_A Marine moves out to catch up with his unit after he has covered
a dead comrade with a poncho liner and marked his position with his
bayoneted rifle._]
The official history of the 27th Infantry Division recounts sadly
the reactions of its fellow regiments when the firestorm broke on
the 105th. The men of the nearby 165th Infantry chose that morning
to “stand where they were and shoot Japs without any effort to move
forward.” By 1600 that afternoon, after finally starting to move to the
relief of the shattered 105th, the 165th “was still 200 to 300 yards
short” of making contact. This tardiness was unfortunately matched by
“the long delay in the arrival of the 106th Infantry” to try to shore
up the battered troops of the 105th.
The extraordinarily bitter hand-to-hand fighting finally took the
momentum out of the Japanese surge, and it was stopped at last at the
CP of the 105th some 800 yards south of Tanapag. By 1800 most of the
ground lost had been regained.
It had been a ghastly day. The 105th Infantry’s two battalions had
suffered a shocking 918 casualties while killing 2,295 Japanese. One of
the Marine artillery battalions had 127 casualties, but had accounted
for 322 of the enemy. A final count of the Japanese dead reached the
staggering total of 4,311, some due to previous shell-fire, but the
vast majority killed in the banzai charge.
Amidst the carnage, there had been countless acts of bravery. Two that
were recognized by later awards of the Army Medal of Honor were the
leadership and “resistance to the death” of Army Lieutenant Colonel
William J. O’Brien, commander of a battalion of the 105th Infantry, and
one of his squad leaders, Sergeant Thomas A. Baker.
Three Marines each “gallantly gave his life in the service of his
country” and were posthumously awarded the Navy Medal of Honor. They
were Private First Class Harold C. Agerholm, Private First Class Harold
G. Epperson, and Sergeant Grant F. Timmerman.
The 3d Battalion, 10th Marines, which had fought so tenaciously in the
banzai assault, received the Navy Unit Commendation. Four years later,
the 105th Infantry and its attached tank battalion were awarded the
Army Distinguished Unit Citation.
While attention centered on the bloody battle on the coast, the 23d
Marines was attacking a strong Japanese force well protected by caves
in a cliff inland. The key to their elimination was an ingenious
improvisation. In order to provide fire support, truck-mounted rocket
launchers were lowered over the cliff by chains attached to tanks. Once
down at the base, their fire, supplemented by that of rocket gunboats
off shore, snuffed out the enemy resistance.
The next day, D+23, 8 July, saw the beginning of the end. The Japanese
had spent the last of their unit manpower in the banzai charge; now it
was time for the final American mop-up. LVTs rescued men of the 105th
Infantry who had waded out from the shore to the reef to escape the
Japanese. Holland Smith then moved most of the 27th Infantry Division
into reserve, and put the 2d Marine Division back on the line of
attack, with the 105th Infantry attached. Together with the 4th Marine
Division, they swept north towards the end of the island.
Along the coast there were bizarre spectacles that presaged a macabre
ending to the campaign. The official Marine history pictured the scene:
The enemy pocketed in the area had destroyed themselves in suicidal
rushes from the high cliffs to the rocky beach below. Many were
observed, along with hundreds of civilians, wading out into the sea
and permitting themselves to be drowned. Others committed hara-kiri
with knives, or killed themselves with grenades. Some officers,
using their swords, decapitated many of their troops.
[Sidebar (page 30): Medal of Honor Recipients
[Illustration: _Harold Christ Agerholm_]
Private First Class Harold Christ Agerholm was born on 29 January 1925,
in Racine, Wisconsin. “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the
risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with
the Fourth Battalion, Tenth Marines, Second Marine Division, in action
against enemy Japanese forces on Saipan, Marianas Islands, 7 July 1944.
When the enemy launched a fierce, determined counterattack against
our positions and overran a neighboring artillery battalion, Private
First Class Agerholm immediately volunteered to assist in the effort
to check the hostile attack and evacuate our wounded. Locating and
appropriating an abandoned ambulance jeep, he repeatedly made extremely
perilous trips under heavy rifle and mortar fire and single-handedly
loaded and evacuated approximately 45 casualties, working tirelessly
and with utter disregard for his own safety during a gruelling period
of more than 3 hours. Despite intense, persistent enemy fire, he ran
out to aid two men whom he believed to be wounded Marines, but was
himself mortally wounded by a Japanese sniper while carrying out his
hazardous mission. Private First Class Agerholm’s brilliant initiative,
great personal valor and self-sacrificing efforts in the face of almost
certain death reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United
States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.”
[Illustration: _Harold Glenn Epperson_]
Private First Class Harold Glenn Epperson was born on 14 July 1923,
in Akron, Ohio. “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the
risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving
with the First Battalion, Sixth Marines, Second Marine Division, in
action against enemy Japanese forces on the Island of Saipan in the
Marianas, on 25 July 1944. With his machine-gun emplacement bearing
the full brunt of a fanatic assault initiated by the Japanese under
cover of predawn darkness, Private First Class Epperson manned his
weapon with determined aggressiveness, fighting furiously in the
defense of his battalion’s position and maintaining a steady stream
of devastating fire against rapidly infiltrating hostile troops to
aid ... in breaking the abortive attack. Suddenly a Japanese soldier,
assumed to be dead, sprang up and hurled a powerful hand grenade into
the emplacement. Determined to save his comrades, Private First Class
Epperson unhesitatingly chose to sacrifice himself and, diving upon
the deadly missile, absorbed the shattering violence of the exploding
charge in his own body. Stouthearted and indomitable in the face of
certain death, Private First Class Epperson fearlessly yielded his own
life that his able comrades might carry on.... His superb valor and
unfaltering devotion to duty throughout reflect the highest credit upon
himself and upon the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his
life for his country.”
[Illustration: _Grant Frederick Timmerman_]
Sergeant Grant Frederick Timmerman was born on 14 February 1919,
in Americus, Kansas. “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity
at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Tank
Commander serving with the Second Battalion, Sixth Marines, Second
Marine Division, during action against enemy Japanese forces on
Saipan, Marianas Islands, on 8 July 1944. Advancing with his tank a
few yards ahead of the infantry in support of a vigorous attack on
hostile positions, Sergeant Timmerman maintained steady fire from
his antiaircraft sky mount machine gun until progress was impeded
by a series of enemy trenches and pillboxes. Observing a target of
opportunity, he immediately ordered the tank stopped and, mindful of
the danger from the muzzle blast as he prepared to open fire with
the 75mm, fearlessly stood up in the exposed turret and ordered the
infantry to hit the deck. Quick to act as a grenade, hurled by the
Japanese, was about to drop into the open turret hatch, Sergeant
Timmerman unhesitatingly blocked the opening with his body, holding the
grenade against his chest and taking the brunt of the explosion. His
exceptional valor and loyalty in saving his men at the cost of his own
life reflect the highest credit upon Sergeant Timmerman and the United
States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.”
]
[Sidebar (page 31): Navy Chaplains
Two types of non-combatants are attached to Marine units: members of
the Navy Medical Corps and Navy Chaplain Corps. Whenever the Marines
are in combat, they are well tended to in body and soul on the front
lines. Navy Lieutenant John H. Craven, Chaplain Corps, earned the
Bronze Star for his actions under fire on Saipan. Later he summarized
activities:
“In combat our main action was to go from place to place, unit to unit,
and start out early in the morning and go till dark, just visiting one
unit after the other and many times just have a very brief service. We
had some very small hymn books ... and some Testaments I could carry
in my map case, and we would just gather a few men together in a bomb
crater or defilade ... and I would have one service after the other.
Sometimes we had twelve, thirteen, or fourteen of those in one day,
especially on Sunday....
“Then we had to take our turn at the cemetery. Each chaplain from
different units would go down and take his turn for burial. We had a
brief committal service for each one as they brought the bodies in. And
I set myself up to try to keep up with all of the men of our units:
where they were, whether they were in the hospital. I worked closely
with a sergeant major and it was amazing how we were able to keep
up with men, and when they were killed and when and where they were
buried.”
Craven kept a notebook listing all the casualties, and he would keep
that current from day to day. Each evening he would compare notes
with the regimental sergeant major. It was a help to any chaplain to
know who were casualties and where, and to report and work with their
friends, and it was also a help to the sergeant major because it
verified reports he got.
When Chaplain Craven and the other chaplains returned to the rear
areas with their units, they started writing letters to the families
of everyone who was killed in the regiment, and added their letters to
those the commanding officers were required to write.
One other regimental chaplain used a special type of ministration. He
had a canvas gas-mask carrier slung over each shoulder. In one carrier
he had Scotch whiskey, in the other fried chicken. As he knelt by each
young, frightened, wounded Marine, he was invariably asked, “Am I going
to be O.K.?” “Sure you are!” was the cheerful answer. “While you are
waiting to be evacuated, would you rather have a drumstick or a wing?”
The young Marine would be so surprised he would forget about himself.
Then, when the chaplain asked if he wanted to wash it down with a swig
of Scotch, he couldn’t believe he was hearing correctly amidst all the
confusion, noise, and death all around him.
A young doctor, hearing about this chaplain, said, “That man probably
saved more young lives from dying of shock than will ever be known.”
[Illustration: Watercolor by SSgt John Fabion, Marine Corps Art
Collection.
_The Saipan cemetery was dedicated after the battle._]
]
_D+24, 9 July_
It was to be the final day of a long, grueling campaign. The 6th and
8th Marines came down from the hills to the last western beaches, while
the 4th Marine Division, with the 2d Marines attached, reached Marpi
Point, the northern end of the island.
There a final drama of horror was played out. Lieutenant Colonel
Chambers watched, amazed:
During this day as we moved along the cliffs and caves, we
uncovered civilians all the time. The Jap soldiers would not
surrender, and would not permit the civilians to surrender. I saw
with my own eyes women, some carrying children, come out of the
caves and start toward our lines. They’d be shot down by their own
people. I watched any number of women carrying children come down
to the cliffs that dropped to the ocean.
They were very steep, very precipitous. The women would come down
and throw the children into the ocean and jump in and commit
suicide. I watched one group at a distance of perhaps 100 yards,
about eight or ten civilian men, women and children get into a
little huddle and blow themselves up.... It was a sad and terrible
thing, and yet I presume quite consistent with the Japanese rules
of Bushido.
Lieutenant Stott in that same division witnessed other unbelievable
forms of self-destruction:
Interpreters were summoned, and they pleaded by amplifier for the
civilians to come forward in surrender. No movement followed....
The people drew closer together into a compact mass. It was
still predominantly civilians, but several in uniform could be
distinguished circling about in the throng and using the civilians
for protection. As they huddled closer, sounds of a weird singing
chant carried up to us. Suddenly a waving flag of the Rising Sun
was unfurled. Movement grew more agitated; men started leaping into
the sea, and the chanting gave way to startled cries, and with them
the popping sound of detonating grenades. It was the handful of
soldiers, determined to prevent the surrender or escape of their
kinfolk, who tossed grenades into the milling throng of men,
women, and children, and then dived into the sea from which escape
was impossible. The exploding grenades cut the mob into patches of
dead, dying, and wounded, and for the first time we actually saw
water that ran red with human blood.
With this kind of fanaticism characterizing the Japanese, it is not
surprising that 23,811 of the enemy were known dead, with uncounted
thousands of others charred by flamethrowers and sealed forever in
their caves. Only 736 prisoners of war were taken, and of these 438
were Koreans. American casualties numbered 3,225 killed in action,
13,061 wounded in action, and 326 missing in action.
The island was officially declared “secured” at 1615 on 9 July
(although “mopping up” continued afterwards). The 4th Marine Division
was later awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for its “outstanding
performance in combat” on Saipan and its subsequent assault on the
neighboring island of Tinian.
_Saipan’s Legacy_
The campaign on Saipan had brought many American casualties, and it
also heralded the kind of fighting which would be experienced in
subsequent operations in the Central and Western Pacific in the days
that lay ahead in the Pacific War. Holland Smith declared it “the
decisive battle of the Pacific offensive” for it “opened the way to
the home islands.” Japanese General Saito had written that “the fate
of the Empire will be decided in this one action.” A Japanese admiral
agreed, “Our war was lost with the loss of Saipan.” It had truly been a
“strategic strike” for the United States.
The proof of these fundamental judgements was dramatized four months
later, when 100 B-29 bombers took off from Saipan bound for Tokyo.
There were other fateful results. The United States now had a secure
advanced naval base for further punishing strikes close to enemy
shores. Emperor Hirohito was now forced to consider a diplomatic
settlement of the war. The militaristic General Tojo, the Premier, and
his entire cabinet fell from power on 18 July, nine days after Saipan’s
loss.
The lessons learned in this campaign would be observed in future
American operations, as flaws were analyzed and corrected. The clear
need to improve aviation support for the ground troops led directly
to the better results in the Philippine Islands and on Iwo Jima and
Okinawa. The artillery-spotting missions flown by VMO-2 and -4, set a
pattern for the use of the light planes in the future.
Naval gunfire support was also closely reviewed. General Saito had
written, “If there just were no naval gunfire, we feel we could fight
it out with the enemy in a decisive battle.” While more than 8,500 tons
of ammunition were fired by U.S. Navy ships, the flat trajectory of
the naval guns “proved somewhat limiting,” as the shells didn’t have
the plunging and penetrating effect which was needed against Japanese
strongholds.
Finally, there were lessons learned from the supply confusion that had
marred the early days on the beaches and hadn’t improved much since the
days of the Guadalcanal landing. Logistic problems had arisen because,
once a beach was in friendly hands, the ships were unloaded as rapidly
as possible and the sailors in the landing craft were in a hurry to get
into the beaches and back out again. Supplies were spread all over the
beach, partly because of the enemy’s artillery and mortar harassing
fire on the beaches, but also because of the corps’ hard-driving,
rapid attack, the estimate of resupply requirements was far too small.
For example, a shortage of radio batteries was never corrected. There
was insufficient time to sort and separate equipment and supplies
adequately. Consequently, there were mix-ups, with Marine uniforms
getting into Army dumps and Army supplies showing up in Marine dumps.
It was after the beach confusion at Saipan that the Navy decided a
permanent corps shore party should be organized. It would be solely
responsible for the movement of all supplies from the beach to the
dumps and for the subsequent issue to the divisions.
Tactical lessons learned were also new to the Central Pacific war.
Instead of a small atoll, the battle had been one of movement on a
sizable land mass, and it was further complicated by the numerous
caves and the defensive systems they provided for the Japanese. The
enemy had defended caves before, but never on such a large scale. On
Saipan, these caves were both natural and man-made. Often natural
vegetation gave them excellent camouflage. Some had steel doors which
could be opened for an artillery piece or machine gun to fire, and
then retreat behind the door before return fire could take effect. The
flame-throwing tanks could reach many of these caves and so proved very
useful. Unfortunately, their range was limited on Saipan, but this was
later improved.
Thus it was that the hard experiences on Saipan led to a variety of
changes which paid valuable dividends in saving American lives in the
future Pacific campaigns. And the loss of the island was a strategic
strike from which the Japanese never recovered, as the United States
drove forward to ultimate victory.
_Sources_
There are five principal official sources for the facts about the unit
actions on Saipan. These range from preliminary, condensed accounts
to massive, detailed final studies which reach down to the level of
company operations. In the interests of brevity, the author of this
monograph has limited himself to covering the actions of regiments and
divisions, with minor special exceptions.
The five sources are:
1) Henry I. Shaw, Jr., Bernard C. Nalty, and Edwin T. Turnbladh,
_Central Pacific Drive_, vol. 3, _History of U.S. Marine Corps
Operations in World War II_ (Washington: Historical Branch, G-3
Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, 1966).
2) Philip A. Crowl, _Campaign in the Marianas_, vol 9, _United States
Army in World War II, The War in the Pacific_ (Washington: Office of
the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, 1960).
3) Maj Carl W. Hoffman, USMC, _Saipan: The Beginning of the End_
(Washington: Historical Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps,
1950).
4) Capt James R. Stockman, USMC, _Campaign for the Marianas_
(Washington: Historical Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps,
1946).
5) Capt Edmund G. Love, USA, _The 27th Infantry Division in World War
II_ (Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1949).
In addition, there is a wide variety of other literature on the Saipan
operation. This material ranges from a 19-page essay by a Naval
Academy midshipman, to first-hand accounts appearing in the _Marine
Corps Gazette_, to wildly subjective books dealing with individual
experiences or the “Smith vs Smith” controversy.
To supplement the framework of unit tactics, vignettes of individuals
have been drawn from two principal sources:
1) The Personal Papers Collection of the Marine Corps Historical
Center has useful memoirs, particularly those of Frederick A. Stott
(473-4A32), John C. Chapin (671-4A44), and Robert F. Graf (1946-6B12).
2) In the Center’s Oral History Collection, the author examined well
over a dozen reminiscences and found only four that involved front-line
experiences: Lieutenant Colonel Justice M. Chambers, USMCR (C2);
Captain Carl W. Hoffman, USMC, (H2); Lieutenant Colonel William K.
Jones, USMC, (J2); and Lieutenant John H. Craven, ChC, USN, (C3).
_About the Author_
[Illustration]
Captain John C. Chapin earned a bachelor of arts degree with honors in
history from Yale University in 1942 and was commissioned later that
year. He served as a rifle platoon leader in the 24th Marines, 4th
Marine Division, and was wounded in action during the assault landings
on Roi-Namur and Saipan.
Transferred to duty at the Historical Division, Headquarters Marine
Corps, he wrote the first official histories of the 4th and 5th Marine
Divisions. Moving to reserve status at the end of World War II, he
earned a master’s degree in history at George Washington University
with a thesis on “The Marine Occupation of Haiti, 1915-1922.”
Now a captain in retired status, he has devoted major portions of 10
years to writing history as a volunteer at the Marine Corps Historical
Center. His first publication there was an official monograph, _A
History of VMFA-115_, for one of the Marine Corps’ better-known
squadrons. With support from the Historical Center and the Marine
Corps Historical Foundation, he then spent some years researching
and interviewing for the writing of a new book, _Uncommon_ Men--The
_Sergeants Major of the Marine Corps_. This was published by the White
Mane Publishing Co.
Acknowledgement is gratefully made to Lieutenant General William K.
Jones, USMC (Ret), for his first draft of an account of the Saipan
operation.
[Illustration]
THIS PAMPHLET HISTORY, one in a series devoted to U.S. Marines in
the World War II era, is published for the education and training of
Marines by the History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine
Corps, Washington, D.C., as a part of the U.S. Department of Defense
observance of the 50th anniversary of victory in that war.
Editorial costs of preparing this pamphlet have been defrayed in part
by a bequest from the estate of Emilie H. Watts, in memory of her late
husband, Thomas M. Watts, who served as a Marine and was the recipient
of a Purple Heart.
=WORLD WAR II COMMEMORATIVE SERIES=
_DIRECTOR OF MARINE CORPS HISTORY AND MUSEUMS_
=Brigadier General Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret)=
_GENERAL EDITOR,
WORLD WAR II COMMEMORATIVE SERIES_
=Benis M. Frank=
_CARTOGRAPHIC CONSULTANT_
=George C. MacGillivray=
_EDITING AND DESIGN SECTION, HISTORY AND MUSEUMS DIVISION_
=Robert E. Struder=, Senior Editor;
=W. Stephen Hill=, Visual Information Specialist;
=Catherine A. Kerns=, Composition Services Technician
Marine Corps Historical Center
Building 58, Washington Navy Yard
Washington, D.C. 20374-5040
=1994=