James R. Stockman

“ OF THE SIXTH MARINE DIVISION
(Message read to all troops the day before landing on Okinawa)
“Within the next few hours our division will land on Japanese soil—the doorway to the enemy’s country. It is an honor to be among the first to bring the war to the Japanese homeland.
“The Sixth Marine Division is ready for the task to which it is assigned. During the past months of training, we have perfected our technique and forged our battle-seasoned regiments and battalions into a hard-hitting offensive team, inbued with the will to win. ”

“ Early enemy resistance was light and the troops moved rapidly inland. At 1000 the Twenty Ninth Marines commenced to load a battalion to send across to join the Fourth. In the meantime, the Division Reconnaissance Company had landed on Ono Yama and killed a handful of Japanese.
Defending Oroku were mixed troops. There were some regular units, some Okinawa Home Guardsmen, and some were naval and air personnel from units stationed at Naha Port, and Naha Airfield. The rough character of the terrain on Oroku, with the exception of the flat ground around the airfield, lent itself to the defenders. ”

“ Hope was held for a while on this day that the Twenty Ninth Marines might seize Half Moon Hill. Closely supported by tanks, troops moved forward slowly and reached the edge of the ridge by late afternoon. Before they could organize defensive positions, or dig in, the enemy poured so much fire in from Shuri, Sugar Loaf, and the reverse slopes of the Half Moon, that the troops had to withdraw under the cover of smoke. Casualties were extremely heavy. ”

“ Forming into long waves, the Fourth and Twenty Second Marines, loaded in amphibious tractors, churned toward the beaches, over the coral reef, and landed at 0837. Every man went in with the expectation that this beachhead, like Tarawa, Saipan, and Iwo, would be a bloody one; they were surprised but not entirely relieved to find virtually no enemy opposition to the landing. Rapidly, units organized and moved inland and up across the terraced fields that led to Yontan Airfield. By noon the Fourth Marines had seized Yontan and the Twenty Second Marines were advancing as rapidly on the left. ”

“ As the attack moved to the southeast, there was a chance that the Naha Estuary could be bridged by using little Ona Yama island, which lay in the center of the estuary, almost equidistant from Naha and Oroku. There were a few of the enemy on Ono Yama; these would have to be killed before the engineers could commence their bridging efforts. Simultaneously then, with the landing of the Fourth Marines on Oroku, the Sixth Reconnaissance Company was ordered to land on, and secure, Ono Yama. ”

“ One tank accompanied by troops, edged its way around the west side of the hill and commenced firing into the enemy’s reverse slope defenses. Then, as the enemy moved to repel this threat, another tank worked its way around the east side of the hill and emptied its machine guns into the backs of the defenders of Sugar Loaf. In the ensuing pandemonium troops swarmed all over the hill and, after an hour of heavy fighting, the hill was firmly held by Marines. ”

“ When the division landed, it found the citizens of Tsingtao to be a polyglot group: Communist agents, former Nazis, White Russians, Koreans, Japanese civilians, Japanese military personnel, Europeans, Eurasians, and Chinese.
Politically, Tsingtao, as the most coveted city on Shantung Peninsula, was a hotbed of intrigue and strife. The Communists, with a stronghold at Chefoo, hoped to gain control of the peninsula, and the city. Resisting them were Japanese troops, protecting rail lines leading into the city. ”

“ Many captured enemy soldiers and civilians had stated that the main Japanese defensive force was in southern Okinawa but that a force of about 3000 men, commanded by a Colonel Udo, was somewhere up north, probably on Motobu. Aerial observation and photo terrain studies confirmed indications that there was a sizeable enemy force on the peninsula. On 8 April the Twenty Ninth Marines moved out in three columns, one along the south coast, one along the north coast and one up the center toward the town of Itomi. ”

“ General Shepherd made it plain that every man should know not only his assigned task, but that of his own unit, and of adjacent units, as well as the general scheme of maneuver. In the briefing aboard ship the men learned that Okinawa had a population of some 450,000 civilians; that there were roughly 70,000 Japanese soldiers on the island. They also learned something about its geography, its towns, roads, rivers and terrain. ”

“ At no time was there any complaint that the men were too tired to work:—that they were tired goes without question, but that they carried on is a tribute to their physical stamina, the morale of the individual marine, and to the quality of their leadership. ”

“ During the next three days the battalions were in almost constant contact with Udo’s forces. Ambushes were frequent but the enemy could not be engaged in any decisive action. It was clear that he was engaged in guerrilla-type warfare and wanted to harass our troops but was trying to avoid a meeting engagement. By 13 April the enemy position was definitely fixed as being in the Mt. Yaetake area; it was known that he had considerable artillery, mortars, and a few naval guns emplaced in hidden positions in the wild and rugged mountain mass. ”

“ The mission assigned the Sixth Marine Division was to seize Kuwanga Ridge, part of Ibaru Ridge, and the Kiyamu Gusuku hill mass. Although their plight was hopeless, the enemy still held out in the southernmost part of Okinawa, evidently intent upon exacting as stiff a price, in terms of lives, as possible before being destroyed. Like a trapped animal, the Japanese were resisting bitterly and from their positions on the hills and ridges, were delaying the attackers as long as possible. ”

“ At a time when speed could have meant rapid gains, the division found itself forced to let the rifle companies fight as best they could and without many of their supporting arms. The brief respite gained by the enemy allowed him to redeploy his forces to resist the attack of the Fourth and Twenty Ninth Marines. ”

“ This heroic battalion, the First Battalion, Twenty-ninth Marine Regiment, commanded first by Lieutenant Colonel Guy E. Tannyhill and later by Lieutenant Colonel Rathvon McC. Tompkins (until he was also wounded near the end of the battle) , faced the fearsome task of taking the 1,554-foot peak of Mount Tapotchau, the highest point on Saipan. Like good Marines, Colonel Tompkins’ men never faltered in their assignment, but there were only about 200 left in the battalion when the battle ended. The United States can thank its lucky stars for such picked men who are not afraid to die ”

“ It can be said in all truth that the SIXTH Marine Division Shore Party is the best in every respect so far seen in this war, and its organization, equipment and functioning deserve close study as a model for future operations. ”

“ Resuming the attack on 15 April the Fourth Marines drove up the approaches to Mt. Yaetake; fighting was bitter with one battalion commander killed and several company commanders casualties. The First Battalion, Fourth Marines, seized a key hill mass southwest of the Yaetake peak against heavy resistance. Over rugged terrain the Twenty Ninth Marines continued to advance into the rear of Udo’s position against intermittent resistance. ”

“ During this entire period, due to tactical considerations and the nature of enemy resistance, it was at no time relieved from its front-line positions. In its advance over very difficult terrain, including the main ridge of Mount Tapotchau, the commanding terrain feature of the island, it successfully repulsed numerous counter-attacks and overcame many pockets of inordinately tenacious enemy resistance, including heavy machine gun and mortar fire.
3. In its advance it suffered very heavy casualties. ”

“ It is fitting and proper that we renew and reaffirm our loyalty and devotion to our mother country and the cause for which she stands.”
With general preparations for future combat operations against the enemy underway, the Sixth Marine Division launched an intensive training program in August. ”