New Guinea & the Marianas: March 1944 - August 1944 - Volume 8 (History of the United States Naval Operations in World War Two) [Hardcover]

Samuel Eliot Morison (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 30, 1953 | Series: History of the United States Naval Operations in World War Two (Book 8)

This installment of Samuel Eliot Morison's insider history of the U.S. Navy covers five of the most eventful months of the Pacific war, March through July 1944. Awash with spectacular rescues of downed airmen, bold beach landings, and brilliant though risky strategic gambles, this volume carries Morison's coverage of the war in the Pacific through the Allies' securing of Dutch New Guinea and the Marianas. The three assaults that comprised Operation "Forager"--in which Morison participated--add up to one of the most important amphibious operations in history: protracted, bitterly contested, requiring great flexibility as well as fortitude. The development of powerful new weapons and sophisticated new tactics, together with the greatly extended distance of active operations from continental bases, rendered naval operations more vast and more complicated than ever before in history.After nearly two years of bitter and almost continuous fighting, the Allies have broken the Bismarcks Barrier, conquered key Japanese positions in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands, and cleared the way for an advance along the New Guinea-Mindanao axis. General MacArthur is intent on his one road to Tokyo, but Combined Chiefs of Staff decide to send Admiral Nimitz and the Pacific Fleet on a second, northern route, parallel to MacArthur's. Morison follows MacArthur's Southwest Pacific Forces in a series of bold leaps to Holandiak, Wakde, Biak, and the Vogelkop, also covering Pacific Fleet operations from the end of the Marshall Islands campaign to the recovery of Guam.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Samuel Eliot Morison, an eminent Harvard professor, was appointed by his close friend, Franklin D. Roosevelt, to write the history of U.S. naval operations during World War II after convincing the president that too many wartime histories were written after the fact or from a distance. Morison called his classic work a shooting history of World War II, because it was documented by historical observation during each specific naval operation in the Atlantic and Pacific. Hailed for its accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, this monumental work presents a complete record of the U.S. Navys war at sea, covering the strategic planning, battle tactics, and technological advances, as well as the heroic actions of American sailors --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 435 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1St Edition edition (January 30, 1953)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316583081
• ISBN-13: 978-0316583084
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.9 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,851,963 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Task Force 58 Deals the Japanese Navy a Fatal Blow, June 18, 2003

By 

Jeffrey T. Munson (Dixon, IL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: New Guinea and the Marianas: March 1944-August 1944 (History of United States Naval Operations in World War II) (Hardcover)

This book keeps up the tradition of other books in this fine series. This volume describes the action which took place in and around the Marianas Islands in the summer of 1944. The islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Guam were successfully captured and turned into air bases for the big B-29 Superfortresses so they could reach the Japanese homeland. These battles were fought with great savagery on both sides. For example, rather then surrender to the American forces, many Japanese soldiers and civilians threw themselves from cliffs overlooking the Pacific on Saipan.

The Battle of the Philippine Sea is where the Japanese navy ultimately, for all intents and purposes, ceased to be an effective fighting force. However, at the beginning, it was the Japanese who sighted the Americans first. They launched four successive attacks against Admiral Spruance's carriers while Spruance was still searching for the Japanese ships. Thanks to murderous anti-aircraft fire and superior combat air patrol, the Japanese would end up losing over four hundred aircraft in what has become known as the "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot". Three Japanese aircraft carriers were also sunk by American submarines and planes. However, this victory was greatly scrutinized. Spruance was criticized for not finding the enemy ships sooner, and for conducting poor air searches. Many believed that the victory could have been even greater than it was had the Japanese been spotted sooner, or had the Americans done a better job of pursuing the fleeing Japanese.

This is a very good book, and the battle is explained expertly with the help of numerous maps and photographs. I highly recommend this book, as well as others in this series. They give the reader a first-hand account of the war at sea.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 8: New Guinea and the Marianas, March 1944-August 1944 (Histor, February 13, 2008

By 

Nicholas E. Phillips (Cleveland OH) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 8: New Guinea and the Marianas, March 1944-August 1944 (Paperback)

My 86 year old father served in the New Guinea campaign. Only now, in his later years, has he been interested and willing to talk about his World War II experiences. As an enlisted man with an army amphibious unit, he never knew the details of the New Guinea campaign in which he participated. This book is not a novel, but it is an extensive, detailed history of this military campaign which includes the names, photos and maps of the operating area. My father had not heard these names for over 60 years. This is a great resource for any World War II veteran who served in the Pacific in these areas.[ASIN:0252070380 History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 8: New Guinea and the Marianas, March 1944-August 1944 (History of United States Naval Operations in World War II)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The MacArthur and Nimitz pincers kick into high gear, October 16, 2008

By 

William S. Grass "Military history enthusiast" (Texas, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 8: New Guinea and the Marianas, March 1944-August 1944 (Paperback)

This is the eighth of Morison's fifteen volumes on the U.S. naval operations in WWII, and the sixth of nine on the Pacific theater. This particular volume covers the clearing of New Guinea by the MacArthur branch of operations, and the subjugation and capture of the Marianas by the Nimitz arm, including the famous "Marianas Turkey Shoot" during the Battle of the Philippine Sea, which was the last time Japanese carrier based air power posed any significant obstacle to the U.S. advance toward Japan. Thereafter, the two pincers were to join at Leyte and the invasion of the Philippines, which are covered in volumes XII and XIII.

By March, 1944 the great Japanese anchorage at Truk, and their naval and air bases at Rabaul had been pounded into submission by U.S. air power and were to be bypassed. MacArthur was then able to proceed along the northern New Guinea coast, subduing the Japanese forces there in a series of actions including Biak, Hollandia and Noemfoor. Although not as well known in the popular mind as the action at the Marianas, I was interested nevertheless because my uncle was in the 503rd PIR, which participated in the Hollandia and Noemfoor operations.

Meanwhile, Nimitz, having secured the Gilberts and Marshalls, proceeded in force to the Marianas. There, not only was Guam, Saipan and Tinian taken from the Japanese, but their carrier air forces were dealt a fatal blow in a two day battle where Japanese planes came at the U.S. carriers one day, and U.S. planes at the Japanese carriers the next day. The order to launch U.S. planes came late on the second day and consequently many returned after dark. In a dramatic decision, Admiral Mitscher ordered the lights of the carriers turned on, even at the risk of exposure to Japanese submarines.

Morison is most enthusiastic when describing amphibious landings. The lessons learned the hard way at Tarawa and improved somewhat in the Marshalls were improved upon yet again in the Marianas and Morison spares no detail in explaining the intricacies of the planning and execution of the beach assaults. Also, Morison is supportive of Spruance's decision to stay back and not uncover the Marianas instead of going full bore after the Japanese carriers.