The Battle of Attu (codenamed Operation Landcrab),[4] which took place on 11–30 May 1943, was fought between forces of the
United States, aided by
Canadian reconnaissance and fighter-bomber support, and
Japan on
Attu Island off the coast of the
Territory of Alaska as part of the
Aleutian Islands campaign during the
American Theater and the
Pacific Theater. Attu is the only land battle in which Japanese and American forces fought in snowy conditions, in contrast with the tropical climate in the rest of the Pacific. The battle ended when most of the Japanese defenders were killed in brutal
hand-to-hand combat after a final
banzai charge broke through American lines.
Background
The strategic position of the islands of Attu and
Kiska off Alaska's coast meant their locations could control the sea lanes across the northern Pacific Ocean. Japanese planners believed control of the
Aleutians would therefore prevent any possible U.S. attacks from Alaska. This assessment had already been inferred by U.S. General
Billy Mitchell who told the U.S. Congress in 1935, "I believe that in the future, whoever holds Alaska will hold the world. I think it is the most important strategic place in the world."[5]
On 7 June 1942, six months after the United States
entered World War II, the 301st Independent Infantry Battalion from the
Japanese Northern Army landed
unopposed on Attu. The landings occurred one day after the
invasion of nearby Kiska. The U.S. military feared both islands could be turned into strategic Japanese airbases from which aerial attacks could be launched against mainland Alaska and the rest of the
U.S. West Coast.
On 11 May 1943, units from 17th Infantry, of Major General
Albert E. Brown's
7th U.S. Infantry Division made amphibious landings on Attu to retake the island from
Japanese Imperial Army forces led by Colonel
Yasuyo Yamasaki. Despite heavy naval bombardments of Japanese positions, the American troops encountered strong entrenched defenses that made combat conditions tough.
Arctic weather and
exposure-related injuries also caused numerous casualties among U.S. forces. After two weeks of relentless fighting, however, American units managed to push the Japanese defenders back to a pocket around
Chichagof Harbor.
On 21–22 May a powerful Japanese fleet assembled in
Tokyo Bay in preparation for a sortie to repel the American attempt to recapture Attu. The fleet included the carriers
Zuikaku,
Shōkaku,
Jun'yō,
Hiyō, the battleships
Musashi,
Kongō,
Haruna, and the cruisers
Mogami,
Kumano,
Suzuya,
Tone,
Chikuma,
Agano,
Ōyodo, and eleven destroyers. The Americans, however, recaptured Attu before the fleet could depart.[7]
On 29 May, without hope of rescue, Yamasaki led his remaining troops in a
banzai charge. The surprise attack broke through the American front line positions. Shocked American rear-echelon troops were soon fighting in hand-to-hand combat with Japanese soldiers. The battle continued until almost all of the Japanese were killed. The charge effectively ended the battle for the island, although U.S. Navy reports indicate that small groups of Japanese continued to fight until early July 1943,[citation needed] and isolated
Japanese survivors held out until as late as 8 September 1943.[8] In 19 days of battle, 549 soldiers of the 7th Infantry Division were killed and more than 1,200 injured. The Japanese lost over 2,351 men, including Yamasaki; 28 prisoners were taken.[2]
Aftermath
Attu was the last action of the Aleutian Islands campaign. The Japanese Northern Army secretly evacuated its remaining garrison from nearby Kiska, ending the Japanese occupation in the Aleutian Islands on 28 July 1943.
The loss of Attu and the evacuation of Kiska came shortly after the death of Admiral
Isoroku Yamamoto, who was killed by American aircraft in
Operation Vengeance. These defeats compounded the demoralizing effect of losing Yamamoto on the Japanese High Command.[9] Despite the losses,
Japanese propaganda attempted to present the Aleutian Island campaign as an inspirational epic.[9]
Order of battle
IJA 2nd District, North Seas Garrison (Hokkai Shubitai) – Colonel Yasuyo Yamasaki[10][11]
Cloe, John Haile (1990). The Aleutian Warriors: A History of the 11th Air Force and Fleet Air Wing 4. Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Co. and Anchorage Chapter – Air Force Association.
ISBN0-929521-35-8.
OCLC25370916.
Cloe, John Haile (1990). Attu: The Forgotten Battle. United States Department of the Interior.
ISBN0-9965837-3-4.
OCLC25370916.
Dickrell, Jeff (2001). Center of the Storm: The Bombing of Dutch Harbor and the Experience of Patrol Wing Four in the Aleutians, Summer 1942. Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., Inc.
ISBN1-57510-092-4.
OCLC50242148.
Feinberg, Leonard (1992). Where the Williwaw Blows: The Aleutian Islands-World War II. Pilgrims' Process.
ISBN0-9710609-8-3.
OCLC57146667.
Goldstein, Donald M.; Katherine V. Dillon (1992). The Williwaw War: The Arkansas National Guard in the Aleutians in World War. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press.
ISBN1-55728-242-0.
OCLC24912734.