The capture of Iwo Jima and the total

The capture of Iwo Jima and the total destruction of the Japanese air force meant that the USA could now bomb every major Japanese city. In May 1945, the USA decided to firebomb the capital city Tokyo. It was hoped that the massive civilian casualties would break Japanese morale and force them to

Enola Gay dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. It was flown by Paul Tibbets on the right

Map Showing the Damage Done to Hiroshima The centre of the explosion was hotter than the surface of the sun!

Burnt remains of the victims of Nagasaki

Why did the USA drop The Atomic Bombs on Japan?

The war in the Pacific was expensive for the USA. For example, on Iwo Jima it took five weeks of bitter fighting at a cost of more than 24, 000 casualties before the USA took the island. In taking another island, Okinawa, the US incurred a further 20, 195 dead and 55, 162 wounded.

Harry Truman, 1963

The Japanese government threatened to put to death 400, 000 Allied prisoners of war if the USA invaded Japan!

Harry Truman, 1963 “Pearl Harbor was done while we were at peace with Japan and trying our best to negotiate a treaty with them… All you have to do is to go out and stand on the keel of the Battleship in Pearl Harbor with the 3, 000 youngsters underneath it who had no chance whatever of saving their lives. . It was plain murder!”

The Japanese religion Bushido believed that people who surrendered were cowards and should be mistreated. Allied prisoners of war were beaten, deliberately starved, tortured, worked to death and even experimented on with chemical & biological weapons by the Japanese. Some were even crucified on andthe beheaded by theirthat There was a strong feelingtrees in both USA & Europe captors! the Japanese should be taught a lesson!

Interpretation 3: Frighten the Russians At the Yalta Conference in March 1945, the big three agreed that there should be early free elections in Eastern European countries like Poland as soon as the war was over. With the death of Roosevelt in April 1945, Harry Truman became the President of the USA. Truman did not trust Stalin to keep his promises.

Interpretation 3: Frighten the Russians The USA dropped the first atomic bomb 14 days later!

Interpretation 3: Frighten the Russians

Interpretation 3: Frighten the Russians The use of this barbarous weapon was of no assistance to our war against Japan. The Japanese were already defeated. By October 1944 the Japanese had been cut off from 80% of their oil supplies. The US secret service had cracked the Japanese diplomatic codes and knew that they wanted to surrender before they dropped the bomb!

Interpretation 4: To Test the Weapon The Atomic Bomb cost $2, 000 million to develop! Many of the Scientist & military advisors were keen to test the atomic bomb to sell what affect it would have on human beings. No one knew about the affects of radiation from a nuclear explosion. Later many US & British troops were exposed to radiation from the testing of nuclear weapons.

Interpretation 4: To Test the Weapon A demonstration of the bomb might best be made on the desert or on a barren island. Japan could then be asked to surrender. Robert Oppenheimer, June

Interpretation 4: To Test the Weapon A demonstration in an uninhabited area was not regarded as likely to make Japan surrender. There was the danger of the test being a dud. Also we had no bombs to waste

Why did the USA drop The Atomic Bombs on Japan?

POWs 400, 000 US 250, 000 Japanese 250, 000 Hiroshima 100, 000 Nagasaki 81, 000 What would you do?