Battle of Iwo Jima
A story of a volcanic ridge, two flags in the wind, and a fight that reshaped the Pacific war’s final months.
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54 results for “Iwo Jima”
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Iwo Jima landings
On February 19th, 1945, the beaches of Iwo Jima filled with landing craft as Marines of the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions came ashore under fire. The island was small but strategically important, lying between the Marianas and the Japanese home islands and hosting airfields that could threaten American bombers.
End of the Battle of Iwo Jima
While armies crossed rivers in Europe, Marines in the Pacific were still locked in some of the war’s most brutal island battles. United States forces had landed on Iwo Jima in February 1945, attacking a volcanic fortress where Japanese defenders used tunnels, caves, and concrete bunkers to make every yard of ground costly. The famous flag raising on Mount Suribachi took place early in the campaign, but heavy fighting
Flag raising on Iwo Jima
On February 23rd, 1945, a patrol from the 28th Marine Regiment climbed Mount Suribachi, the volcanic peak dominating the southern end of Iwo Jima, and raised an American flag. A larger flag soon replaced the first, and an Associated Press photographer captured the moment that would become one of the most reproduced images in military history.
Beyond the Call: Corporal Hershel “Woody” Williams at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of relentless courage under fire in the Pacific War of World War II.
Beyond the Call: Platoon Sergeant Joseph R. Julian at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of courage under fire in the Pacific War.
Beyond the Call: Private George Phillips at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of self-sacrifice under fire in World War II.
Climb to Suribachi: How Marines Seized Iwo Jima at Terrible Cost
A story of a volcanic ridge, two flags in the wind, and a fight that reshaped the Pacific war’s final months.
Fortress: The Battle of Iwo Jima
Recipients connected to the assault on Iwo Jima and the fight across the volcanic island.
“He Gallantly Gave His Life”: First Lieutenant Harry Linn Martin on Iwo Jima
An Ohio engineer officer who turned a rear-area camp into a last-ditch defensive line
Beyond the Call: Corporal Hershel “Woody” Williams at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of relentless courage under fire in the Pacific War of World War II.
Beyond the Call: Private George Phillips at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of self-sacrifice under fire in World War II.
Climb to Suribachi: How Marines Seized Iwo Jima at Terrible Cost
A story of a volcanic ridge, two flags in the wind, and a fight that reshaped the Pacific war’s final months.
Platoon Sergeant Joseph R. Julian at Iwo Jima, 1945
A Medal of Honor story of courage under fire in the Pacific War.
George Phillips
Night on Iwo Jima never really felt dark. The sky glowed faintly from flares and burning wreckage, and the volcanic ash underfoot seemed to swallow every step. In a shallow foxhole—a rough, shoulder-deep fighting position scraped into that ash—Private George Phillips stood watch while the rest of his squad finally slept. They had spent the night trading grenades and rifle fire with Japanese troops slipping through th
Harry L. Martin
An Ohio engineer officer who turned a rear-area camp into a last-ditch defensive line
Hershel W. Williams
A Medal of Honor story of relentless courage under fire in the Pacific War of World War II.
Hershel “Woody” Williams
The black volcanic sand of Iwo Jima offered no cover, only shallow shell holes and the hulks of stalled tanks. Late on February 23, 1945, Marines of the 21st Regiment lay pinned down, staring across a short stretch of open ground that felt a mile wide. Ahead of them, a maze of reinforced concrete pillboxes spat machine-gun fire in crossing patterns, every burst chewing fresh craters into the sand.