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Back
The Sixth Marine Division holds a unique
place in U.S. Marine Corps history, because it was retired after
one great battle. The division was formed on Guadalcanal in
September 1944, its ranks filled with battle-hardened veterans and
untested replacement troops. The Sixth Division fought its only
action on the island of Okinawa from April to June 1945 but entered
the fight with more combat experience overall than any other Marine
division in its initial battle. It disappointed no one. The Okinawa
campaign involved eight Army and Marine divisions, but the Sixth
captured most of the ground in some of the bloodiest fighting of
the war. Weeks later, atomic attacks on two Japanese cities in
early August 1945 swiftly ended the war. "Before Hiroshima there
was Okinawa. Because of Okinawa, in considerable part there was
Hiroshima," wrote one reporter. With the invasion of Japan
canceled, the Sixth Division went to China on occupation duty and,
on 1 April 1946, was reorganized out of existence. As it was
created overseas, so was it disbanded. This book tells the story of
these Marines in their own words. Historian Laura Lacey - a Marine
family member who has lived on Okinawa -sympathetically portrays
the men who in 1945 fought a tremendous battle that she contends
has not received its full share of attention from historians. Lacey
considers the gritty details of close quarters combat and considers
the myriad physical and psychological wounds that war wreaks. With
Marines now engaged in a tough fight in Iraq, Lacey's book reminds
us that whether or not a war is popular, war is indeed hell.
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| ISBN-10: 1574889524 ISBN-13: 9781574889529 |
Hardback - December 2005 |
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£18.50
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