A Tale of
Six Boys
Each year I am hired to go to Washington, DC, with the eighth grade
class from Clinton, WI. where I grew up, to videotape their trip.
I greatly enjoy visiting our nation's capitol, and each year I take
some special memories back with me.
This fall's trip was especially memorable.
On the last night of our trip, we stopped at the Iwo Jima Memorial.
This memorial is the largest bronze statue in the world and depicts
one of the most famous photographs in history -- that of the six
brave Marines raising the American Flag at the top of a rocky hill
on the island of Iwo Jima, Japan, during WW II.
As over one hundred students and chaperones piled off the buses and
headed towards the memorial. I noticed a solitary figure at the base
of the statue,
and as I got closer he asked, "Where are you guys from?"
I told him that we were from Wisconsin "Hey, I'm a cheese head,
too! Come gather around, Cheese heads, and I will tell you a
story."
(James Bradley just happened to be in Washington, DC, to speak at
the memorial the following day. He was there that night to say good
night to his dad,
who has since passed away.
He was just about to leave when he saw the buses pull up and I
videotaped him as he spoke to us.
I received his permission to share what he said from my videotape.
(It is one thing to tour the incredible monuments filled with
history in
Washington, D.C., but it is quite another to get the kind of
insight we received that night.)
When all had gathered around, he reverently began to speak. (Here
are his words that night.)
"My name is James Bradley and I'm from Antigo, Wisconsin. My dad
is on that statue, and I just wrote a book called "Flags of Our
Fathers" which is #5 on the New York Times Best Seller list right
now. It is the story of the six boys you see behind me.
"Six boys raised that flag.
The first guy putting the pole in the ground is Harlon Block.
Harlon was an all-state football player. He enlisted in the Marine
Corps with all the senior members of his football team. They were
off to play another type of game, a game called "War," but it
didn't turn out to be a game.
Harlon, at the age of 21, died with his intestines in his hands. I
don't say that to gross you out, I say that because there
are people who stand in front of this statue and talk about the
glory of war. You guys need to know that most of the boys in Iwo
Jima were 17, 18, and 19 years old.
(He pointed to the statue) "You see this next guy?
That's Rene Gagnon from New Hampshire. If you took Rene's helmet
off at the moment this photo was taken and looked in the webbing of
that helmet, you would find a photograph... a photograph of his
girlfriend. Rene put that in there for protection because he was
scared. He was 18 years old. Boys won the battle of Iwo Jima.
Boys. Not old men.
"The next guy here, the third guy in this tableau, was Sergeant
Mike Strank. Mike is my hero. He was the hero of all these
guys. They called him the
"old man" because he was so old. He was already 24. When Mike
would motivate his boys in training camp, he didn't say, "Let's go
kill some Japanese or Let's die for our country." He knew he was
talking to little boys. Instead he would say, you do what I say,
and I'll get you home to your mothers.
"The last guy on this side of the statue is Ira Hayes, a Pima
Indian from Arizona. Ira Hayes walked off Iwo Jima. He went
into the White House with my dad. President Truman told him,
"You're a hero." He told reporters, "How can I feel like a hero
when 250 of my buddies hit the island with me and only 27 of us
walked off alive?"
So you take your class at school, 250 of you spending a
year together having fun, doing everything together. Then all 250
of you hit the beach, but only 27 of your classmates walk off
alive.
That was Ira Hayes. He had images of horror in his mind. Ira
Hayes died dead drunk, face down at the age of 32, ten years after
this picture was taken.
"The next guy, going around the statue, is Franklin Sousley from
Hilltop, Kentucky, a fun-lovin' hillbilly boy. His best friend,
who is now 70, told me, "Yeah, you know, we took two cows up on the
porch of the Hilltop General Store. Then we strung wire across the
stairs so the cows couldn't get down. Then we fed them
Epsom salts. Those cows crapped all night."
Yes, he was a fun-lovin' hillbilly boy. Franklin died on Iwo Jima
at the age of 19. When the telegram came to tell his mother that
he was dead, it went
to the Hilltop General Store. A barefoot boy ran that telegram up
to his mother's farm. The neighbors could hear her scream all
night and into the morning. The neighbors lived a quarter of a mile
away.
"The next guy, as we continue to go around the statue, is my dad,
John Bradley, from Antigo, Wisconsin, where I was raised. My dad
lived until 1994, but he would never give interviews. When Walter
Cronkite's producers, or the New York Times would call, we were
trained as little kids to say, "No, I'm sorry, sir, my dad's not
here. He is in Canada fishing. No, there is no phone there,
sir. No, we don't know when he is coming
back."
My dad never fished or even went to Canada. Usually, he was
sitting there right at the table eating his Campbell's soup. But
we had to tell the press that he was out fishing. He didn't want to
talk to the press.
You see, my dad didn't see himself as a hero. Everyone thinks
these guys are heroes, cause they are in a photo and on a
monument. My dad knew better. He was a medic. John Bradley from
Wisconsin was a caregiver. In Iwo Jima he probably held over 200
boys as they died. And when boys died in Iwo Jima, they writhed and
screamed in pain.
When I was a little boy, my third grade teacher told me that my dad
was a hero. When I went home and told my dad that, he looked at me
and said, I want you always to remember that the heroes of Iwo Jima
are the guys who did not come back.
"So that's the story about six nice young boys. Three died on Iwo
Jima, and three came back as national heroes. Overall, 7,000 boys
died on Iwo Jima in the worst battle in the history of the Marine
Corps. My voice is giving out, so I will end here. Thank you for
your time."
Suddenly, the monument wasn't just a big old piece of metal with a
flag sticking out of the top.
It came to life before our eyes with the heartfelt words of a son
who did indeed have a father who was a hero. Maybe not a hero for
the reasons most people would believe, but a hero nonetheless.
We need to remember that God created this vast and glorious
world for us to live in, freely, but also at great sacrifice. Let
us never forget from the
Revolutionary War to the current War on Terrorism and all the
wars in between that sacrifice was made for our freedom.
Remember to pray praises for this great country of ours and also
pray for those still in murderous unrest around the world.
STOP and thank God for being alive and being free at someone else's
sacrifice.
God Bless You and God Bless America.
REMINDER: Everyday that you can wake up free, it's going to be
a great day.
SEMPER FI
The Battle of Iwo Jima
1945 Pacific theater
The information provided comes from
Iwo Jima, by
Richard Newcomb 1982. Naval action information is from
The
Fast Carriers: The Forging of an Air Navy, Clark Reynolds.
Operation Detachment
-
Reasons for the invasion of Iwo Jima
- strategically the island of Iwo Jima was crucial to continue
B-29 raid on mainland Japan.
- The island contained 3 airstrips that the Japanese had been
using for their Kamikaze attacks.
- With this island captured the Kamikazes would have to
operate from Okinawa or Kyushu.
- The airfields would provide a base for escort planes on
their raids with the B29s.
- Iwo Jima would provide an emergency landing strip half way
from Marianas island to mainland Japan
2/19 US Marines land on Iwo Jima at 8:59A.M.. This comes after
10 weeks of bombing from carrier based planes and medium bombers.
The preliminary bombardment had been the heaviest up to that point
in the war. A total of 70,000 U.S. Marines available for the
invasion. Against 27,000 Japanese
The operation is under the overall command of Adm. R. A. Spruance,
Commander Fifth Fleet. Vice Adm. R. K. Turner is the Joint
Expeditionary Force Commander and Lt. Gen. H. M. Smith, UsmC,
commands the Expeditionary Troops.
What the Marines had to go through on D-Day
The status of the invasion beaches on Iwo Jima after D-Day
Marine Artillery Firing Support to the Ground Troops
- The Japanese tactics would be more of a defense in-depth. No
suicide counter attacks.
- The Japanese would have built 800 pillboxes and over 3 miles
of tunnels on an island that was only 8 square miles in size.
- Marines landings all but easy.
- The volcanic ash impossible to climb through with 100
pound packs carried by the Marines.
- The high angle of the slope made return fire very
difficult during the initial landings.
- The Japanese started a mortar barrage that began at
9:15A.M.
- Beaches and slopes leading from the beaches all zeroed
in by the Japanese gunners.
- Anti-tank mines on the slopes effective against the
LVT(landing Vehicle Tracked) that are being used to deliver
the Marines ashore.
- The first objective was Mt. Suribachi located on the
southern end of the island.
- Until Mt. Suribachi was taken the Japanese could fire on any
position the Marines had established.
- It would be the Seabees and other support units that would
have high casualties in the early stages of the invasion.
- By the end of the first day the Marines had not captured
half of their original objective but they had over 30,000 troops
ashore to begin moving in land with force.
- Mt. Suribachi had been isolated and cut off and part of
Airfield #1 had been captured.
2/20 Marines start their advance south to Mt. Suribachi and north to
the airfields.
- The fighting up the mountain some of the most intense during
the war.
- Japanese soldiers entrenched in the mountain and would have
to be taken out by flame throwers and satchel charges.
- Close air support by Naval and Marine pilots sometimes only
a few hundred yards from advancing Marines.
- Use of Cruisers and Destroyers for close bombardment on
Japanese defenses.
- No Banzai attacks by the Japanese. This would insure it to
be a long drawn out battle.
- Marines even have to resort to setting fire to the ravines
with gasoline to force out Japanese.
2/21 Marines continuing their advance North and South on the island.
- Intense Kamikaze attacks strike U.S. naval invasion ships.
- The carrier Bismark Sea is sunk and carrier Saratoga is also
damaged.
- fighting on the island now a bitter frontal attack
reminiscent of the trench warfare of WW I.
- Daily gains are measured in yards with long bitter fighting
for each objective.
2/22 Marines finally have Mt. Suribachi surrounded and begin to
move up the face of the mountain.
2/23 First units of Marines now at the top of Mt. Suribachi after
bitter fighting.
- Patrol led by Lt. Harold Schreir raises a small flag on top
of Mt. Suribachi. at 10:20 A.M.
- Later a larger flag is brought from an LST(Landing Ship
Tank) and raised.
This was the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal that the
rest of the world saw.
- Advancements to north now have advanced to the second
airfield which is located in the center of the island.
2/24 4th and 5th Marines attack after a 76 minute naval bombardment.
Followed by an air strike and supporting artillery. It would be the
tanks that led the way for both divisions.
- The Japanese able to soon stop the tanks with ant-tank guns
and mines.
- By the end of the day the 5th had only gained 500 yards
- 3rd Marine division called in to lead the attack on the
center of the Japanese line.
2/25 3rd Marine division begins attack on the center of the Japanese
line at 9:30 A.M.
- This area was the strongest point of the Japanese defenses.
- Flame throwing tanks brought in to burn out the Japanese
defenders in their pillboxes.
- At high casualties the movement forward by the Marines was
very slow.
2/28 Marines finally occupy the high ground over looking airfield
#3.
- The objectives had been achieved but a number of hills
around airfield #3 were still occupied by Japanese.
2/31 Marines begin to attack hills 382 and 362A.
- Both hills were much smaller than Mt. Suribachi. the size
was very misleading
- The hills had both been hollowed out and turned into huge
blockhouses.
- They contained pillboxes, antitank guns and concealed
artillery.
- The smaller hills besides the two in this area were given
nicknames like the Turkey Knob, Meat Grinder and the
Amphitheater
- Some of the most intense fighting was fought to capture hill
382
3/1 Marines finally take hill 382 now move on to capture 362A
3/2For the attack on hill 362A the Marines decide on a night
attack.
- The tactics did surprise the Japanese but fierce fighting and
difficult terrain delayed the hills capture until March 8th.
- Even with the Marines occupying the strategic points on the
island the Japanese still continued to fight in smaller pockets.
3/4 First damaged B29 lands in Iwo Jima while fighting continues
all around the island.
3/6 First P-51 begin arriving on the capture airfields to provide
air support for the Marines. This also relieves Task Force 58 to
begin preparations for Okinawa on 4/1.
3/8 The Japanese attempt to launch a counter attack between two
Marine regiments (23rd and 24th)
- The attack was stopped because the Japanese were without
artillery support and were caught in the open by the U.S. Marine
artillery.
- The Japanese lost 650 men in that attack alone.
3/15 resistance continues in many small pockets located on the
island.
- Many Japanese are infiltrating behind the U.S. lines to
disrupt communication and attack headquarters.
3/25 Last pocket of Japanese
resistance was secured at Kitano
Point.
- That night over 200 Japanese infiltrate behind U.S. lines
- Legend says that the Japanese commander of the island led
the attack.(Gen.Kurbayashi)
- The next morning over 250 Japanese lay dead around the
Marines lines.
- That was the end of the resistance and the island was
declared secure on 3/26.
4/7 100 P51's now stationed on the island and are escorting B29's
on raids to Japan.
Total Losses
U.S. personnel 6,821 Killed 19,217 Wounded 2,648
Combat Fatigue Total 28,686
Marine Casualties 23,573
Japanese Troops 1,083 POW and 20,000 est. Killed
Final Analysis of the Battle
- The Naval bombardment of only 3 days leading up to the
invasion was far short than what was required. The Marines had
requested 13 days of prelanding bombardment but were denied this
request because of commitments to MaCarthur's campaign in Luzon.
- The U.S. had underestimated the Japanese
strength on the
island by as much as 70 percent.
- The change in Japanese tactics was not ever contemplated
because of earlier invasions on Saipan, Tarawa and Peleliu.
These all had early Banzai attacks that were easily defeated and
turned the tide of each invasion. This would not be the case
with Iwo Jima.
- The nature and the difficulty of the soil on the island was
never examined before the invasion.
- The estimates made on the U.S. casualties was underestimated
by 80 percent. 23,000 Casualties out of 70,000 Marines.
Over third of the total Marines who participated in the invasion
were either Killed, Wounded or suffered from Battle Fatigue.
- This would be a strong warning of what was to come with the
invasion of Okinawa.
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