Japan took over many territories in Southeast Asia, like the Dutch East Indies, Malaya, and Singapore. Japan mostly stayed on the coast and took areas with resources that would benefit the war effort. This is significant because it showed how quickly Japan was moving and made Japan seem unstoppable.

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In 1937 Japanese forces brutally murdered hundreds of thousands of Chinese citizens and soldiers and sexually assaulted tens of thousands of women and girls. The city was left in ruins and would take years to recover. This is significant because it showed how brutal the Japanese are with their takeovers.

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Manchuria China&Russia Trade Area, Manzhouli, Hulunbuir, China

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Manchuria was a region in northeast China and it was invaded by Japan 1931 so Japan could gain the resources it offered to further their takeover of the Pacific. After Japan invaded Japan made Manchuria a puppet state called Manchukuo. This is significant because it provided Japan with resources to further expand in the Pacific without relying on any other countries that could take away Japan's resources.

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Iwo Jima, Iōjima, Ogasawara, Tokyo, Japan

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The Battle of Iwo Jima (February 19 - March 26 1945)

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The Battle of Iwo Jima (February 19 - March 26 1945)

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The Battle of Iwo Jima was one of the last battles fought between the Japanese and the Americans in the Pacific. It was also one of the bloodiest battles for both sides. The reason for this is due to the island's close proximity to the Japanese home islands, and the fact that the Japanese considered it to be part of their nation. The horrific casualties experienced by the Americans helped reinforced the sense of how terrible and costly an invasion of the actual Japanese islands would be.

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The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February - 26 March 1945) was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II.