Utmost Savagery: The Three Days of Tarawa » (New Edition)

Colonel Alexander became a military historian In Asheville, NC after retiring from the Marine Corps. He has written five books and helped produce 25 documentaries for the History Channel, A&E, PBS, and Fox News. He was chief historian, exhibit design team for the National Museum of the Marine Corps

On November 20, l943, in the first trial by fire of America's fledgling amphibious assault doctrine, five thousand men stormed the beaches of Tarawa, a seemingly invincible Japanese island fortress barely the size of the Pentagon parking lots (three-hundred acres!). Before the first day ended, one third of the Marines who had crossed Tarawa's deadly reef under murderous fire were killed, wounded, or missing. In three days of fighting, four Americans would win the Medal of Honor and six-thousand combatants would die. The bloody conquest of Tarawa by the newly created Central Pacific Force provided the first trial by fire of America's fledgling doctrine of forcible amphibious assault against a heavily fortified objective. Described by one veteran as "a time of utmost savagery," the incredibly violent battle raged for three days and left 6,000 men dead in an area no bigger than the Pentagon and its parking lots. Utmost Savagery is the definitive account of Tarawa and reflects years of research into primary sources, tidal records, new translations of Japanese documents, and interviews with survivors. A Marine combat veteran himself, Col. Alexander presents a masterful narrative of the tactics, innovations, leadership, and weapons employed by both antagonists. The book portrays the battle's full flavor: the decisions, miscalculations, extreme risks, lost opportunities, breakthroughs, blunders, and vital lessons learned. Alexander describes the landing plan and its assumptions, analyzes the freakish "tide that failed," and follows the amphibious ship-to-shore assault as it encounters the exposed reef and hellish Japanese fire. He renders a professional salute to Japanese Admiral KeijiShibasaki and his well-trained Special Naval Landing Forces who defended Tarawa virtually to the last man. Above all he highlights the courage and adaptability of the Marine small-unit leaders who kept the assault moving throughout 76 hours of unmitigated horror.

Publishers Weekly

Alexander, a retired Marine officer and established scholar, uses a broad spectrum of fresh Japanese and American sources to present a gripping narrative of one of the bloodiest battles of WWII in the Pacific theater. At Tarawa in the Kiribati (formerly Gilbert) islands, ``uncommon valor was a common virtue'' on both sides. But this account is more than battle history. Alexander interprets Tarawa as a military test bed, a validation of the concept of amphibious assault against defended positions. The Marines and the Navy made mistakes but learned from them. Without the experience gained at Tarawa, America's path across the central Pacific would have been longer and bloodier, according to the author. Tarawa was a psychological landmark as well. The savage, close-quarters fighting and high casualties helped solidify the grim determination in the U.S. to prevail over the Japanese. Illustrations. Military Book Club main selection. (Sept.)

List of Illustrations

Prologue: "Issue in Doubt!" 3

Ch. 1 The Central Pacific Takes Center Stage 11

Ch. 2 The Japanese in the Gilberts 21

Ch. 3 Amphibious Warriors 42

Ch. 4 Movement to Contact 67

Ch. 5 Into the Gates of Hell 97

Ch. 6 Gaining Toeholds on D-Day 122

Ch. 7 Dark-Eyed Night 147

Ch. 8 "We Are Winning!" 159

Ch. 9 Fight to the Finish 180

Ch. 10 The Gilberts Aflame 208

Ch. 11 Pyrrhic Victory 227

Epilogue: Tarawa's Enduring Legacy 241

Notes on Sources 251

Notes 253

Bibliography 285

Index 293