Before you begin...

Before you begin...

To be able to understand these events we must first discuss the history of the attacks. The attacks on Attu and Kiska tend to be considered the "Forgotten Battle," as they occured at nearly the same time that Guadalcanal Campaign. They are disputed for their purpose; they were either meant as a distraction during the Battle of Midway or as a method of defense for Japan's northern fleet. Though both the Battle of Midway and the attacks on Attu and Kiska were ordered by the same commander, Isoroku Yamamoto, scholars have concluded that the attacks were meant as a measure of security for the northern fleet, not as a diversion in an attempt to pull forces north from Pearl Harbor (1). Further evidence shows this very notion; according to Gen. Hideichiro Higuda, Commander of the Japanese Northern Army, the invasion of Kiska and Attu was part of a threefold objective, to break up any offensives against Japan by way of the Aleutians, to place a barrier between the U.S. and Russia in case Russia decided to join the war against Japan, and to make preparation for air bases for future offensive action (2).

The initial attacks took place four days from each other, Kiska on June 3, and Attu on June 7th. Kiska was at first bombed, only to suffer little damage, and then invaded on June 6, one day prior to Attu. The invasions of Kiska and Attu met little resistance from the local Native Americans, allowing Japanese forces to take control of the islands (3). Two months later, American forces established an air base nearby and began bombing Japanese forces on Kiska, while patrolling the harbors with submarines. America's position on this front was to isolate Japanese forces; they did this until May 11, 1943, when American forces began an operation to recapture the island of Attu.

Today, the islands are left completely deserted, as the last of United States Coast Guard were pulled out in August 2010. One of the only things left standing is a Japanese memorial built by the Japanese government to the soldiers they lost in the campaign.

Use the questions in conjunction with the primary sources to develop a deeper understanding of how isolated, both physically and emotionally, the US military was in this region and how the capture of Attu and Kiska by Japan spawned radical racial hatred towards them.

(1) Parshall, Jonathan; Anthony Tully (2005). Shattered Sword: The Untold Story of the Battle of Midway. Potomac Books.
(2) Mitchell, Lt. Robert J.; Sewell T. Tyng, Capt. Nelson L. Drummond Jr., Gregory J. W. Urwin (April, 2000). The Capture of Attu: A World War II Battle As Told by the Men Who Fought There. University of Nebraska Press. pp. 2–3.
(3) Banks, Scott (April/May 2003). "Empire of the Winds" American Heritage.