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โช
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At 7:56 on the morning
of December 7th, 1941,
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Japanese aircraft swooped
down over Hawaii.
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00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:09,976
Their target: The US
Pacific Fleet at anchor
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in its base at Pearl Harbour
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00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:23,480
Five U.S. ships were
hit immediately.
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00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:34,440
A few minutes later, more
Japanese aircraft joined in.
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00:01:43,640 --> 00:01:47,696
By 8:35, two U.S.
battleships were sinking,
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two had capsized, and
two were badly damaged.
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00:01:56,160 --> 00:01:58,736
A seventh battleship,
the Nevada,
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slipped her moorings and
was heading out to sea
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00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:04,040
when she too was caught
and forced to beach.
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00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:13,056
Simultaneously, Japanese Zero
fighters strafed U.S. aircraft
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00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:15,080
lined up on the
island's airstrips.
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00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:26,080
They also shot up
nearby army barracks.
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00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:36,536
By the end of the attack
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dozens of U.S. warships
had been sunk or damaged.
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00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:44,360
One hundred and eighty eight
aircraft were also destroyed.
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The next day, U.S. President
Franklin Roosevelt
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declared war on Japan.
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Since the unprovoked
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and dastardly attack by Japan
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on Sunday, December 7, 1941,
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a state of war
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has existed between
the United States
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and the Japanese empire.
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00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:28,760
The stage was set.
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Could Japan knock out the
United States with a swift blow
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before the huge might of
America ground it down?
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It would become one of the great
conflicts of World War II.
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Japan's first steps towards
war had come in August 1940.
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Capitalizing on France's
defeat in Europe,
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it seized control of
air bases in the north
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00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:06,200
of the French colony
of Indo-China.
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00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:10,920
It was looking for a quick and
easy expansion of its Empire.
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00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,896
A year later it issued an
ultimatum demanding the use
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of all French air bases
throughout Indo-China.
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When the French hesitated,
the Japanese invaded
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and seized control of
the entire colony.
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00:04:45,240 --> 00:04:48,320
Japan felt the consequences
almost immediately.
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00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:52,896
The United States froze its
overseas financial assets
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effectively robbing the country
of its ability to buy oil.
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Japan faced a choice.
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00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:03,176
Climb down and lose face,
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or seize more territory
and up the stakes.
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00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:13,016
For a new Japanese government,
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00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:15,816
under the aggressive
General Hideki Tojo,
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00:05:15,840 --> 00:05:18,680
there was no question about
which course to take.
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00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:24,456
Japanese Army and Navy
commanders were told to prepare
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00:05:24,480 --> 00:05:28,256
for a swift war to occupy all
the Far Eastern territories
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00:05:28,280 --> 00:05:31,376
controlled by Britain,
France, the Netherlands
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and the United States.
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The country was expecting
a swift victory.
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โช
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Japan saw the Americans,
in particular,
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as a nation of pleasure
lovers with no stomach
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for a lengthy war and
heavy casualties.
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00:05:57,800 --> 00:06:00,696
The Japanese military calculated
that if they could destroy
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00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:02,376
the U.S. Pacific fleet,
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00:06:02,400 --> 00:06:05,160
the U.S. would quickly
sue for peace.
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It was now that they decided
to attack Pearl Harbour
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Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto,
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commander of the
Japanese combined fleet,
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was put in charge.
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00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:25,496
He had ten battleships,
ten aircraft carriers,
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00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:28,440
and the world's most
advanced naval aircraft.
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00:06:36,960 --> 00:06:39,296
Against him, the U.S.
Pacific Fleet
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had eight World War I vintage
battleships and two carriers.
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Yamamoto planned the
attack with great care.
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00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:58,976
He would hit the U.S. fleet
in Pearl Harbour on a Sunday,
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since, according to
intelligence reports,
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it usually spent the
weekends in port.
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00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:16,536
In total radio silence,
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00:07:16,560 --> 00:07:19,736
the Japanese strike force
gathered in Tankan Bay
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in the northerly Kurile Islands.
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The fleet set sail on
November 26, 1941.
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Meanwhile, as a decoy,
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Japanese negotiators
arrived in Washington
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to discuss a possible Japanese
withdrawal from China.
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00:07:56,320 --> 00:07:59,720
The Japanese fleet refuelled
after several days at sea.
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00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,040
Three days later
it was off Hawaii.
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00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:10,936
The Americans were still
blissfully unaware
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00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:12,656
that anything was wrong.
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00:08:18,600 --> 00:08:22,896
At 6 AM on December 7th,
after a final briefing,
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00:08:22,920 --> 00:08:26,000
the first wave of Japanese
aircraft took off.
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00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:48,976
As the Japanese aircraft
dived into the attack,
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U.S. personnel were
still just stirring
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on a fine Sunday morning.
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00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:13,600
It was all over in less than
two and a quarter hours.
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00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:20,680
Yamamoto's plan had
worked like a dream.
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00:09:22,400 --> 00:09:23,400
Or had it?
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00:09:27,400 --> 00:09:29,376
There was only one problem.
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00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:32,336
The U.S. fleets' two aircraft
carriers had not been
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in Pearl Harbour at the time
and had escaped the attack.
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00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:44,976
Yamamoto's main aim of crippling the U.S.
Pacific fleet
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had only partially succeeded.
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00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:56,920
U.S. naval air power in the
region was still intact.
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00:09:59,160 --> 00:10:02,760
But in the United States there
was shock and disbelief.
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00:10:08,120 --> 00:10:11,920
It quickly turned into a mood
of fury and determination.
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Angry mobs attacked
the Japanese embassy.
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Japan had disturbed
the sleeping giant.
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00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:26,536
The U.S. Secretary of the Navy,
Frank Knox, spoke for many.
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00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:31,440
The Japs started this war.
We are going to finish it.
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00:10:37,520 --> 00:10:38,616
Yet, before the U.S.
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could mobilize its
full strength,
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00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:43,320
the Japanese were
to inflict more
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00:10:44,040 --> 00:10:47,000
humiliating defeats on
the Western Allies.
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00:10:54,200 --> 00:10:56,416
In December of 1941,
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as America was licking its
wounds after Pearl Harbour,
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00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:02,296
Japan launched a
series of attacks on
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western colonies in
South East Asia.
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00:11:08,640 --> 00:11:11,296
It thought it had
knocked out America.
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00:11:11,320 --> 00:11:14,200
Now it moved against
Britain and its colonies.
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00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:21,216
The first to be hit was Malaya,
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where a Japanese
force came ashore
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in the north-east
of the country.
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The plan was that it
should make its way south,
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down the east coast.
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00:11:41,560 --> 00:11:43,856
The invasion force was
met by a contingent
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of British Indian troops.
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00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:49,880
But after a day of fighting
they were brushed aside.
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00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:57,736
Meanwhile, further
north in Thailand,
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00:11:57,760 --> 00:12:00,640
a second Japanese
landing was unopposed.
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00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:07,416
Thirty thousand Japanese troops
were soon making their way
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down the western
coast of Malaya.
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00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:18,456
The target of the two
groups: Singapore.
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The centre of British military
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and political rule
in the Far East.
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00:12:31,400 --> 00:12:33,616
Britain had turned the
island into what it believed
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was an impregnable fortress.
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00:12:38,280 --> 00:12:41,520
But all the guns pointed
south, out to sea.
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00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:46,360
The Japanese were approaching
by land from the north.
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00:12:51,960 --> 00:12:56,256
Yet, British military commanders
remained remarkably untroubled.
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00:12:56,280 --> 00:12:59,416
They didn't rate the
Japanese as fighting men,
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00:12:59,440 --> 00:13:01,536
and believed the
Malay jungle was,
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00:13:01,560 --> 00:13:03,760
anyway, virtually impassable.
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00:13:11,200 --> 00:13:13,696
But the Japanese
had other ideas.
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00:13:13,720 --> 00:13:17,400
To soften up Singapore they
attacked the city from the air.
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00:13:24,480 --> 00:13:27,256
Britain sent the new
battleship, Prince of Wales,
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00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:29,736
and a battle cruiser, Repulse,
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00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,320
to attack Japanese
troop convoys.
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00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:37,880
They were met by
Japanese bombers.
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00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:52,800
Both warships were sunk
in less than two hours.
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00:13:53,960 --> 00:13:56,680
Almost 1,000 of their
crew were lost.
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00:14:00,560 --> 00:14:04,680
It was the greatest British
naval disaster of World War II.
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00:14:06,400 --> 00:14:09,776
In an era of aircraft
and aircraft carriers
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it was now clear the battleship,
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00:14:11,600 --> 00:14:14,056
for years the mainstay
of the British navy,
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00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:15,520
had had its day.
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00:14:25,920 --> 00:14:28,576
Back on land the Japanese
continued to head south
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00:14:28,600 --> 00:14:30,040
towards Singapore.
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00:14:33,760 --> 00:14:38,216
On January 11th, 1942,
Kuala Lumpur was captured.
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00:14:42,080 --> 00:14:45,080
The British forces fell back
and withdrew to Singapore.
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00:14:51,360 --> 00:14:55,176
There were now about 100,000
British soldiers to defend it.
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00:14:55,200 --> 00:14:58,360
They faced a force of
only 30,000 Japanese.
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00:15:03,800 --> 00:15:06,016
Even without their big guns,
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00:15:06,040 --> 00:15:08,760
the British should have
been able to hold out.
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00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:17,536
The Japanese launched an
assault in early February.
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00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:24,280
It was supported by
more air strikes.
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00:15:31,400 --> 00:15:34,600
The British defence was
soon reduced to chaos.
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00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:40,360
Civilian casualties
began to escalate.
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00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:47,376
Four days later the
Japanese had pushed
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through the last of the
British defensive lines.
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00:15:56,560 --> 00:15:59,376
The commander, General
Arthur Percival,
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surrendered with
over 90,000 men.
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00:16:08,360 --> 00:16:10,896
Never in the history
of the British Army
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00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:13,936
had a commander in charge
of such a large force
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00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:16,736
had to surrender, and
to an enemy general
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00:16:16,760 --> 00:16:19,800
whose force was outnumbered
more than three to one.
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00:16:21,080 --> 00:16:25,576
Britain's 200-year-old power
and prestige in the Far East
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00:16:25,600 --> 00:16:28,480
had been wiped out
in just 10 weeks.
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00:16:33,000 --> 00:16:35,080
But it wasn't the only disaster.
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00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:42,216
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia
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00:16:42,240 --> 00:16:45,240
the Japanese forces were
equally triumphant.
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00:16:49,240 --> 00:16:52,216
The British garrison in Hong
Kong fought for two weeks
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00:16:52,240 --> 00:16:54,680
before succumbing to
a Japanese invasion.
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00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:11,400
In the Philippines,
America fared no better.
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00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:18,776
Here, a preemptive bombing raid
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00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:21,376
caught large numbers of U.S.
aircraft
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00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:23,760
neatly lined up at Clark Field.
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00:17:29,000 --> 00:17:30,720
Most were destroyed.
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00:17:36,440 --> 00:17:40,416
Two days later, with U.S. air
power virtually non-existent,
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00:17:40,440 --> 00:17:42,640
Japanese troops began to land.
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00:17:56,040 --> 00:17:59,160
The local Philippine
troops melted away.
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00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:09,256
The Japanese advanced rapidly.
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00:18:12,160 --> 00:18:15,280
Ten days later
Manila was captured.
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00:18:24,440 --> 00:18:26,456
The U.S. soldiers were
forced to withdraw
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to the Bataan Peninsula.
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Here they hoped to hold out
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00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:35,160
until a relief force
could be sent.
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00:18:38,720 --> 00:18:40,120
It never came.
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00:18:46,480 --> 00:18:48,736
On April 3rd, 1942,
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00:18:48,760 --> 00:18:52,696
Japanese troops launched a major
assault on U.S. positions.
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00:18:56,120 --> 00:19:00,000
After four days of heavy
fighting they broke through.
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00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:07,000
The Americans surrendered
two days later.
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00:19:14,120 --> 00:19:18,480
That left just one British
colony in the region: Burma.
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00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:25,456
In early 1942,
Japanese forces pushed
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00:19:25,480 --> 00:19:27,160
into the south of the country.
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00:19:30,120 --> 00:19:33,160
The British defences had
been utterly neglected.
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00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,600
There were only some 15,000
men defending the country.
201
00:19:43,040 --> 00:19:45,400
They were no match
for the Japanese.
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00:19:51,480 --> 00:19:55,320
The Allied troops mounted a
brief but doomed resistance.
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00:20:09,320 --> 00:20:11,976
Less than two months
after invading Burma,
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00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:15,136
the Japanese had seized
the capital, Rangoon.
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00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:21,896
Eight weeks later the
British had been pushed
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00:20:21,920 --> 00:20:23,760
entirely out of the country.
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00:20:26,840 --> 00:20:30,656
In just under six months the
Japanese had seized control
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00:20:30,680 --> 00:20:33,656
of the whole eastern
rim of the Pacific.
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00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:37,680
Their Oriental Blitzkrieg had
been swift and crushing.
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00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:42,176
Yet, already, there
were warning signs
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00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:45,320
that they were not as
powerful as they appeared.
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00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:59,816
On April 18th, 1942, four
months after Pearl Harbour,
213
00:20:59,840 --> 00:21:02,320
America struck back
at the Japanese.
214
00:21:08,600 --> 00:21:11,256
U.S. bombers, flying
low over Tokyo,
215
00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:14,760
dropped bombs on the city close
to the Emperor's Palace.
216
00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:23,640
Others struck Yokohama,
Kobe and Nagoya.
217
00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:31,056
The raid, authorized by
President Roosevelt himself,
218
00:21:31,080 --> 00:21:33,000
was daring in the extreme.
219
00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:40,896
The B-25 Mitchell bombers
had not been designed
220
00:21:40,920 --> 00:21:43,320
to be launched from
aircraft carriers.
221
00:21:44,560 --> 00:21:46,976
They barely managed to
lumber off the deck
222
00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:49,256
of the U.S.S. Hornet,
which had brought them
223
00:21:49,280 --> 00:21:52,320
to within 700 miles of
the Japanese capital.
224
00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:03,480
But that didn't diminish their
effectiveness in the air.
225
00:22:09,360 --> 00:22:12,880
In Japan the raids
caused profound shock.
226
00:22:16,800 --> 00:22:19,976
After their runaway successes
of the past four months,
227
00:22:20,000 --> 00:22:22,880
they had never expected an
attack on their homeland.
228
00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:37,896
Japan's military
planners now decided to
229
00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:39,800
extend the country's defences
230
00:22:41,120 --> 00:22:44,216
If they could seize
additional strategic outposts
231
00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:47,176
in the Pacific, they
could attack and destroy
232
00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:51,160
Allied Forces before they even
come close to the homeland.
233
00:22:55,960 --> 00:22:59,176
Japan already controlled
much of the Chinese coast,
234
00:22:59,200 --> 00:23:01,720
Southeast Asia and
the Philippines.
235
00:23:04,680 --> 00:23:07,640
They had also seized
the Dutch East Indies.
236
00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:12,616
Now they decided to strike south
237
00:23:12,640 --> 00:23:16,000
and attack Papua New Guinea
and the Solomon Islands.
238
00:23:16,760 --> 00:23:19,216
And east to take the
Island of Midway
239
00:23:19,240 --> 00:23:20,680
in the middle of the Pacific.
240
00:23:21,400 --> 00:23:23,616
It would mean the homeland
was surrounded by
241
00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:25,760
a string of fortified positions.
242
00:23:27,160 --> 00:23:30,016
Yet, even as Japan was
planning its move,
243
00:23:30,040 --> 00:23:32,496
its operations were
severely compromised,
244
00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:35,160
though it only realized
this after the war.
245
00:23:38,240 --> 00:23:40,896
The United States had
broken its military
246
00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:42,720
and diplomatic codes.
247
00:23:48,360 --> 00:23:50,456
By spring 1942,
248
00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:53,576
the U.S. Navy's code-breaking
team in Hawaii
249
00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:55,096
was reading enough messages
250
00:23:55,120 --> 00:23:57,456
to give it a remarkably
accurate insight
251
00:23:57,480 --> 00:23:59,200
into Japan's intentions.
252
00:24:03,360 --> 00:24:04,576
So it was
253
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:06,536
that the U.S. commander-in-chief
in the region,
254
00:24:06,560 --> 00:24:09,856
Admiral Chester Nimitz,
learnt the details and timing
255
00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:13,056
of Japan's planned invasions
of the Solomon Islands
256
00:24:13,080 --> 00:24:14,840
and Papua New Guinea.
257
00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:19,920
If successful they would cut
off Australia from her allies.
258
00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:25,296
A Japanese bombing
raid on Darwin
259
00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:28,760
had already caused widespread
fear of an invasion.
260
00:24:38,840 --> 00:24:41,856
In early May, 1942,
the Japanese plan
261
00:24:41,880 --> 00:24:45,080
to widen its defensive
perimeter was launched.
262
00:24:47,440 --> 00:24:49,240
They seized the Solomon Islands.
263
00:25:00,600 --> 00:25:02,976
Two days later, the
Japanese carrier force
264
00:25:03,000 --> 00:25:05,376
entered the Coral
Sea in preparation
265
00:25:05,400 --> 00:25:08,280
for the main assault
on Papua New Guinea.
266
00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:19,640
But this time the Americans
had anticipated them.
267
00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:25,616
Admiral Nimitz had ordered two U.S.
aircraft carriers
268
00:25:25,640 --> 00:25:28,600
and a number of smaller
warships into the area.
269
00:25:36,120 --> 00:25:39,480
For two days the rival fleets
searched for each other.
270
00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:47,776
Then on May the 7th U.S.
aircraft
271
00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:51,640
located and sank the
Japanese carrier Shoho.
272
00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:06,400
The battle of the Coral
Sea was underway.
273
00:26:20,520 --> 00:26:23,816
Early the following day,
the Japanese responded,
274
00:26:23,840 --> 00:26:27,160
unleashing a hail of
torpedoes and bombs.
275
00:26:36,280 --> 00:26:39,336
To begin with the U.S.
aircraft carrier Yorktown
276
00:26:39,360 --> 00:26:42,040
managed to avoid the
Japanese torpedoes.
277
00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:52,056
But then she took a bomb
278
00:26:52,080 --> 00:26:55,000
which penetrated four
decks before exploding.
279
00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:01,320
Thirty seven men were killed.
280
00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:15,376
The larger and less manoeuvrable
carrier, Lexington,
281
00:27:15,400 --> 00:27:19,600
was also hit by several bombs
as well as two torpedoes.
282
00:27:26,840 --> 00:27:29,160
She developed a
heavy list to port.
283
00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:39,896
The Americans returned fire,
284
00:27:39,920 --> 00:27:42,520
attacking the Japanese
carrier Shokaku.
285
00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:55,296
The first U.S. raid was blunted
by Japanese Zero fighters
286
00:27:55,320 --> 00:27:58,056
which forced the U.S.
Douglas Devastator bombers
287
00:27:58,080 --> 00:28:00,520
to drop their torpedoes
too far out.
288
00:28:04,640 --> 00:28:06,640
All the torpedoes missed.
289
00:28:15,160 --> 00:28:18,720
But a second wave of U.S.
dive bombers struck home.
290
00:28:24,920 --> 00:28:27,776
The Shokaku's deck
was so badly damaged
291
00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:30,200
she could no longer
be used by aircraft.
292
00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:37,896
After two days of fighting
293
00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:40,880
the two forces
finally disengaged.
294
00:28:44,280 --> 00:28:47,176
That evening, the
Lexington, still afloat,
295
00:28:47,200 --> 00:28:50,240
suddenly erupted in
a huge explosion.
296
00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:59,176
There had been an undetected
leak of aviation fuel
297
00:28:59,200 --> 00:29:00,800
that had caught fire.
298
00:29:07,120 --> 00:29:11,616
Amazingly all but 215
of the nearly 3,000 men
299
00:29:11,640 --> 00:29:13,800
on board were rescued.
300
00:29:18,080 --> 00:29:21,136
Later that evening
an American torpedo
301
00:29:21,160 --> 00:29:23,000
scuttled the burning hulk.
302
00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:35,280
The Battle of the Coral Sea
was, on paper, a draw.
303
00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:39,616
Each side had lost one carrier
304
00:29:39,640 --> 00:29:41,720
and had another
severely damaged.
305
00:29:45,120 --> 00:29:49,360
Strategically, however, it
was a major U.S. success.
306
00:29:56,560 --> 00:30:00,576
It had prevented the Japanese
from seizing more territory,
307
00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:04,000
and it had stopped them
from isolating Australia.
308
00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:12,016
The Battle of the Coral Sea
309
00:30:12,040 --> 00:30:15,000
marked a new era
in naval tactics.
310
00:30:16,040 --> 00:30:18,176
It was the first major
sea battle in which
311
00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:19,496
the opposing ships
312
00:30:19,520 --> 00:30:21,720
were completely out
of visual contact.
313
00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:27,480
It was fought, instead, by
aircraft flying from carriers.
314
00:30:33,720 --> 00:30:36,496
It would soon become clear
which side had adapted
315
00:30:36,520 --> 00:30:40,520
to the new form of naval
conflict more successfully.
316
00:30:53,320 --> 00:30:55,536
By the late spring of 1942
317
00:30:55,560 --> 00:30:58,600
Japan and America
were deadlocked.
318
00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:05,376
Japan needed a quick victory if
it was not to be ground down
319
00:31:05,400 --> 00:31:08,040
by the huge resources
of the United States.
320
00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:13,280
In mid-May it began
its next move.
321
00:31:14,320 --> 00:31:18,960
U.S. code breakers reported
Japanese plans for a new attack.
322
00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:25,960
It would be on "Target AF",
somewhere in the mid-Pacific.
323
00:31:27,480 --> 00:31:28,896
The problem, for the Americans,
324
00:31:28,920 --> 00:31:32,680
was that they had no idea
where "Target AF" was.
325
00:31:35,440 --> 00:31:38,840
Could it be a reference to
Midway Island near Hawaii?
326
00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:41,896
An ideal jumping off
point for another attack
327
00:31:41,920 --> 00:31:44,280
on the American fleet
in Pearl Harbour
328
00:31:46,360 --> 00:31:50,096
The code breaking team
suggested a way to find out.
329
00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:51,776
The U.S. air base on Midway
330
00:31:51,800 --> 00:31:54,656
was instructed to send
an un-coded message
331
00:31:54,680 --> 00:31:57,440
reporting problems with the
island's water system.
332
00:32:03,360 --> 00:32:05,536
Almost immediately the
code breakers intercepted
333
00:32:05,560 --> 00:32:08,576
a Japanese signal
that "Target AF"
334
00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:10,720
was having water
supply problems.
335
00:32:14,400 --> 00:32:16,296
Admiral Chester Nimitz now knew
336
00:32:16,320 --> 00:32:18,880
exactly where the
enemy would strike.
337
00:32:25,120 --> 00:32:28,080
The Japanese plan was
typically complex.
338
00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:32,656
A diversionary attack
on the Aleutian islands
339
00:32:32,680 --> 00:32:37,016
in the North Pacific would draw
away part of the U.S. fleet,
340
00:32:37,040 --> 00:32:40,400
while Midway was seized
by an occupation force.
341
00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:46,536
The Americans would be
obliged to hurriedly
342
00:32:46,560 --> 00:32:50,000
commit their carrier force
to retaking the island.
343
00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:54,296
There they would be annihilated
344
00:32:54,320 --> 00:32:56,736
by a huge Japanese
naval presence
345
00:32:56,760 --> 00:32:59,640
including four large
aircraft carriers.
346
00:33:03,480 --> 00:33:05,096
It was the second
Japanese attempt
347
00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:08,440
to wipe out the U.S. Navy in
the Pacific within a year.
348
00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:17,896
Forewarned, the American
carriers left port
349
00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:19,176
and moved to a position
350
00:33:19,200 --> 00:33:21,080
where they could
ambush the Japanese.
351
00:33:29,520 --> 00:33:31,696
On June 3, 1942,
352
00:33:31,720 --> 00:33:34,656
Japanese forces launched
the expected attack
353
00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:36,360
on the Aleutian Islands.
354
00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:43,160
Nimitz didn't respond.
355
00:33:50,040 --> 00:33:52,736
Then, early the next morning,
356
00:33:52,760 --> 00:33:54,976
the main Japanese carrier force
357
00:33:55,000 --> 00:33:57,856
launched a first air
strike on Midway Island
358
00:33:57,880 --> 00:33:59,640
to soften up its defences
359
00:34:04,680 --> 00:34:07,440
U.S. war planes from the
island intercepted them.
360
00:34:11,160 --> 00:34:14,016
Most were outdated
Brewster Buffaloes
361
00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:16,536
and were easily shot
down by the more agile
362
00:34:16,560 --> 00:34:18,480
Japanese Zero fighters.
363
00:34:27,200 --> 00:34:30,176
But the Japanese attack
had been blunted.
364
00:34:30,200 --> 00:34:32,920
Midway's defences had
not been broken.
365
00:34:38,960 --> 00:34:41,936
The Japanese commander,
Admiral Chuichi Nagumo,
366
00:34:41,960 --> 00:34:43,720
faced a difficult decision.
367
00:34:47,520 --> 00:34:49,856
He'd kept some of his
aircraft in reserve,
368
00:34:49,880 --> 00:34:52,416
loaded with munitions
designed specifically
369
00:34:52,440 --> 00:34:54,136
for attacking ships,
370
00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:56,680
just in case the U.S.
fleet was spotted.
371
00:34:59,120 --> 00:35:01,376
Should he now order this
reserve to be stripped
372
00:35:01,400 --> 00:35:04,496
of its torpedoes and
armour-piercing bombs,
373
00:35:04,520 --> 00:35:08,496
and reloaded with high explosive
and fragmentation bombs
374
00:35:08,520 --> 00:35:10,720
for a second strike on Midway?
375
00:35:14,360 --> 00:35:18,176
It would leave him ill-equipped
to take on the U.S. Navy,
376
00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:21,120
but he calculated it was
a risk worth taking.
377
00:35:24,320 --> 00:35:27,056
Then, just as the
reloading was under way,
378
00:35:27,080 --> 00:35:29,400
he received unwelcome news.
379
00:35:31,400 --> 00:35:34,296
A U.S. Naval force
had been spotted.
380
00:35:34,320 --> 00:35:36,696
Was this the U.S. carrier force,
381
00:35:36,720 --> 00:35:40,120
or a smaller, less
significant, fleet of ships?
382
00:35:44,800 --> 00:35:46,976
Nagumo was in a dilemma.
383
00:35:47,000 --> 00:35:49,816
Should he continue with the
second strike on Midway,
384
00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,376
or should he, once again,
re-equip his bombers
385
00:35:52,400 --> 00:35:54,560
to take on the U.S. vessels?
386
00:36:01,200 --> 00:36:03,496
Nagumo decided to gamble.
387
00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:06,760
He would push ahead with the
second strike on Midway.
388
00:36:10,480 --> 00:36:13,016
His hope was that when
the bombers returned
389
00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:14,856
there would still be
time to rearm them
390
00:36:14,880 --> 00:36:16,800
to take on the U.S. ships.
391
00:36:19,040 --> 00:36:20,976
Even as he weighed the odds,
392
00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:24,240
the Japanese carriers were
attacked by U.S. bombers.
393
00:36:31,120 --> 00:36:34,616
Every available Japanese
Zero fighter was scrambled
394
00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:36,640
before the U.S. bombers
were repelled.
395
00:36:47,640 --> 00:36:50,816
Then came another report
from reconnaissance planes.
396
00:36:50,840 --> 00:36:54,840
The U.S. force did indeed
contain aircraft carriers.
397
00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:59,480
Nagumo was, once
again, on the spot.
398
00:37:00,600 --> 00:37:03,936
His aircraft were half
way through reloading,
399
00:37:03,960 --> 00:37:07,480
but the U.S. carriers were a
much more important target.
400
00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:12,176
He took a second gamble.
401
00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:14,976
He decided to change
their weapons yet again
402
00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:16,976
to attack the U.S. force.
403
00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:20,880
But while he did so, his ships
would be sitting ducks.
404
00:37:25,560 --> 00:37:27,736
Almost immediately
they came under attack
405
00:37:27,760 --> 00:37:31,016
from low-flying U.S.
torpedo bombers.
406
00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:33,016
But they were old and slow
407
00:37:33,040 --> 00:37:35,360
and attacked without
fighter support.
408
00:37:42,040 --> 00:37:44,336
As they approached
the Japanese fleet
409
00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:46,200
they were rapidly shot down.
410
00:37:53,400 --> 00:37:55,776
For a brief period
it looked as though
411
00:37:55,800 --> 00:37:58,080
Nagumo's gamble had paid off.
412
00:38:03,000 --> 00:38:06,136
Then, just as his bombers
had been reloaded
413
00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:09,096
and were ready to take on the U.S.
carriers,
414
00:38:09,120 --> 00:38:10,560
disaster struck.
415
00:38:13,360 --> 00:38:17,416
U.S. dive bombers, approaching
unseen at high altitude,
416
00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:19,520
hurtled down on his ships.
417
00:38:22,360 --> 00:38:25,400
The Japanese were caught
completely by surprise.
418
00:38:30,000 --> 00:38:32,576
Nagumo had gambled
once too often
419
00:38:32,600 --> 00:38:35,360
and was now at the mercy
of American air power.
420
00:38:38,000 --> 00:38:39,496
Within five minutes
421
00:38:39,520 --> 00:38:41,936
the U.S. dive bombers
had reduced three
422
00:38:41,960 --> 00:38:46,200
of Japan's largest aircraft
carriers to flaming wrecks.
423
00:38:48,040 --> 00:38:49,880
All would later sink.
424
00:38:55,320 --> 00:38:57,656
A fourth carrier, the Hiryu,
425
00:38:57,680 --> 00:39:00,096
had been masked by a rain storm,
426
00:39:00,120 --> 00:39:02,880
and that afternoon mounted
a desperate counterattack.
427
00:39:13,280 --> 00:39:16,776
The U.S. carrier Yorktown
was severely damaged.
428
00:39:24,760 --> 00:39:28,120
It was torpedoed by a Japanese
submarine several days later.
429
00:39:32,520 --> 00:39:35,640
But the Japanese fight
back was short-lived.
430
00:39:39,280 --> 00:39:41,736
Late in the afternoon that day
431
00:39:41,760 --> 00:39:46,240
the Hiryu was also hit and
turned into a blazing pyre.
432
00:39:49,720 --> 00:39:51,576
In a matter of hours
433
00:39:51,600 --> 00:39:55,320
Japan's mastery of the
sea had been destroyed.
434
00:39:57,200 --> 00:40:01,080
The attack on Midway Island
had achieved nothing.
435
00:40:05,040 --> 00:40:10,800
But it had cost Japan its finest
carriers and 332 aircraft.
436
00:40:12,960 --> 00:40:16,000
Well over 2,000 sailors
had also died.
437
00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:27,080
America now ruled the
waves in the Pacific.
438
00:40:28,920 --> 00:40:32,696
Yet, Japan was still
undefeated on land
439
00:40:32,720 --> 00:40:35,520
and a powerful, threatening
force in the air.
440
00:40:39,440 --> 00:40:41,416
In the coming months
it would try to
441
00:40:41,440 --> 00:40:43,280
maximize these advantages.
442
00:40:55,200 --> 00:40:57,696
By summer 1942,
443
00:40:57,720 --> 00:40:59,976
Japanese plans to build
a defensive ring
444
00:41:00,000 --> 00:41:02,816
of occupied territories
around their homeland
445
00:41:02,840 --> 00:41:05,040
had still not been completed.
446
00:41:09,240 --> 00:41:12,736
Heavy losses at sea had
frustrated their attempts
447
00:41:12,760 --> 00:41:16,560
to grab Papua New Guinea and
islands in the central Pacific.
448
00:41:18,640 --> 00:41:22,016
Japanese planners now
came up with a new plan.
449
00:41:22,040 --> 00:41:25,520
If they couldn't do it by
sea, they'd do it by land.
450
00:41:28,120 --> 00:41:31,656
On July 21st, a
division-sized force
451
00:41:31,680 --> 00:41:33,976
of experienced jungle troops
452
00:41:34,000 --> 00:41:37,240
landed on the northern
coast of Papua New Guinea.
453
00:41:40,520 --> 00:41:42,336
They immediately struck west
454
00:41:42,360 --> 00:41:44,760
to capture Port
Moresby, the capital.
455
00:41:50,480 --> 00:41:52,440
Progress was swift at first.
456
00:41:54,280 --> 00:41:56,656
The small Australian
defence force
457
00:41:56,680 --> 00:41:58,560
was completely outnumbered.
458
00:42:07,480 --> 00:42:10,256
Within weeks the Japanese
had captured the main pass
459
00:42:10,280 --> 00:42:12,360
over the Owen Stanley Mountains.
460
00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:23,256
They then halted to
await reinforcements
461
00:42:23,280 --> 00:42:26,120
before the final push
on Port Moresby.
462
00:42:31,840 --> 00:42:34,800
The Australians also
mustered new forces.
463
00:42:41,200 --> 00:42:43,296
When the Japanese
moved off again
464
00:42:43,320 --> 00:42:45,560
they now met much
stiffer resistance.
465
00:42:53,320 --> 00:42:56,456
For the first time, Japanese
troops were up against men
466
00:42:56,480 --> 00:43:00,400
who matched them for training,
experience and morale.
467
00:43:01,480 --> 00:43:03,616
The Australians
stood their ground,
468
00:43:03,640 --> 00:43:05,496
and the Japanese
were temporarily
469
00:43:05,520 --> 00:43:06,960
brought to a standstill.
470
00:43:18,720 --> 00:43:21,520
But conditions in the
jungle were appalling.
471
00:43:24,000 --> 00:43:26,280
There was constant
tropical rain.
472
00:43:31,000 --> 00:43:32,520
Malaria was rife.
473
00:43:36,120 --> 00:43:39,840
The Australians were eventually,
again, forced to retreat.
474
00:43:51,800 --> 00:43:54,176
After two months
of grim fighting,
475
00:43:54,200 --> 00:43:58,056
the Japanese were within
30 miles of Port Moresby.
476
00:44:01,920 --> 00:44:05,400
Then, finally, U.S.
reinforcements arrived.
477
00:44:18,840 --> 00:44:22,016
Through September and
October, the Japanese were,
478
00:44:22,040 --> 00:44:24,120
in their turn, forced back.
479
00:44:35,160 --> 00:44:39,520
The Japanese made an
heroic but suicidal stand.
480
00:44:45,280 --> 00:44:48,280
Many chose to die fighting
rather than surrender.
481
00:45:02,720 --> 00:45:04,896
It took the Allies
another two months
482
00:45:04,920 --> 00:45:07,320
before the Japanese were
finally overwhelmed.
483
00:45:11,960 --> 00:45:13,960
It had been a bloodbath.
484
00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:26,536
Fifteen thousand Japanese troops
had embarked on the operation.
485
00:45:26,560 --> 00:45:28,880
Only 3,000 got away.
486
00:45:35,000 --> 00:45:37,416
The Japanese were in trouble.
487
00:45:37,440 --> 00:45:39,016
They'd lost at sea.
488
00:45:39,040 --> 00:45:42,136
They were now rapidly losing
the initiative on land.
489
00:45:42,160 --> 00:45:45,360
American military might
was asserting itself.
490
00:45:50,240 --> 00:45:53,880
There was only one
alternative left: air power.
491
00:46:03,480 --> 00:46:06,016
Through the summer of 1942,
492
00:46:06,040 --> 00:46:08,576
Japanese engineers began
building a string
493
00:46:08,600 --> 00:46:10,560
of airstrips across the Pacific.
494
00:46:13,920 --> 00:46:16,576
One was on the island
of Guadalcanal
495
00:46:16,600 --> 00:46:18,280
in the southern Solomon Islands.
496
00:46:19,720 --> 00:46:21,736
It was particularly
well situated
497
00:46:21,760 --> 00:46:24,680
to threaten U.S. convoys
heading for Australia.
498
00:46:28,320 --> 00:46:31,160
It would become the focus
of an epic battle.
499
00:46:37,560 --> 00:46:39,776
In July, 1942,
500
00:46:39,800 --> 00:46:43,400
an amphibious force of U.S.
marines invaded the island.
501
00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:48,040
They landed without resistance.
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00:46:54,640 --> 00:46:57,816
The plan was to capture
the half-built airstrip,
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00:46:57,840 --> 00:47:01,280
complete it and then turn
it into a U.S. base.
504
00:47:04,520 --> 00:47:07,400
But the Japanese were
not ready to give up.
505
00:47:10,320 --> 00:47:14,056
That night they sent in a naval
force to land reinforcements
506
00:47:14,080 --> 00:47:16,296
and to attack the fleet of U.S.
ships
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00:47:16,320 --> 00:47:17,880
supporting the marines.
508
00:47:29,160 --> 00:47:32,016
In a dazzling display
of night fighting
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00:47:32,040 --> 00:47:35,496
the Japanese cruisers
sank four Allied warships
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00:47:35,520 --> 00:47:37,680
and drove the rest out to sea.
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00:47:44,160 --> 00:47:47,496
The marines were now
marooned without supplies
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00:47:47,520 --> 00:47:49,720
and without much of
their equipment.
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00:47:51,560 --> 00:47:53,840
They dug in around the airstrip.
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00:47:57,800 --> 00:48:00,336
Despite constant bombardment,
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00:48:00,360 --> 00:48:04,096
using construction machinery
left behind by the Japanese,
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00:48:04,120 --> 00:48:07,000
they pushed ahead with the
completion of the airfield.
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00:48:18,160 --> 00:48:21,816
Two weeks later a group of U.S.
Wildcat fighters
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00:48:21,840 --> 00:48:24,720
and Dauntless dive
bombers flew in.
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00:48:29,000 --> 00:48:31,160
They were not a moment too soon.
520
00:48:40,720 --> 00:48:44,056
The next day, newly
arrived Japanese troops
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00:48:44,080 --> 00:48:47,480
launched a series of suicidal
attacks on the airstrip.
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00:48:54,920 --> 00:48:57,856
Over the following
months, wave after wave
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00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:01,000
of fanatical troops were
thrown into the battle.
524
00:49:11,000 --> 00:49:13,336
By the winter of 1942,
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00:49:13,360 --> 00:49:16,576
the two sides had fought
themselves to a standstill.
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00:49:16,600 --> 00:49:19,960
Both now dug in to
defensive positions.
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00:49:28,920 --> 00:49:32,856
Then, in December, the exhausted U.S.
marines
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00:49:32,880 --> 00:49:35,160
were replaced by fresh troops.
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00:49:41,880 --> 00:49:44,216
U.S. soldiers now
began a new push
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00:49:44,240 --> 00:49:48,360
on the increasingly isolated
pockets of Japanese resistance.
531
00:50:00,120 --> 00:50:03,296
By early February, 1943,
532
00:50:03,320 --> 00:50:07,200
the Americans had finally
won control of Guadalcanal.
533
00:50:12,200 --> 00:50:16,120
They had now beaten the
Japanese at sea and on land.
534
00:50:18,280 --> 00:50:21,040
They had even denied
them access to the air.
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00:50:23,320 --> 00:50:26,160
The Oriental
Blitzkrieg had failed.
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00:50:28,440 --> 00:50:31,056
The Japanese Empire
now faced a foe
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00:50:31,080 --> 00:50:33,656
that was still
growing in strength,
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00:50:33,680 --> 00:50:36,120
at a rate it could
never hope to match.
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00:50:39,640 --> 00:50:42,496
It was the beginning
of a fundamental shift
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00:50:42,520 --> 00:50:44,240
in the course of the war.
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