Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War [Hardcover]

Gregory F. Michno (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2001

Fully documents the scope of the allied POW ordeal on the Japanese ships that moved them from island to island for work in World War II.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...belongs in every sophisticated collection of WW II history." -- Choice, February 2002

From the Publisher

Foreword Magazine Book of the Year Award Finalist - History Category

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 366 pages
• Publisher: US Naval Institute Press (June 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557504822
• ISBN-13: 978-1557504821
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,466,055 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A harrowing history of a maritime Dante's Inferno, August 12, 2001

By 

Bruce Trinque (Amston, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War (Hardcover)

Gregory Michno's "Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War" is a harrowing account of one of the nearly forgotten stories of World War Two - the experiences of Allied POW's aboard Japanese transport ships. These prisoners, most of them captured during the early months of the war in the Pacific, passed through nearly unimaginable horrors, brutally mistreated by their captors, subjected to starvation, beatings, and deprivation of water, and held in crowded, grossly unsanitary conditions. And they often fell victim to Allied torpedoes and bombs. More than 20,000 Allied POW's died at sea, most of them when the transport ships carrying them were attacked by U.S. submarines and aircraft. Although Allied headquarters often knew of the presence of POW's aboard vessels targeted for attack through radio interception and code breaking, the general policy was to sink the ships anyway, evidently on the basis that the interdiction of critical strategic materials was more important in the long run than the deaths of prisoners-of-war.

"Death on the Hellships" is a veritable Dante's Inferno at sea, the tragedies chronicled month by month. Michno's research into previously classified records and with survivor first-hand accounts far surpasses that of anyone who has touched upon this topic before, and he deserves great credit for rescuing this important story before it was lost forever in the fog of the past. It is not a tale for the faint-hearted. Although the subject covers too broad a time and geographical area to permit in-depth narratives of every prison ship voyage, Michno does provide a wealth of survivor stories illustrating the experiences of these unfortunate men and women. Anyone who reads the history of this tragic episode of modern war will not soon forget it.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sobering, comprehensive, superly written & accurate survey, October 10, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War (Hardcover)

Death On The Hellships: Prisoners At Sea In The Pacific War is a sobering, comprehensive, superly written and accurate survey of life and death as an Allied prisoner of war aboard the Japanese submarines, under conditions as hellish as any concentration camp. More that 126,000 prisoners were transported on these hellships with more than 21,000 fatalities, due to beatings, starvation, disease, and worst of all, friendly fire. The statistics lead author Gregory Michno to conclude that it was more dangerous to be a prisoner on Japanese hellships than to be an active U.S. marine in the campaign. Disturbing in its detail, Death On The Hellships is a vivid and unforgettable reminder of the horrors of war and an invaluable contribution to 20th Century military history collections.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Evil of the Japanese- well documented, August 9, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Death on the Hellships: Prisoners at Sea in the Pacific War (Hardcover)

"Death on the Hellships" is a classic in research and documentation. Cross referencing from American records at the National Archives, interviews with Allied POWs who survived these nightmarish voyages, and the convoy records of the Japanese, Michno reveals a picture of depravity and horror. The sad truth is that the American Intelligence knew of almost convoy and merchant ship movement through spies and code breaking. Military intelligence even knew the cargo, including ships containing POWS. It was a "dirty little secret" that is only now available from the declassified records. A deliberate decision was made to withhold the fact from submarine commanders that specific ships and convoys contained prisoners. The decision was made "to sink them all" rather than take a chance the Japanese would realize their codes were broken. Submarine commanders, pledged to lifelong secrecy, knew the location and course of almost every Japanese ship. Many jokingly complained that, "The Japanese ship was ten minutes late.," before he was sunk. Michno masterfully documents and relates the experiences of those who suffered in the Hellships as they were carried to serve as slaves for Japanese industrial companies who now snub any thought of an apology or compensation. A compelling and well written classic for the bookshelf of any historian.