In this article, the content I want to tell you is: Admiral Nimitz, who has influenced the U.S. Navy for nearly a hundred years, is now named on the aircraft carrier.
We all know that during World War II, although Europe and Asia were at war. But there is a country that, by virtue of its geographical location, made a lot of money during the war. Although a lot of money was made, at the end of 1941, the United States was still pulled into the battlefield.
The cause was the attack on Pearl Harbor, one of the most representative battles in the Pacific Theater. In this raid, the Japanese Navy, led by Nanun Junichi, took six Japanese aircraft carriers and unexpectedly sneaked into the US military's Hawaiian base, which greatly damaged the US military's sea power.
Ten days before that, in Southeast Asia, the Japanese army launched the Philippine Campaign in order to divert the attention of the American army and other Allied forces. What no one expected in this battle was that the American troops led by MacArthur were defeated in the Japanese raid. Throughout the battle, the Americans were beaten to the point of losing their armor and armor, and even the artillery was not used, and the Japanese were chased by bicycles.
Soon after, pearl harbor occurred, which greatly reduced the momentum of the US military. Even the Japanese army's Tokyo Rose Radio was openly shouting on the channel, and the US Navy did not seem invincible. Although the US Navy has a sullen mood in its heart, but the tragic losses are in front of it, how to fight back against Japan has become what the United States must do.
So at Roosevelt's decision, an admiral who was trusted by soldiers in the navy was transferred by Roosevelt to become the commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet. This figure was the later famous Admiral Nimitz. At that time, Nimitz's qualifications were not very strong, so among the senior people at that time, many people thought that he could not take on this big job.
And Nimitz's position as commander, although it looks very high, is actually too low to be low. According to Sea Power: A Naval History, because there was almost nothing left in the Pacific Fleet at the time, most of the surviving ships were aircraft carriers and submarines patrolled by the Navy. When Nimitz took office, he was even able to take the oath of office only on the deck of a submarine.
Faced with this urgent situation, Nimitz not only did not lose heart, but made an amazing decision. With the aircraft carrier as the main core combat force of the fleet, it launched a counterattack against the Japanese army that was in full swing at that time. Nimitz formulated a lot of strategies, in the Pacific, with a broken fleet, attacked the small japanese troops everywhere, achieved a lot of good results, and stabilized the morale of the army. In front of the upper echelons of the United States, Nimitz went out of his way to expound the facts.
The top brass of the U.S. military believes that only the Navy can curb the arrogance of the Japanese army and help the United States regain control of the Pacific. So after Roosevelt signed the order to build an aircraft carrier immediately, the United States, almost like dumplings, continued to build aircraft carriers and frigates and rushed to the battlefield.
After Nimitz received an effective replenishment of troops, he made a bold decision to counterattack and not only bomb the Japanese base, but also their capital city. With this idea in mind, and with enough troops to support him, Nimitz soon began to act.
In January 1942, Nimitz immediately turned the idea into a proposal and handed it over to Roosevelt. Roosevelt believed that although this plan was bold, it would benefit the United States immensely. The implementation of the plan was immediately approved. After assembling an aircraft carrier battle group and numerous bombers, the fleet quietly set out to the vicinity of Japan. After confirming the location of Japan's important cities, carrier-based aircraft full of ammunition began to launch, and many important Japanese cities were attacked. This success greatly boosted the morale of the Navy and made Nimitz famous.
Later, according to the "History of the Naval Warfare of nimitz in the Pacific", in the subsequent small battles, the US Navy won consecutive battles, which made the Japanese army have a great sense of urgency. Therefore, after that, the Japanese army decided to sneak into Pearl Harbor again, win a big war, and restore the superiority of the Japanese army.
However, this operation was deciphered by the intelligence department of the US military. After deciphering the Japanese code, the U.S. military found that the next target of the Japanese army must be Midway in the Pacific! Although Midway is only a small island, because it is located in the middle of the Pacific Route, it is strategically a very important military base and supply base. If it is lost, then the U.S. fleet will have no way to resupply, and there will be no way to approach Japan. Therefore, Nimitz believes that Midway must be defended.
After understanding the Battle Plan of the Japanese Army, Nimitz was simply a god of war, and set up countless plans to surround the Japanese fleet. In this crucial battle, four aircraft carriers of the Japanese fleet were sunk and 80% of the other fleets were damaged. Nimitz's U.S. fleet was completely dominant, and in every respect it opened up the distance from the Japanese Navy.
Since then, Japan has hardly been able to enter the Pacific Ocean against the United States. Without the support of the aircraft carrier, the Japanese army on the island lost its logistical support, so it was broken by the US army one by one and became a trapped beast in a cage.
It is precisely because of Nimitz's art of command and his extraordinary strategic vision that he has created extraordinary feats in the Pacific theater. As a result, the then-depressed Navy became famous in the United States and almost became synonymous with victory. This indirectly led to the increasing status of the Navy, and within the military hierarchy, Nimitz became the intended successor of the Secretary of the Navy.
After the war ended, Truman came to power. But Truman had always been pro-Army, believing that only the Army was the real person to control the area. So in many cases, it will be biased towards the Army. Nimitz, on the other hand, gave Truman his opinion that the future era must be the era of the Navy, and then the era of the combination of the two. If this wave is missed, then the United States will fall.
Under the constant suggestions of him and some high-level officials, many media in the United States also widely publicized among the public, which gradually increased the status of the Navy, even surpassing the nuclear weapons advocated by Truman. This also made the navy useless, which was quite prevalent among soldiers, and finally suppressed. And Nimitz also used his prestige as a bet, so that the U.S. Navy, in the ranks of the place it deserved, is not regarded as a useless service. In praise of his exploits, the most advanced warship class in the United States is now also known as the Nimitz class.
References: A History of the Naval Warfare in the Pacific by Nimitz, Naval Power: A Naval History.
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