Pacific · 1 Apr 1945 – 22 Jun 1945
Battle of Okinawa
U.S. forces landed on Okinawa on 1 April 1945 and overcame the Japanese defences after weeks of costly fighting in the south. Organized resistance ended on 22 June.
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The Battle of Okinawa was fought from 1 April to 22 June 1945. The U.S. Tenth Army landed on the west coast at Hagushi, where Japanese resistance was initially light. By 4 April, American forces had crossed the island’s narrow waist, captured the Kadena and Yontan airfields, and cut Japanese forces in the north off from the main defensive positions in the south. The Japanese Thirty-Second Army had concentrated its strongest defences around the Shuri line, where ridges, caves, tunnels, and fortified positions supported one another. [1][4][9]
The northern campaign and the struggle in the south developed on different timelines. U.S. forces advanced through the north, while Marines reached Hedo Point on 13 April and the 77th Infantry Division fought for Ie Shima from 16 April. The island’s southern third presented a much harder task. The 7th and 96th Infantry Divisions advanced against prepared positions, including the ridges protecting Shuri, and the fighting became a costly contest over fortified ground. Japanese counterattacks on 12–14 April failed to dislodge the Americans. [4][5]
On 19 April, the Tenth Army opened a major assault against the southern defences, supported by artillery and aircraft. The Japanese held their positions through successive attacks, then launched a counteroffensive on 4 May that failed. On 11 May, American forces renewed their advance along the southern front. They captured Shuri Castle on 29 May, after weeks of close fighting and heavy bombardment. By then the Japanese 32nd Army had already begun to withdraw from Shuri, on the night of 26 May, to a last line on the Yaeju-dake escarpment and Kunishi Ridge near the southern end of the island. [5][7]
The 6th Marine Division entered Naha at the end of May and landed on the Oroku Peninsula on 4 June to clear the Japanese naval troops there. Army and Marine units continued to press south as the Japanese defence broke into isolated groups. Tenth Army commander Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. was killed by artillery fire on 18 June. Organized Japanese resistance ended on 22 June, although clearance operations continued after the battle’s official end. [3][6][7]
The battle cost the United States about 49,000–50,000 battle casualties, including roughly 12,500 killed or missing. Estimates for Japanese military deaths varied; the sources reported about 90,000 to 100,000 killed, with thousands captured. Civilian deaths were also heavily disputed: the supplied sources gave estimates ranging from 40,000 to 150,000. Japanese air attacks, including kamikaze strikes against the supporting fleet, added substantial naval losses during the campaign. [1][2][6]