Brute Force or Combat Finesse? The Evolving Role of Firepower in US Amphibious Operations against the Imperial Japanese Forces,1941–1945

Abstract

The article explains how US commanders in the Pacific theatre modified their methods of deploying firepower to cope with the challenges which the Japanese forces put up. Although American doctrines for amphibious warfare demonstrated an understanding of the tasks that they needed to carry out, they did not fully envisage the scale of effort required to capture well-defended positions. Commanders therefore had to learn through combat experience that their capabilities required substantial modifications. By the closing stages of the campaign, the Americans had developed a meticulous set of procedures which relied on a calibrated use of firepower to overcome Japanese defences.