Peter Doornekamp

Okinawa 1945 Peter Doornekamp

On 1 April 1945, over half a million US troops were ready to invade Okinawa, the last step before the expected incursion of mainland Japan, in the largest amphibious landing of the Second World War. The unexpectedly unopposed landing lulled many soldiers and marines into a false sense of security. Around 150,000 fanatical Japanese troops and conscripts, including children, fought tenaciously from mutually supporting, in depth, well-camouflaged, mostly underground positions, trying their best to inflict such heavy casualties on the Americans that they would reconsider an invasion of the Japanese homeland. While the battle on land raged on, thousands of kamikaze planes came crashing down from the skies, adding to the already appalling number of casualties. Okinawa 1945 - A Foxhole View is a day-by-day account of the brutal conflict, told from the perspectives of invaders, defenders and civilians.