The Meat Grinder

On February 26, 1945 the Marines of the 4th Division found themselves facing a formidable complex of defensive positions on Iwo Jima. Hill 382, The Amphitheater, Turkey Knob and the village of Minami, were to become collectively known as the …

1945-03-06

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On February 26, 1945 the Marines of the 4th Division found themselves facing a formidable complex of defensive positions on Iwo Jima. Hill 382, The Amphitheater, Turkey Knob and the village of Minami, were to become collectively known as the 'Meat Grinder'. A well-planned defense layout, the remarkable combination of weapons, minefields, caves and bunkers devised by Japanese General Kuribayashi held out against repeated attacks. Several times, the Marines' advance looked promising, only to bog down and then be driven back under heavy fire. The Japanese forces also used infiltration tactics and a counter-attack with a limited number of tanks to further slow the Marines down. Units from the 3rd Division were also thrown against the position as the massive casualty figures truly earned the 'Meat Grinder' its name in a short week's worth of fighting.

Iwo Jima, Pacific

The Battle of Iwo Jima was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps and Navy landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II. The American invasion, designated Operation Detachment, had the purpose of capturing the island with its two airfields: South Field and Central Field was twofold. The first was to provide for B-29s unable to make it back to Tinian. The second was to have air fields for shorter ranged fighters to be staged to extend fighter coverage to the bombers. The island could also serve as a staging point for attacks on the Japanese main islands. The five-week battle was some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting of the Pacific War.

Wikipedia: Battle of Iwo Jima

Japanese

American

Game Type: Standard

Board Type: Countryside

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