1 00:00:00,001 --> 00:00:03,080 Sub extracted from file and improved by Se7enOfNin9 for addic7ed.com 2 00:00:05,080 --> 00:00:07,000 It's hard to comprehend the scale 3 00:00:07,160 --> 00:00:09,600 of the Pacific-Asian theatre of war. 4 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:11,680 It stretches from Hawaii to Burma, 5 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:14,240 from the Aleutian Islands to Indochina. 6 00:00:15,280 --> 00:00:18,520 In 1942, the United States sends fighting men 7 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:21,840 to far-off places most Americans had never heard of. 8 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:24,800 They are soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines 9 00:00:24,966 --> 00:00:26,966 from every town in America. 10 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:29,960 They will confront an enemy whose moral code 11 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:31,840 does not permit surrender. 12 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:36,079 All wars change the world. 13 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:38,039 But none of them changed the world 14 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:39,760 like the Second World War did. 15 00:00:40,260 --> 00:00:43,080 Japan's on the march, Germany's on the march. 16 00:00:44,573 --> 00:00:46,239 No one can imagine the nightmare 17 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:47,920 they're about to unleash. 18 00:00:48,080 --> 00:00:50,800 The most destructive war in human history. 19 00:00:51,100 --> 00:00:54,175 Suddenly, the world is turned upside down, 20 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:56,060 and all hell is let loose. 21 00:00:57,620 --> 00:01:00,960 The West is stunned by the speed of the advance. 22 00:01:02,100 --> 00:01:05,020 You get the Allies, led by the big three... 23 00:01:05,380 --> 00:01:07,820 Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin... 24 00:01:07,980 --> 00:01:12,860 men who are dealing with immensely complicated questions. 25 00:01:13,180 --> 00:01:17,029 It's the biggest military operation of human history. 26 00:01:17,140 --> 00:01:18,959 The Allies have to come together, 27 00:01:18,960 --> 00:01:21,718 not just militarily, but industrial scale. 28 00:01:21,743 --> 00:01:23,710 It's a global perspective. 29 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:25,460 They have to fight in every climate, 30 00:01:25,620 --> 00:01:28,999 from the Arctic to the jungles of the Pacific 31 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:32,260 to the deserts of Africa and the depths of the ocean. 32 00:01:35,220 --> 00:01:38,140 But there was no certainty of victory. 33 00:01:38,300 --> 00:01:41,243 It was going to be a horrific bloodbath. 34 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:43,540 We see humans at their absolute worst, 35 00:01:43,700 --> 00:01:45,860 how they treat other human beings. 36 00:01:46,020 --> 00:01:47,963 And we see them at their absolute best, 37 00:01:47,988 --> 00:01:50,268 willing to give their lives that others might live. 38 00:01:50,620 --> 00:01:52,719 World War II was a struggle 39 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:54,620 in which there could be one victor... 40 00:01:55,596 --> 00:01:57,240 and one vanquished. 41 00:02:20,380 --> 00:02:23,180 Hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, 42 00:02:23,340 --> 00:02:25,780 Japan invades the Philippines. 43 00:02:29,500 --> 00:02:31,260 They begin with a devastating strike 44 00:02:31,420 --> 00:02:33,760 against the US air base at Clark Field... 45 00:02:35,260 --> 00:02:37,839 Then land 35,000 troops 46 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:40,440 and advance on the capital, Manila. 47 00:02:43,866 --> 00:02:47,306 American and Filipino forces are overwhelmed. 48 00:02:54,860 --> 00:02:57,300 Within weeks, Manila is captured. 49 00:03:01,973 --> 00:03:03,793 There was a Philippine war plan 50 00:03:03,818 --> 00:03:06,800 that in the event of a Japanese major invasion, 51 00:03:06,806 --> 00:03:09,980 the forces would withdraw to Bataan. 52 00:03:12,540 --> 00:03:16,540 Bataan is strategically located next to Manila Bay. 53 00:03:16,700 --> 00:03:18,580 It's this rocky peninsula. 54 00:03:18,605 --> 00:03:21,615 It's got two dormant volcanoes that are sitting in the middle of it, 55 00:03:21,640 --> 00:03:24,020 and so it's really good defensive terrain. 56 00:03:25,340 --> 00:03:29,740 On December 23, 1941, US and Filipino troops 57 00:03:29,900 --> 00:03:33,100 begin their retreat to the Peninsula of Bataan. 58 00:03:37,637 --> 00:03:39,610 You have this chaotic retreat. 59 00:03:41,780 --> 00:03:44,900 About 100,000 US and Filipino troops, 60 00:03:45,060 --> 00:03:48,820 and we should add the 25,000 civilians, 61 00:03:48,987 --> 00:03:51,240 Filipino but also Americans, 62 00:03:51,446 --> 00:03:54,180 now desperate to escape the attacking Japanese. 63 00:03:57,500 --> 00:03:59,620 As the troops retreat, 64 00:04:00,100 --> 00:04:01,999 the Japanese continue following 65 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:04,740 a well-planned, well-coordinated offensive 66 00:04:05,260 --> 00:04:07,780 aimed at British and Dutch colonies. 67 00:04:11,950 --> 00:04:15,900 They have already invaded Burma, Borneo, and Malaya. 68 00:04:17,340 --> 00:04:20,500 They take Hong Kong on Christmas Day, 69 00:04:20,660 --> 00:04:22,940 then move further into Malaya. 70 00:04:24,420 --> 00:04:27,740 Malaya is considered difficult jungle terrain. 71 00:04:29,380 --> 00:04:30,860 But the Japanese, 72 00:04:31,020 --> 00:04:33,700 using bicycle infantry and some tanks, 73 00:04:34,500 --> 00:04:36,300 manage to push south... 74 00:04:37,420 --> 00:04:39,340 ...to the island of Singapore... 75 00:04:40,687 --> 00:04:43,847 ...known as the Gibraltar of the East. 76 00:04:45,980 --> 00:04:49,040 Singapore was our military base, 77 00:04:49,180 --> 00:04:52,140 with its massive naval facilities... 78 00:04:53,300 --> 00:04:55,759 ...guns facing into the sea 79 00:04:55,760 --> 00:04:57,815 so that it could protect that position, 80 00:04:57,840 --> 00:05:00,335 and really a military HQ 81 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:02,460 for the Empire in the Far East. 82 00:05:03,180 --> 00:05:06,340 They begin their assault on February 8th. 83 00:05:15,820 --> 00:05:19,223 Winston Churchill, back in London, is looking on in horror. 84 00:05:19,248 --> 00:05:20,599 He's an Empire man. 85 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:23,159 He said many times, he didn't come to power 86 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:26,199 to oversee the liquidation of His Majesty's empire, 87 00:05:26,200 --> 00:05:28,980 but it's crumbling before his eyes. 88 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:33,559 Churchill cannot abandon the defence of Britain 89 00:05:33,560 --> 00:05:35,300 and the Battle of the Atlantic. 90 00:05:37,099 --> 00:05:40,639 He cannot risk losing the whole of the Mediterranean, 91 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:43,780 North Africa, and the Middle East, to Axis forces. 92 00:05:44,460 --> 00:05:46,040 So what's got to go? 93 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:47,960 Unfortunately for Churchill, 94 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:50,319 he's got to scrimp and save when it comes 95 00:05:50,320 --> 00:05:51,920 to defence in the Far East. 96 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:55,100 It's just too much for Britain to handle. 97 00:06:00,980 --> 00:06:02,839 The Japanese take advantage 98 00:06:02,840 --> 00:06:04,679 of British military mistakes 99 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:07,500 and capture the island in only seven days. 100 00:06:09,460 --> 00:06:12,000 Tens of thousands of Commonwealth troops 101 00:06:12,160 --> 00:06:14,280 are trapped and imprisoned. 102 00:06:17,399 --> 00:06:20,639 Singapore was the granite foundation 103 00:06:20,640 --> 00:06:24,260 of the British Empire in Asia, and, boom... 104 00:06:24,820 --> 00:06:27,660 ...in the space of days, it falls. 105 00:06:34,350 --> 00:06:38,039 The idea that Japanese forces could go into this historic place, 106 00:06:38,040 --> 00:06:41,959 a real symbol of British power and prestige in Asia, 107 00:06:41,960 --> 00:06:44,159 and take it within such a short time 108 00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:47,860 is absolutely tremendous as far as Japanese are concerned. 109 00:06:48,540 --> 00:06:51,359 This is Britain's Fall of Rome moment 110 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:53,060 in its Asian empire. 111 00:06:53,980 --> 00:06:56,460 Japan has plunged into the war 112 00:06:56,780 --> 00:07:00,400 and is ravaging the beautiful, fertile, prosperous, 113 00:07:00,560 --> 00:07:03,860 and densely populated lands of the Far East. 114 00:07:04,500 --> 00:07:06,479 The British Empire now for centuries 115 00:07:06,480 --> 00:07:09,639 had been the most powerful empire the world had ever seen. 116 00:07:09,640 --> 00:07:12,079 The Japanese had cracked it like an egg. 117 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:17,399 By the time the shock of Pearl Harbor, 118 00:07:17,400 --> 00:07:18,759 you know, wears off, 119 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:21,799 the Japanese have taken their empire 120 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:23,880 and expanded it seemingly overnight. 121 00:07:27,980 --> 00:07:32,400 Japan's Asian offensive has two primary war aims. 122 00:07:32,580 --> 00:07:36,580 First, the seizure of raw materials like oil and rubber. 123 00:07:37,643 --> 00:07:41,261 Second, to replace the Western colonial powers 124 00:07:41,286 --> 00:07:43,646 who have long dominated the region 125 00:07:44,427 --> 00:07:47,160 and establish an empire of their own. 126 00:07:49,760 --> 00:07:53,279 This is one of the most audacious offensives in military history. 127 00:07:56,900 --> 00:08:01,679 In late 1941, early 1942, it's good news every week, 128 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:03,660 almost every day, coming in. 129 00:08:04,988 --> 00:08:07,439 They are liberating Asia. 130 00:08:07,440 --> 00:08:10,780 They are pushing back white Western colonial power. 131 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:17,080 The speed and scope of the Japanese offensive 132 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:18,860 stuns the world. 133 00:08:20,720 --> 00:08:23,839 A year earlier, General Tomoyuki Yamashita, 134 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:26,759 the commander of the assault on the Philippines, 135 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:31,060 consults with Japan's Axis ally, Nazi Germany. 136 00:08:31,260 --> 00:08:33,439 Japan is eager to adapt 137 00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:35,799 the Wehrmacht's blitzkrieg tactics 138 00:08:35,800 --> 00:08:38,440 to a very different theatre of war. 139 00:08:40,940 --> 00:08:43,463 He was really admiring the German blitzkrieg, 140 00:08:43,488 --> 00:08:44,910 the German lightning war, 141 00:08:44,935 --> 00:08:47,719 and he took the German blitzkrieg 142 00:08:47,720 --> 00:08:52,599 as the role model for a future Japanese war in Southeast Asia. 143 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:56,610 So we must surprise the enemy. We must be fast. 144 00:08:59,780 --> 00:09:02,479 It's always movement, movement, movement. 145 00:09:02,480 --> 00:09:04,603 For the enemy, for their enemy, for the Allies, 146 00:09:04,628 --> 00:09:06,468 it looks like the Japanese aren't even thinking 147 00:09:06,493 --> 00:09:08,919 about what they're doing, because they're moving so fast 148 00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:11,340 and they're moving constantly. 149 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:15,228 But this has a kind of shock effect on the troops there 150 00:09:15,253 --> 00:09:17,533 that are trying to defend the peninsula. 151 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:25,300 The Japanese have learned to move quickly, 152 00:09:25,740 --> 00:09:28,780 move stealthily. They fight well at night, 153 00:09:29,060 --> 00:09:31,559 which is what most armies are not good at. 154 00:09:31,560 --> 00:09:34,319 They are pretty good at operational art; 155 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:36,839 don't attack strongpoints, envelop the enemy, 156 00:09:36,840 --> 00:09:40,039 put them in untenable positions either in time or space. 157 00:09:40,040 --> 00:09:43,740 And, hence, it defines a lot of their victories early in the war. 158 00:09:45,860 --> 00:09:47,860 The British underestimate the Japanese. 159 00:09:48,740 --> 00:09:50,519 I think part of that was racism. 160 00:09:50,520 --> 00:09:52,639 I think they were astonished 161 00:09:52,640 --> 00:09:56,660 that a non-European race could defeat Europeans in battle. 162 00:09:58,706 --> 00:10:01,199 They didn't consider Asian people capable 163 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:03,159 of what the Japanese are doing. 164 00:10:03,160 --> 00:10:06,100 After the Japanese land in Malaya, 165 00:10:06,180 --> 00:10:07,519 Singapore's governor, 166 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:10,239 Sir Shenton Thomas, allegedly says, 167 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:13,320 "Well, I suppose you'll have to shove the little men off." 168 00:10:17,370 --> 00:10:19,540 But British hubris is no match 169 00:10:19,565 --> 00:10:22,120 for Japanese military prowess. 170 00:10:24,051 --> 00:10:26,000 There had always been this faction 171 00:10:26,001 --> 00:10:30,421 in the Imperial Japanese Army called the Kodoha, the Imperial Way Faction, 172 00:10:30,446 --> 00:10:32,519 whose belief was, because 173 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:34,815 of Japan's extraordinary fighting spirit 174 00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:36,630 in the blood of their soldiers, 175 00:10:36,655 --> 00:10:38,657 we can overcome the odds. 176 00:10:38,706 --> 00:10:41,200 And that really is drummed into the soldiers. 177 00:10:43,631 --> 00:10:46,719 So there is this esprit de corps within the Japanese Army. 178 00:10:46,720 --> 00:10:49,159 It's guided by this belief in Bushido, 179 00:10:49,160 --> 00:10:50,660 the way of the warrior. 180 00:10:52,970 --> 00:10:55,639 Japanese military discipline is instilled 181 00:10:55,640 --> 00:10:57,700 by physically harsh measures. 182 00:10:58,580 --> 00:11:01,719 Officers abuse non-commissioned officers, 183 00:11:01,720 --> 00:11:03,940 who in turn abuse the men. 184 00:11:05,420 --> 00:11:09,480 You can see in diaries and in letters home people saying, 185 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:10,919 "I got beaten up today. 186 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:12,559 I got slapped. I got punched. 187 00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:14,800 I had a rifle butt get me in the stomach." 188 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:19,759 There is a fair amount of ritualistic abuse 189 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:22,519 that takes place as they go through 190 00:11:22,520 --> 00:11:24,580 what they would refer to as lessons. 191 00:11:26,520 --> 00:11:28,079 It's all about self-sacrifice. 192 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:31,639 They are all about suppressing individual needs and desires 193 00:11:31,640 --> 00:11:33,679 for the sense of whatever the nation needs, 194 00:11:33,680 --> 00:11:35,720 for whatever the emperor might need. 195 00:11:40,320 --> 00:11:42,319 In just two months of fighting, 196 00:11:42,320 --> 00:11:45,359 Japan has achieved most of its objectives 197 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:47,980 and appears to be winning the war... 198 00:11:48,780 --> 00:11:50,999 ...except in the Philippines, 199 00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,700 where US and Filipino troops are fighting back. 200 00:12:06,896 --> 00:12:08,839 After more than a month of fighting, 201 00:12:08,840 --> 00:12:10,855 US and Filipino forces 202 00:12:10,887 --> 00:12:14,727 continue to resist the Japanese on the Bataan Peninsula. 203 00:12:16,620 --> 00:12:19,439 But supplies, food, and ammunition 204 00:12:19,440 --> 00:12:21,940 are running perilously short. 205 00:12:22,540 --> 00:12:24,679 Supplies, provisions, ammunition, 206 00:12:24,680 --> 00:12:26,839 they're strewn about the Philippine Islands, 207 00:12:26,840 --> 00:12:29,260 and they're not where the defenders need them. 208 00:12:30,620 --> 00:12:34,940 The American forces are now completely isolated and surrounded. 209 00:12:39,216 --> 00:12:42,260 They don't have what they need to survive. 210 00:12:43,380 --> 00:12:46,800 The men spend a lot of their time just foraging for food. 211 00:12:46,825 --> 00:12:49,279 Every snake, monkey, 212 00:12:49,280 --> 00:12:53,260 anything within the Bataan Peninsula is fair game. 213 00:12:54,620 --> 00:12:56,790 The commanding officer of both American 214 00:12:56,815 --> 00:12:59,319 and Filipino troops in the Philippines 215 00:12:59,320 --> 00:13:01,479 is the charismatic and controversial 216 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:03,460 General Douglas MacArthur. 217 00:13:04,380 --> 00:13:07,160 MacArthur's the son of a Civil War hero. 218 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:12,020 He's confident, courageous, a proven battlefield leader. 219 00:13:13,380 --> 00:13:15,759 MacArthur's begging for more troops, 220 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:17,599 for more supplies, for more ships, 221 00:13:17,600 --> 00:13:21,000 but none of those things are coming. The US doesn't have them. 222 00:13:22,796 --> 00:13:24,879 The Japanese, of course, they're coming 223 00:13:24,880 --> 00:13:26,359 after MacArthur's force. 224 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:29,279 They know they can't leave an army like this with MacArthur 225 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:31,880 and consider the Philippines have been occupied. 226 00:13:37,990 --> 00:13:40,443 In Washington, President Roosevelt faces 227 00:13:40,468 --> 00:13:42,720 a very difficult situation. 228 00:13:42,843 --> 00:13:46,199 The American people expect the troops to be supported, 229 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:49,199 but he knows resupplying and reinforcing Bataan 230 00:13:49,200 --> 00:13:50,920 is impossible. 231 00:13:51,500 --> 00:13:54,599 Also, for both political and symbolic reasons, 232 00:13:54,600 --> 00:13:58,180 he must retrieve General MacArthur from the Philippines. 233 00:13:59,073 --> 00:14:02,495 You couldn't afford to let MacArthur be captured. 234 00:14:02,520 --> 00:14:04,525 You couldn't do it because it was 235 00:14:04,550 --> 00:14:06,760 bad for the American spirit. 236 00:14:06,920 --> 00:14:09,879 You can't let a man like this go down. 237 00:14:09,880 --> 00:14:11,469 He's a figure of history. 238 00:14:15,993 --> 00:14:17,559 MacArthur does everything that he can 239 00:14:17,560 --> 00:14:19,679 to inspire his troops in Bataan, 240 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:22,020 and he's prepared to go down with the ship. 241 00:14:23,367 --> 00:14:27,100 But FDR orders MacArthur to leave the Philippines. 242 00:14:31,860 --> 00:14:35,319 Three weeks later, he sends a rescue operation, 243 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,039 and MacArthur, with his wife and young son, 244 00:14:38,040 --> 00:14:40,940 leaves the Philippines on a small torpedo boat. 245 00:14:43,820 --> 00:14:46,559 He promises, "I will return." 246 00:14:46,560 --> 00:14:50,879 And this is his commitment to the American people, 247 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:52,940 but, more importantly, to himself. 248 00:14:55,153 --> 00:14:58,013 Knowing that America must make a stand, 249 00:14:58,152 --> 00:15:02,060 General MacArthur issues a final order to his men. 250 00:15:03,700 --> 00:15:07,720 MacArthur orders the garrison to fight to the last, 251 00:15:07,745 --> 00:15:10,260 which is completely unrealistic. 252 00:15:14,787 --> 00:15:16,559 Soldiers are dying in medical tents 253 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:19,239 merely because there's not enough medicine to save them. 254 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:20,919 So everybody's in a weakened condition. 255 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:22,940 But the defence is quite heroic. 256 00:15:27,447 --> 00:15:31,301 But the soldiers on Bataan realise they're being sacrificed. 257 00:15:34,624 --> 00:15:36,800 So "The Battling Bastards of Bataan" is written 258 00:15:36,801 --> 00:15:38,879 by a journalist named Hewlett. 259 00:15:38,880 --> 00:15:41,120 "The Battling Bastards of Bataan... 260 00:15:41,420 --> 00:15:44,030 "no mamas, no papas, no Uncle Sam, 261 00:15:44,140 --> 00:15:47,119 "no aunts, no uncles, no cousins, no nieces, 262 00:15:47,120 --> 00:15:49,679 "no pills, no planes, no artillery pieces. 263 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:51,320 And no one gives a damn." 264 00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:53,479 For all the people left in Bataan, 265 00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:55,780 I'm sure that's exactly what they thought. 266 00:16:03,323 --> 00:16:06,840 After four months of fatigue, hunger, and disease... 267 00:16:08,320 --> 00:16:10,720 ...the Bataan garrison surrenders. 268 00:16:14,716 --> 00:16:17,680 But their ordeal is just beginning. 269 00:16:18,776 --> 00:16:20,756 The Japanese didn't expect 270 00:16:20,757 --> 00:16:23,770 that so many Allied defenders of the Philippines 271 00:16:23,795 --> 00:16:26,660 would actually surrender and become prisoners of war. 272 00:16:31,970 --> 00:16:35,119 One of the things you're taught in the Japanese military 273 00:16:35,120 --> 00:16:37,100 is you don't surrender. 274 00:16:37,460 --> 00:16:39,079 You're disgracing your family. 275 00:16:39,080 --> 00:16:41,119 You're disgracing your home, your village, 276 00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:43,060 your country, the emperor. 277 00:16:43,700 --> 00:16:46,839 Surrender is dishonourable, not only to yourself but to your family. 278 00:16:46,840 --> 00:16:49,580 Anybody who surrenders is inherently dishonourable. 279 00:16:52,540 --> 00:16:55,279 The idea that you would surrender 280 00:16:55,280 --> 00:16:57,999 and that you would expect to be treated with respect 281 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:02,900 having done so really is disgusting to a lot of the Japanese soldiers. 282 00:17:05,500 --> 00:17:08,308 The Japanese march the 75,000 American 283 00:17:08,333 --> 00:17:09,999 and Filipino troops 284 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:14,080 to a POW camp 65 miles north of Bataan. 285 00:17:16,626 --> 00:17:18,919 These men are exhausted. They're malnourished. 286 00:17:18,920 --> 00:17:20,799 The Japanese, they line them up, 287 00:17:20,800 --> 00:17:22,580 and they march them out. 288 00:17:24,003 --> 00:17:27,720 In 110-degree heat with no food, 289 00:17:27,757 --> 00:17:29,251 no water, 290 00:17:29,276 --> 00:17:31,720 and Japanese guards just beating you 291 00:17:31,745 --> 00:17:33,940 and kicking you and stabbing you the whole way. 292 00:17:37,283 --> 00:17:39,280 And so, if you're a recruit out there 293 00:17:39,305 --> 00:17:41,086 and you've received umpteen beatings 294 00:17:41,111 --> 00:17:42,720 from your own senior officers 295 00:17:42,721 --> 00:17:44,430 on the way to where you are now, 296 00:17:44,520 --> 00:17:47,605 then it's a very short hop to having a Westerner in front of you, 297 00:17:47,630 --> 00:17:49,800 asking for food, asking for water, 298 00:17:49,801 --> 00:17:53,700 and slapping them, punching them, perhaps even shooting them. 299 00:17:55,940 --> 00:17:59,279 The Japanese will drink their canteens 300 00:17:59,280 --> 00:18:02,620 and then dump the contents out on the roadside. 301 00:18:02,900 --> 00:18:05,083 Wounded troops will fall to the ground. 302 00:18:05,108 --> 00:18:07,740 They will be instantly bayoneted or shot. 303 00:18:09,500 --> 00:18:12,360 They have been taught to regard 304 00:18:12,385 --> 00:18:14,120 Western soldiers, and I think 305 00:18:14,153 --> 00:18:16,526 white Western civilians generally, 306 00:18:16,560 --> 00:18:18,599 with really no respect at all. 307 00:18:18,600 --> 00:18:19,920 These people are lesser 308 00:18:19,963 --> 00:18:23,170 almost to the point of being a slightly lesser species. 309 00:18:26,973 --> 00:18:29,480 Thousands die on what will become known 310 00:18:29,481 --> 00:18:32,020 as the Bataan Death March. 311 00:18:34,820 --> 00:18:37,479 The loss of the Philippines will cripple 312 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:41,640 America's military capability in the Pacific for months. 313 00:18:42,006 --> 00:18:45,140 It's also a serious blow to morale at home. 314 00:18:45,780 --> 00:18:47,639 In a matter of just a few months, 315 00:18:47,640 --> 00:18:49,799 the Japanese have conquered an empire 316 00:18:49,800 --> 00:18:52,180 of 500 million people. 317 00:18:53,420 --> 00:18:56,540 The Japanese have the upper hand in the Pacific. 318 00:18:56,780 --> 00:19:00,020 It's not clear what or who can stop them. 319 00:19:11,903 --> 00:19:13,860 Spring in Tokyo... 320 00:19:14,140 --> 00:19:18,580 ...Japan controls vast areas of the Pacific and Southeast Asia. 321 00:19:18,940 --> 00:19:21,439 To protect this growing empire, 322 00:19:21,440 --> 00:19:24,239 Japan will consolidate its new territory 323 00:19:24,240 --> 00:19:26,759 and push into various island chains 324 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:29,199 to create an even stronger barrier 325 00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:31,260 against the United States. 326 00:19:34,200 --> 00:19:35,940 The Japanese saying, we got to 327 00:19:35,965 --> 00:19:38,079 consolidate our position quickly. 328 00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:40,399 We have to create a defensive bastion 329 00:19:40,400 --> 00:19:42,599 between the United States and Japan. 330 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:46,319 So all these island chains threaded like pearls, 331 00:19:46,320 --> 00:19:48,149 they have got to be strengthened. 332 00:19:48,174 --> 00:19:51,540 They've got to be fortified into some kind of defensive perimeter. 333 00:19:52,700 --> 00:19:55,079 Japan deploys thousands of troops 334 00:19:55,080 --> 00:19:58,740 to outposts stretching far into the South Pacific. 335 00:20:00,220 --> 00:20:03,799 The Japanese are making absolutely sure 336 00:20:03,800 --> 00:20:06,800 that what they've got, they will hold. 337 00:20:14,803 --> 00:20:17,860 In the US, war production accelerates. 338 00:20:18,780 --> 00:20:21,279 FDR calls for 60,000 planes 339 00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:23,839 and 125,000 tanks 340 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,740 to be produced in 1942. 341 00:20:28,020 --> 00:20:30,500 And in June, the US Navy 342 00:20:30,740 --> 00:20:34,000 defeats the Japanese at the Battle of Midway. 343 00:20:35,180 --> 00:20:38,380 It's Japan's first decisive defeat. 344 00:20:39,360 --> 00:20:42,091 The victory at Midway has taken place in June 1942, 345 00:20:42,116 --> 00:20:43,879 but this is a naval victory. 346 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:46,519 It's only directed against Japanese warships. 347 00:20:46,520 --> 00:20:48,119 Eventually, the Americans know 348 00:20:48,120 --> 00:20:50,399 they're going to have to retake real estate. 349 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:53,420 They're going to actually have to capture islands. 350 00:20:54,540 --> 00:20:57,119 The Japanese plan in the South Pacific 351 00:20:57,120 --> 00:20:59,159 is to build a lot of airstrips, 352 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:01,839 which are going to allow them to use air power 353 00:21:01,840 --> 00:21:04,820 to defend these stronghold positions. 354 00:21:05,740 --> 00:21:09,740 To counter, America sends in the old breed; 355 00:21:10,320 --> 00:21:12,320 the 1st Marine Division. 356 00:21:13,433 --> 00:21:16,800 Marine Corps was always "soldiers from the sea," 357 00:21:16,825 --> 00:21:19,320 back in the Revolution when we invade Nassau, right? 358 00:21:19,321 --> 00:21:21,695 We are meant to come from the sea. 359 00:21:21,720 --> 00:21:24,519 That's the mission, in support of the navy. 360 00:21:24,544 --> 00:21:25,944 That's their purpose. 361 00:21:26,080 --> 00:21:28,159 After World War I, what they really start to do 362 00:21:28,160 --> 00:21:31,079 is turn their attention to, what does the next war look like? 363 00:21:31,080 --> 00:21:32,814 And what they start to realise is, 364 00:21:32,839 --> 00:21:34,901 Japan is becoming a power in the Pacific. 365 00:21:34,926 --> 00:21:36,603 If we're going to fight in the Pacific, 366 00:21:36,628 --> 00:21:39,966 then we need to figure out how to conduct amphibious landings. 367 00:21:40,879 --> 00:21:44,820 Amphibious landings on this scale are unprecedented. 368 00:21:45,500 --> 00:21:47,759 Well, there's no sneaking up on an island. 369 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:49,479 They can see ships coming. 370 00:21:49,480 --> 00:21:52,399 So everything across a beach is a frontal assault... 371 00:21:52,400 --> 00:21:54,359 machine guns, rapid-fire artillery. 372 00:21:54,360 --> 00:21:56,719 It's suicide, terrible idea. 373 00:21:56,720 --> 00:21:59,580 And the Marine Corps goes, "Got it, we'll take that one." 374 00:22:00,580 --> 00:22:02,879 And that's how they get into amphibious operations, 375 00:22:02,880 --> 00:22:05,039 because that would be what was necessary 376 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:06,980 to operate in the Pacific. 377 00:22:07,700 --> 00:22:09,679 The training for the US Marine Corps 378 00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:12,759 is probably the toughest in the US armed forces at this point. 379 00:22:12,760 --> 00:22:16,199 They are designed for amphibious warfare 380 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:18,559 but to travel relatively lightly, 381 00:22:18,560 --> 00:22:21,599 because, of course, if you attack a coast from the sea, 382 00:22:21,600 --> 00:22:23,679 you can't take much heavy equipment with you. 383 00:22:23,680 --> 00:22:26,599 Their job is as an elite assault force. 384 00:22:26,600 --> 00:22:29,119 But don't leave them in a campaign for too long, 385 00:22:29,120 --> 00:22:31,279 because they don't have all the heavy weapons 386 00:22:31,280 --> 00:22:35,340 to be able to do the job over a considerable period of time. 387 00:22:37,660 --> 00:22:40,999 The Navy has ships, and the Army has tanks and artillery. 388 00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:43,300 What does the Marine Corps have? It has culture. 389 00:22:44,060 --> 00:22:45,879 So if you join the Marine Corps, 390 00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,599 it's because maybe you can be one of those elite. 391 00:22:48,600 --> 00:22:50,980 You know you get to go fight the Japanese. 392 00:22:54,960 --> 00:22:58,159 The majority are new recruits. 393 00:22:58,160 --> 00:22:59,879 They are relatively inexperienced. 394 00:22:59,880 --> 00:23:02,199 They've had some pretty hurried training. 395 00:23:02,200 --> 00:23:04,160 And now all of a sudden, in 1942, 396 00:23:04,185 --> 00:23:06,079 they're going to go into action against 397 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:10,443 what they know and fear is a very formidable opponent. 398 00:23:10,627 --> 00:23:12,439 They've read a lot of the stories 399 00:23:12,440 --> 00:23:15,740 about how the Japanese are almost supermen. 400 00:23:16,500 --> 00:23:19,559 Until we actually face them in close combat, 401 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:22,820 we'll never know if we're good enough to take on these guys. 402 00:23:24,910 --> 00:23:27,140 In the summer of 1942 403 00:23:27,653 --> 00:23:30,880 an American B-17 on routine patrol 404 00:23:30,963 --> 00:23:33,039 reports that the Japanese are building 405 00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:36,500 an airstrip on the largest of the Solomon Islands... 406 00:23:36,900 --> 00:23:38,480 ...Guadalcanal. 407 00:23:43,110 --> 00:23:44,640 If the Japanese are successful, 408 00:23:44,641 --> 00:23:46,439 they will build an airbase on Guadalcanal 409 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:48,039 and potentially sever 410 00:23:48,040 --> 00:23:50,079 the lines of communication with Australia, 411 00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:51,880 which is meant to be a jumping-off point 412 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:54,039 for any campaign that's going to come 413 00:23:54,040 --> 00:23:55,599 from the Southern Pacific. 414 00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:57,340 We cannot let that happen. 415 00:23:59,290 --> 00:24:01,839 The Americans know that Australia is crucial 416 00:24:01,840 --> 00:24:05,260 to their hold over the Pacific. 417 00:24:07,026 --> 00:24:09,599 What's at stake, certainly for the United States Marine Corps is, 418 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:12,200 they've hitched their horse to this idea of amphibious operations. 419 00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:15,120 Now they actually have to go execute it. 420 00:24:18,276 --> 00:24:19,999 If the Americans are going to roll back 421 00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:22,240 Japanese power in the Pacific... 422 00:24:22,546 --> 00:24:24,880 ...it's going to have to be boots on the ground, 423 00:24:24,905 --> 00:24:27,380 and boots on the ground it will be in Guadalcanal. 424 00:24:37,870 --> 00:24:41,100 Early on August 7, 1942... 425 00:24:42,140 --> 00:24:45,820 ...the 1st Marine division approaches Guadalcanal. 426 00:24:49,283 --> 00:24:53,740 They are the first US troops to take the offensive in World War II. 427 00:24:55,140 --> 00:24:58,119 What's interesting about all amphibious landings 428 00:24:58,120 --> 00:25:00,959 is that if they're opposed and you don't really understand 429 00:25:00,960 --> 00:25:02,852 the terrain you're getting into, 430 00:25:02,877 --> 00:25:05,279 there's always the possibility of disaster, 431 00:25:05,280 --> 00:25:07,879 and that was absolutely the case at Guadalcanal. 432 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:21,879 After the naval bombardment, the Marines will land 433 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:25,180 and attempt to capture the airfield and secure the island. 434 00:25:26,340 --> 00:25:29,759 The intelligence for the landings at Guadalcanal is so thin 435 00:25:29,760 --> 00:25:31,959 that they don't know what the interior looks like, 436 00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:36,100 and they certainly don't know how many defending troops are there. 437 00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:01,940 10,000 Marines reach the shore. 438 00:26:06,423 --> 00:26:09,500 To their relief, the landing is unopposed. 439 00:26:11,440 --> 00:26:14,280 There are no Japanese defending the beachhead. 440 00:26:16,146 --> 00:26:19,940 The Japanese have only 2,500 men on the island, 441 00:26:20,180 --> 00:26:23,580 most of them conscripted labour to build the airfield. 442 00:26:25,300 --> 00:26:28,180 The Marines are astonished at how easy it is. 443 00:26:28,205 --> 00:26:32,540 They move inland and then very quickly capture the airfield. 444 00:26:34,580 --> 00:26:37,239 The Marines build a defensive perimeter 445 00:26:37,240 --> 00:26:38,940 around the airstrip, 446 00:26:39,460 --> 00:26:42,100 which they name Henderson Field, 447 00:26:42,260 --> 00:26:44,639 after a Marine dive bomber 448 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:46,800 killed at the Battle of Midway. 449 00:26:49,243 --> 00:26:51,959 Supplies for the Marines on Guadalcanal 450 00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:56,199 are being held just offshore by a US Navy task force 451 00:26:56,200 --> 00:26:58,620 anchored in Savo Sound. 452 00:27:03,340 --> 00:27:05,420 But two days after the landing, 453 00:27:05,620 --> 00:27:09,100 the calm of Savo Sound is shattered. 454 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:20,679 It's the middle of the night. 455 00:27:20,680 --> 00:27:23,439 These American cruisers are asleep. 456 00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:26,135 They don't come to battle stations quickly. 457 00:27:33,226 --> 00:27:35,980 In the space of 25 to 30 minutes, 458 00:27:36,300 --> 00:27:39,519 the Japanese have sunk four Allied cruisers, 459 00:27:39,520 --> 00:27:42,220 killed more than 1,000 Allied sailors. 460 00:27:46,660 --> 00:27:48,959 So it's a disastrous defeat for the Americans, 461 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:51,879 the worst naval defeat since Pearl Harbor. 462 00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:54,680 You've got bodies washing up on the shore. 463 00:27:54,840 --> 00:27:56,340 It's grisly. 464 00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:01,999 So many American ships are sunk 465 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:06,120 that Savo Sound is christened Ironbottom Sound. 466 00:28:10,330 --> 00:28:14,180 Vulnerable to air attack, the task force pulls out 467 00:28:14,380 --> 00:28:18,020 before they've unloaded all the Marines' food and ammunition. 468 00:28:20,940 --> 00:28:22,999 General Vandegrift is the commander 469 00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:24,799 of the 1st Marine Division. 470 00:28:24,800 --> 00:28:28,220 He's understandably upset that the Navy have skedaddled. 471 00:28:28,784 --> 00:28:31,319 But it's absolutely vital also 472 00:28:31,320 --> 00:28:34,439 that he gives a sense of confidence to his men. 473 00:28:34,440 --> 00:28:37,420 We're going to get through this. We are US Marines, after all. 474 00:28:38,900 --> 00:28:42,159 The first wave of Japanese troops land east 475 00:28:42,160 --> 00:28:45,740 of the Marines' defensive perimeter on August 18th. 476 00:28:46,300 --> 00:28:49,240 Their objective... Henderson Airfield. 477 00:28:52,570 --> 00:28:55,239 The airfield is in a key position 478 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:59,380 to maintain the shipping lanes from America to Australia. 479 00:28:59,780 --> 00:29:03,559 That supply line is like the Allied sciatic nerve. 480 00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:06,220 So this is a very serious development. 481 00:29:08,829 --> 00:29:10,876 It must have been very spooky for the Marines. 482 00:29:10,877 --> 00:29:12,760 They are abandoned on the island. 483 00:29:12,761 --> 00:29:15,519 They can hear the Japanese ships coming in. 484 00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:17,860 They know there must be trouble ahead. 485 00:29:19,360 --> 00:29:22,100 What options do ground forces have? 486 00:29:22,520 --> 00:29:25,479 You can attack, you can defend, and you can retreat. 487 00:29:25,480 --> 00:29:28,759 Well, guess what. The Marines can no longer retreat. 488 00:29:28,760 --> 00:29:31,720 So, no matter what, we're going to have to fight it out. 489 00:29:34,977 --> 00:29:37,519 The untested Marines are about to face 490 00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:40,900 Japanese soldiers for the first time. 491 00:30:06,170 --> 00:30:08,959 On Guadalcanal, the 1st Marine Division 492 00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:11,239 is dug in around Henderson Airfield, 493 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:13,820 bracing for a Japanese assault. 494 00:30:18,780 --> 00:30:20,599 Commanding the Japanese troops 495 00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:23,840 is the veteran colonel Kiyonao Ichiki. 496 00:30:26,144 --> 00:30:28,319 The Marines know that all the Japanese have done 497 00:30:28,320 --> 00:30:30,200 up to this point is win. 498 00:30:31,406 --> 00:30:35,040 They start to almost have these superpowers. 499 00:30:35,160 --> 00:30:37,799 They're quiet at night. They're all snipers. 500 00:30:37,800 --> 00:30:40,460 They don't require any rest. They're fanatical. 501 00:30:41,140 --> 00:30:45,740 All of these things start to build almost a super-samurai adversary. 502 00:30:47,460 --> 00:30:49,399 On August 21st, 503 00:30:49,400 --> 00:30:52,540 Ichiki's troops attack the Marine lines. 504 00:30:57,417 --> 00:30:59,999 The Marines respond with rifle, mortar, 505 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:01,580 and machine gun fire. 506 00:31:10,520 --> 00:31:12,959 The Japanese have got about 200 guys 507 00:31:12,960 --> 00:31:16,480 trying to get across this sandspit, and they're mown down. 508 00:31:18,305 --> 00:31:21,820 Ichiki just sloughs that off. He'll launch two more attacks. 509 00:31:25,277 --> 00:31:27,320 The Marines will beat them back. 510 00:31:28,140 --> 00:31:30,080 The fighting is brutal... 511 00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:35,120 Often hand-to-hand. 512 00:31:38,579 --> 00:31:42,860 Some Japanese soldiers even use ancestral samurai swords. 513 00:31:49,910 --> 00:31:53,280 The battle doesn't end until 5:00 that evening. 514 00:31:54,039 --> 00:31:56,700 44 Marines are dead... 515 00:31:58,220 --> 00:32:01,820 But nearly 900 Japanese soldiers are killed. 516 00:32:04,817 --> 00:32:06,720 The Marines are stunned. 517 00:32:07,700 --> 00:32:10,900 How could a battalion commander throw 900 men away? 518 00:32:11,700 --> 00:32:13,120 Who would do that? 519 00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:18,479 After the battle, 520 00:32:18,480 --> 00:32:21,260 Colonel Ichiki commits suicide. 521 00:32:23,040 --> 00:32:26,340 Just a single Japanese soldier surrenders. 522 00:32:28,267 --> 00:32:30,959 They may look dead, but if they've got a weapon, 523 00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:32,679 they're going to shoot you when you go past. 524 00:32:32,680 --> 00:32:35,239 If they've got a grenade, they may blow themselves up 525 00:32:35,240 --> 00:32:38,980 with a grenade to kill you. This is a different kind of enemy. 526 00:32:40,900 --> 00:32:43,639 The US Marines on Guadalcanal realise 527 00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:46,999 that to combat that and to protect themselves, 528 00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:49,519 they're going to have to be equally ruthless. 529 00:32:49,520 --> 00:32:52,879 And this produced an incredibly brutal form of warfare 530 00:32:52,880 --> 00:32:55,780 that I think was unequalled in the Second World War. 531 00:32:56,460 --> 00:32:59,599 The Marines now understand what will be required 532 00:32:59,600 --> 00:33:01,500 to defend Guadalcanal. 533 00:33:04,630 --> 00:33:06,799 The island has become a proving ground 534 00:33:06,800 --> 00:33:09,280 for a generation of young Americans. 535 00:33:13,723 --> 00:33:17,460 The Japanese conduct regular airstrikes on Henderson Field... 536 00:33:22,159 --> 00:33:24,600 And continue to move men and supplies 537 00:33:24,601 --> 00:33:26,460 into attacking positions. 538 00:33:28,080 --> 00:33:31,135 Every night the Japanese are using fast transports 539 00:33:31,160 --> 00:33:34,215 and depositing troops and supplies on Guadalcanal, 540 00:33:34,240 --> 00:33:37,740 via what's going to be known as the Tokyo Express. 541 00:33:40,180 --> 00:33:42,839 They are absolutely determined to retake this island. 542 00:33:42,840 --> 00:33:44,815 Their whole strategy 543 00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:47,559 for moving forward in the Southern Pacific 544 00:33:47,560 --> 00:33:50,400 is based on recapturing Guadalcanal, 545 00:33:50,425 --> 00:33:51,919 and they're going to pretty much send 546 00:33:51,920 --> 00:33:55,660 as many troops as they can to make sure that they do the job. 547 00:33:57,387 --> 00:34:00,536 Vandegrift and his staff start taking 548 00:34:00,561 --> 00:34:03,319 preventative action in case they're overwhelmed, 549 00:34:03,320 --> 00:34:06,600 so they start burning vital intelligence papers. 550 00:34:07,090 --> 00:34:09,375 By October, the Japanese force 551 00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,260 has more than doubled its size. 552 00:34:12,882 --> 00:34:16,199 But the US Navy is able to resupply the Marines 553 00:34:16,200 --> 00:34:18,820 from newly constructed supply bases. 554 00:34:20,030 --> 00:34:23,180 Guadalcanal is now a battle of attrition... 555 00:34:23,700 --> 00:34:25,860 ...who will give in first? 556 00:34:27,310 --> 00:34:29,360 The Japanese are very good at night attacks, 557 00:34:29,361 --> 00:34:31,880 and so nights are horrific. 558 00:34:35,263 --> 00:34:38,215 Imagine being a 19- or 20-year-old American kid, 559 00:34:38,240 --> 00:34:40,615 and you're in a foxhole, maybe with one other person, right? 560 00:34:40,640 --> 00:34:42,360 One guy sleeps. The other is on watch. 561 00:34:42,385 --> 00:34:45,159 And you can hear the other foxholes with your compatriots, 562 00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:46,599 but they're not visible in the dark. 563 00:34:46,600 --> 00:34:49,239 Remember, these islands are really black as night. 564 00:34:49,240 --> 00:34:51,600 And you hear screaming from another foxhole. 565 00:34:56,280 --> 00:34:58,460 This is life or death. 566 00:34:59,980 --> 00:35:03,220 You go to sleep, you may not wake up. 567 00:35:03,680 --> 00:35:07,199 This man was with you 24 hours ago. 568 00:35:07,200 --> 00:35:10,440 Now his throat's cut in the foxhole next to you. 569 00:35:14,230 --> 00:35:18,060 This is a war of man against man. 570 00:35:18,300 --> 00:35:19,780 This is personal. 571 00:35:21,340 --> 00:35:24,440 And as darkness comes down every night, 572 00:35:24,600 --> 00:35:27,303 the fear grows deeper and deeper. 573 00:35:31,063 --> 00:35:33,400 Even though they're deprived of sleep, 574 00:35:34,520 --> 00:35:36,479 lack sufficient food, 575 00:35:36,480 --> 00:35:39,020 and battle tropical diseases, 576 00:35:39,220 --> 00:35:42,060 the Marines maintain their morale. 577 00:35:43,320 --> 00:35:46,340 But their casualty rate is climbing, 578 00:35:46,740 --> 00:35:50,720 and they begin to suspect they're being abandoned. 579 00:35:53,153 --> 00:35:56,639 A lot of people are catching malaria, dysentery. 580 00:35:56,640 --> 00:35:58,560 They don't have enough food. 581 00:35:58,720 --> 00:36:01,600 They're just becoming increasingly 582 00:36:01,625 --> 00:36:03,660 incapable of functioning. 583 00:36:05,420 --> 00:36:08,639 General Vandegrift estimates that less than half 584 00:36:08,640 --> 00:36:11,180 his force is fit enough to fight. 585 00:36:11,740 --> 00:36:14,119 The Japanese are still coming. 586 00:36:14,120 --> 00:36:16,479 Guadalcanal is going to be where the Japanese teach 587 00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:18,959 the Americans the cost of punching a hole 588 00:36:18,960 --> 00:36:20,559 in that defence perimeter. 589 00:36:20,560 --> 00:36:22,999 They'll say, look at the effort it took. 590 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:25,959 Look at the number of men you lost on Guadalcanal. 591 00:36:25,960 --> 00:36:27,759 How long do you think it'll take you 592 00:36:27,760 --> 00:36:30,020 to batter your way across the Pacific? 593 00:36:34,903 --> 00:36:37,180 One night, two months into the battle... 594 00:36:38,180 --> 00:36:41,119 ...the Japanese deliver a bombardment designed 595 00:36:41,120 --> 00:36:43,380 to crush the Marines' spirits. 596 00:36:44,620 --> 00:36:48,500 But the Marines just dig their foxholes deeper. 597 00:36:50,860 --> 00:36:53,879 1,000 shells are sent over in 80 minutes. 598 00:36:53,880 --> 00:36:55,879 We're talking about 14-inch shells, 599 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:59,000 described by some of the guys like the weight of small cars. 600 00:37:01,929 --> 00:37:04,839 Most of the Marines' planes at Henderson Field 601 00:37:04,840 --> 00:37:07,000 are destroyed in the bombardment. 602 00:37:13,436 --> 00:37:16,020 The US reinforces the Marines... 603 00:37:17,860 --> 00:37:21,040 ...but the Japanese reinforce their troops as well. 604 00:37:22,346 --> 00:37:23,959 Control of the island 605 00:37:23,960 --> 00:37:28,340 and the entire US campaign in the Pacific is at stake. 606 00:37:29,700 --> 00:37:32,720 All eyes are on Guadalcanal. 607 00:37:44,623 --> 00:37:48,260 In America, Guadalcanal is front-page news. 608 00:37:48,820 --> 00:37:51,220 It's on everyone's minds. 609 00:37:51,660 --> 00:37:53,319 It was observed, 610 00:37:53,320 --> 00:37:57,340 Guadalcanal is not a name, but an emotion. 611 00:37:58,544 --> 00:38:02,719 You young Americans today are conducting yourselves 612 00:38:02,720 --> 00:38:06,081 in a manner that is worthy of the highest, 613 00:38:06,082 --> 00:38:08,660 proudest traditions of our nation. 614 00:38:09,220 --> 00:38:11,855 All the attention of the American public 615 00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:14,359 is focused on this island. Roosevelt knows 616 00:38:14,360 --> 00:38:17,319 this is the first big American ground offensive of the war. 617 00:38:17,320 --> 00:38:19,380 It's going horribly wrong. 618 00:38:20,340 --> 00:38:22,940 They have to hold on to Guadalcanal. 619 00:38:24,580 --> 00:38:27,319 Roosevelt sends a note to the Joint Chiefs and says, 620 00:38:27,320 --> 00:38:29,279 "I want to be sure of something: 621 00:38:29,280 --> 00:38:32,519 that every available man, ship, and plane 622 00:38:32,520 --> 00:38:35,780 is being devoted to the struggle on Guadalcanal." 623 00:38:36,380 --> 00:38:40,940 We here at home are supremely conscious 624 00:38:41,180 --> 00:38:43,920 of our obligations to you. 625 00:38:44,080 --> 00:38:47,400 We will not let you down. 626 00:38:49,027 --> 00:38:51,540 The campaign gets a new commander, 627 00:38:51,860 --> 00:38:54,620 Admiral William "Bull" Halsey. 628 00:38:55,755 --> 00:38:57,559 Halsey's coming into this campaign 629 00:38:57,560 --> 00:39:00,020 is like a defibrillator on the heart. 630 00:39:00,340 --> 00:39:01,719 Halsey looks the part. 631 00:39:01,720 --> 00:39:03,850 Halsey is this leathery, old 632 00:39:03,875 --> 00:39:05,679 commander who's been successful. 633 00:39:05,680 --> 00:39:07,439 He's a can-do, combative guy. 634 00:39:07,440 --> 00:39:09,279 He can't wait to get to the Japanese. 635 00:39:09,280 --> 00:39:11,799 His line was, "You hit 'em hard, you hit 'em fast, 636 00:39:11,800 --> 00:39:13,300 and you hit 'em often." 637 00:39:13,820 --> 00:39:15,960 This is entirely in keeping with the mentality 638 00:39:15,985 --> 00:39:17,300 of your average Marine. 639 00:39:19,940 --> 00:39:22,199 Admiral Halsey promises the Marines 640 00:39:22,200 --> 00:39:25,180 all the support they need on Guadalcanal. 641 00:39:25,500 --> 00:39:29,460 In just a few weeks, he gets the chance to demonstrate it. 642 00:39:31,260 --> 00:39:33,359 A large Japanese fleet 643 00:39:33,360 --> 00:39:35,799 carrying 14,000 troops 644 00:39:35,800 --> 00:39:38,140 is approaching Guadalcanal. 645 00:39:39,986 --> 00:39:42,759 This body of water is the size of a bathtub. 646 00:39:42,760 --> 00:39:44,719 So risking your battleships 647 00:39:44,720 --> 00:39:46,319 to send them up to Ironbottom Sound, 648 00:39:46,320 --> 00:39:48,439 I mean, it honestly makes the hair stand up 649 00:39:48,440 --> 00:39:50,280 on the back of my neck even now. 650 00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:53,799 But Halsey is determined that he is going to fight 651 00:39:53,800 --> 00:39:55,279 with everything that he's got, 652 00:39:55,280 --> 00:39:58,860 and so he pushes all his chips into the middle of the table. 653 00:40:04,643 --> 00:40:07,559 Halsey instructs the US Navy task force 654 00:40:07,560 --> 00:40:10,300 to attack the Japanese fleet in the sound. 655 00:40:19,220 --> 00:40:20,680 For two days 656 00:40:20,779 --> 00:40:24,540 American and Japanese warships battle in Savo Sound. 657 00:40:32,150 --> 00:40:33,760 The fighting is fierce. 658 00:40:37,032 --> 00:40:40,460 It's ship-to-ship combat at its most intense. 659 00:40:49,430 --> 00:40:52,300 Nearly 2,000 Americans are killed... 660 00:40:53,340 --> 00:40:55,439 ...but the Japanese are only able to land 661 00:40:55,440 --> 00:40:57,700 a quarter of their force. 662 00:41:01,980 --> 00:41:06,460 Bull Halsey and the US Navy have turned the tide... 663 00:41:07,300 --> 00:41:10,820 ...and the Japanese begin to withdraw from Guadalcanal. 664 00:41:15,117 --> 00:41:19,620 Most of the Marines on Guadalcanal are relieved by the US Army. 665 00:41:21,260 --> 00:41:24,039 A generation of Americans have proven to the world 666 00:41:24,040 --> 00:41:26,980 that they're capable of fighting this war. 667 00:41:28,460 --> 00:41:30,879 But Guadalcanal has also revealed 668 00:41:30,880 --> 00:41:34,640 how long and difficult this conflict is going to be 669 00:41:35,420 --> 00:41:37,840 and how steep the price of victory. 670 00:41:44,566 --> 00:41:47,119 It was the first clash of arms 671 00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:49,479 between the Japanese Army 672 00:41:49,480 --> 00:41:52,040 and American Marines and soldiers. 673 00:41:52,173 --> 00:41:55,533 And in that victory, the Americans came out ahead. 674 00:42:00,086 --> 00:42:03,460 Halsey put it best when he said, prior to the battle, 675 00:42:03,820 --> 00:42:06,580 the Japanese advanced at their will. 676 00:42:06,980 --> 00:42:09,860 After the battle, they retreated at ours. 677 00:42:11,340 --> 00:42:13,260 It's a long road to Tokyo, 678 00:42:13,560 --> 00:42:15,520 but Guadalcanal is the first step. 679 00:42:21,563 --> 00:42:24,719 The Marines who hold the line for months on Guadalcanal 680 00:42:24,720 --> 00:42:27,620 are sure their country has forgotten them. 681 00:42:27,940 --> 00:42:30,959 But when the 1st Marine Division is relieved by army units 682 00:42:30,960 --> 00:42:33,420 and sent to Australia to recuperate, 683 00:42:33,660 --> 00:42:36,380 they learn that they're actually heroes. 684 00:42:37,620 --> 00:42:40,240 That year, in 1942, 685 00:42:41,160 --> 00:42:43,759 Hitler escalates his campaign 686 00:42:43,760 --> 00:42:45,940 against the Jews of Europe 687 00:42:46,439 --> 00:42:48,833 to an unimaginable level.