The End of the Okinawa Fighting

Okinawa

Hari-kari to end Okinawa

‘The Fall of Japan” by William Craig, excerpt submitted by Rosalinda Morgan who can be found at https://subliblog.wordpress.com/

On the evening of the twenty-first of June, Generals Ushijima and Cho sat down to a sumptuous meal in their home under Hill 89. Overhead the Americans walked on top of the escarpment, where Japanese soldiers continued to resist them by fighting for every rock and tree.

The generals ate quietly. As their aids offered toasts, the two leaders drank to each other with dregs of whiskey preserved for this moment. A full moon shone on the white coral ledges of Hill 89 as a final tribute rang through the cave: “Long live the Emperor.”

At 4:00 A.M. on the morning of the twenty-second, Ushijima, cooling himself with a bamboo fan, walked with Cho between lines of crying subordinates to the mouth of the cave. There Cho turned to his superior and said, “I will lead the way.” The two generals emerged into the moonlight. They were followed by several staff officers.

Outside the entrance a quilt had been laid on top of a mattress. Loud firing sounded on all sides as American infantrymen, no more than fifty feet away, sensed movement. Ushijima proceeded to sit down and pray. Cho did the same.

Ignoring the guns and grenades, Ushijima bowed low toward the ground. His adjutant handed him a knife. The general held it briefly in front of his body, then ripped it across his abdomen. Immediately his adjutant raised a jeweled sword and brought it down across his neck. Ushijima’s head toppled onto the quilt and blood spattered the onlookers. Within seconds, General Cho died the same way.

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Okinawa, The Flag is raised

By 30 June, even the mopping up was completed’

The battle of Okinawa had ended. Over 12,000 Americans and more than 100,000 Japanese were dead and there were 7,401 military prisoners.  The American flag flew only 350 miles from Japan.

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Clearing the post of Naha, 19 June 1945

During the Okinawa campaign, a very strange “armed truce” occurred on a nearby island.  The commander of the small Japanese garrison asked to have time to consult with Tokyo about continuing his pointless holdout.  He later met several American emissaries on his beach and informed them that he was forbidden to surrender – but he would not fire on parties visiting the island for recreational purposes – on the condition that they did not molest his people.  Quite an improvement on the “old Pacific War”.

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Military Humor – 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Farewell Salutes – 

Alan I. Armour – Chicago, IL; US Army, Korean War, Lt., battalion cmdr. 187th RCT “Rakkasans”

Raymond Bonang – Boothbay Harbor, ME; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 880th Airborne Engineers

John Broderick – Pittsbourgh, PA; US Army, 756th Field Artillery Battalion, MSgt.

William Fouty Sr. – Tukwila, WA; USMC, WWII, PTO

G.M. ‘Jim’ Greene – Conway, AR; US Army, WWII, PTO, 7th Cavalry

John McGinnis – NY; US Army, Vietnam, 173rd Airborne Brigade

Chalmers Murray – Ft. Lauderdale, FL; US Army, WWII

Percy Overman Jr. – Newport News, VA; Merchant Marine, aviator

Howard Wildrick – Highland, NY; USMC

Thomas ‘Vic’ Varnedoe – Nashville, TN; US Army, Sgt., 2nd Infantry Division

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