21 World War II Photos Never Published Until Now

Defeat

As part of the Allies’ quest to rid the Pacific of Japanese control, a strategy of “island hopping” was implemented, which led the Allies to systematically gain control of several prominent Japanese-held islands. One such island was Okinawa. Although the Allies were ultimately victorious, the victory was hard-won, and the Japanese insistence on fighting to the end during this engagement was one of the reasons the atomic bomb was ultimately deemed necessary.