U.S. Naval Operations in World War 2 – serie

The determining factors in the Battle for Leyte Gulf were superb skill, heroism, and aggressiveness, but confusion, surprise, and faulty assumptions also played significant roles. The Japanese Centre Force, comprising more than half of Japan's naval gunfire, steamed undetected into gun range and caught the Seventh Fleet completely by surprise. The Japanese made no use of this wonderful opportunity, however, imagining the enemy to be manifold the strength that it was. The Allied victory at Leyte enabled the U.S. Navy to transport troops and base long-range bomber planes in positions so close to Japan that victory was all but assured. Morison's account includes the key engagements surrounding the taking of Leyte: the U.S. Navy's extraordinary display of"gallantry, guts, and gumption" at the Battle of Samar and the perfect timing and almost faultless execution achieved in the Battle of Surigao Strait, the last naval battle in which air power played no part. About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison, an eminent Harvard professor, was appointed by close friend Franklin D. Roosevelt to write the history of U.S. naval operations during World War II after convincing the president that too many wartime histories were written after the fact or from a distance. Morison called his classic work a“shooting history” of World War II, because it was documented by historical observation during each specific naval operation in the Atlantic and Pacific. Hailed for its accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, this monumental work presents a complete record of the US Navy’s war at sea, covering the strategic planning, battle tactics, and technological advances, as well as the heroic actions of American sailors.

Samuel Eliot Morison’s monumental fifteen volume series, History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, covering the complete record of the U.S. Navy during the war, is a critically acclaimed work of history. First published by Little Brown and later by the University of Illinois, the complete series will now be published by the Naval Institute Press in updated paperback editions with new introductions by noted military historians.THE BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC, SEPTEMBER 1939– MAY 1943 is the first volume of what Morison called his “shooting history” of World War II, because it was documented by historical observation during each specific naval operation.While first chronologically, it was actually the second in order of publication. The first to be published was Volume II, OPERATIONS IN NORTH AFRICAN WATERS, October 1942–June 1943, of which Fletcher Pratt wrote in the New York Sun,“If the remaining volumes are up to the level of this one, it will stand not only as the most complete, but also the most readable work of its kind ever published.”

Samuel Eliot Morison’s monumental fifteen volume series, History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, covering the complete record of the U.S. Navy during the war, is a critically acclaimed work of history. First published by Little Brown and later by the University of Illinois, the complete series will now be published by the Naval Institute Press in updated paperback editions with new introductions by noted military historians. One of America’s most distinguished historians, Samuel Eliot Morison, was commissioned in the Naval Reserve early in 1942 with the sole duty of preparing the history of which OPERATIONS IN NORTH AFRICAN WATERS, OCTOBER 1942– June 1943, is the second volume. The work, as a whole, is a “shooting history,” written from the inside out, in effect simultaneously with the events it records. Morison spend more that half his time a sea during the war, seeing active duty on eleven different ships and emerging with seven battle stars on his service ribbons. Either he or one of three officers on this staff personally covered every major operation after 1942. His is the story of naval combat, surface actions, submarine and antisubmarine warfare as conducted from carriers and naval bases ashore, and amphibious warfare.Volume 2, which was actually the first to be published, covers naval aspects of Operation“Torch,” the North African campaign, which carried out the plan favoured by President Roosevelt for opening a second front to relieve the Russians. Told with the accuracy of a historian, the pace of an experienced narrator, the detail of firsthand observation and participation, it is a full record of what was, at the time it occurred, the largest overseas expedition ever undertaken.

Samuel Eliot Morison’s monumental fifteen volume series, History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, covering the complete record of the U.S. Navy during the war, is a critically acclaimed work of history. First published by Little Brown and later by the University of Illinois, the complete series will now be published by the Naval Institute Press in updated paperback editions with new introductions by noted military historians.The first two volumes of this firsthand history of the U.S. Navy in World War II covered operations in the Atlantic from September 1939 to June 1943. Volume 3, THE RISING SUN IN THE PACIFIC, 1931–APRIL 1942 is the first on the war in the Pacific, a major testing ground which proved the ability of American naval forces to come back from disaster and eventually achieve its far-flung objectives. Considerable attention is given in this book to the “incidents” that really began the war in the Pacific and to the internal conflict within Japan. The first four chapters cover the period up to December 1941 followed by a chapter on the attack, a brilliant account in detail of what actually happened at Pearl Harbor. Part II discusses“The Philippines and Near-by Water,” including the invasion, the fall of Guam, the landings in Malaya and the rear guard in the Philippines. Part III is called “Out from Pearl” and deals with the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Wake Island, communications and carrier strikes (January to March, 1942). Part IV, “Defense of the Malay Barrier,” begins with the Abda Command of January to March, 1942, tells of Balikpapan, the prelude to the invasion of Java, the battle of the Java Sea, events in the Indian Ocean and finally the Halsey-Doolittle raid on Tokyo in April 1942. Data secured in Japan by a member of Captain Morison’s staff, completes the absolutely authentic record of this volume.

Quality paperback editions of Samuel Eliot Morison’s multi-volume History of United States Naval Operations in World War II are being published by the Naval Institute Press with new introductions by today’s leading naval historians. The first three volumes were introduced in March. Volumes 4, 5, and 6 become available in September. Critically hailed for their accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, these classic works present a complete naval record of the war written by a participant. An eminent Harvard professor, Morison was commissioned in the U.S. Naval Reserve and served aboard eleven ships in all theatres of the war. Volume 4 takes a richly detailed look at the first two naval battles in which aircraft played the defining role. The exploits of the fledgling American submarine corps in the Pacific are also fully examined. Critical information from the Japanese is included.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy where he attained the rank of rear admiral. The author of many books, he is the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes and two Bancroft Prizes. He died in 1976.

Quality paperback editions of Samuel Eliot Morison’s multi-volume History of United States Naval Operations in World War II are being published by the Naval Institute Press with new introductions by today’s leading naval historians. The first three volumes were introduced in March. Volumes 4, 5, and 6 become available in September. Critically hailed for their accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, these classic works present a complete naval record of the war written by a participant. An eminent Harvard professor, Morison was commissioned in the U.S. Naval Reserve and served aboard eleven ships in all theatres of the war.Volume 5 covers the six major engagements in waters surrounding Guadalcanal, from the Solomon Islands campaign to the courageous actions of Edson’s Raiders at the Battle of the Bloody Ridge.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy where he attained the rank of rear admiral. The author of many books, he is the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes and two Bancroft Prizes. He died in 1976.

Quality paperback editions of Samuel Eliot Morison’s multi-volume History of United States Naval Operations in World War II are being published by the Naval Institute Press with new introductions by today’s leading naval historians. The first three volumes were introduced in March. Volumes 4, 5, and 6 become available in September. Critically hailed for their accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, these classic works present a complete naval record of the war written by a participant. An eminent Harvard professor, Morison was commissioned in the U.S. Naval Reserve and served aboard eleven ships in all theatres of the war.Volume 6 traces the gradual turning of the Pacific war from the overconfident Japanese to the dogged, undersupplied Allies. It examines the pivotal Papuan campaign, the Huan Gulf and Bougainville campaigns, and the conflicts that lead to the taking of Rabual.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy where he attained the rank of rear admiral. The author of many books, he is the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes and two Bancroft Prizes. He died in 1976.

The seventh volume in Admiral Morison’s History of the United States Naval Operations in World War II picks up operations in the Aleutians where they were broken off after the Battle of Midway and carries them through the capture of Attu and Kiska, including the Battle of the Komandorskis. Two great amphibious operations are covered in this volume: the Gilbert Islands and the conquest of the Marshalls. Captain Morison, who took part in Operation: Galvanic, describes in detail the planning, preparation, and execution of the assaults on Makin and Tarawa, with a frank discussion of the mistakes.The grim narrative of one of the most inspired and successful amphibious operation of the war contrasts with several amusing interludes including how the Japanese fooled US troops in the evacuation of Kiska.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught history at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy on board eleven different ships in all theatres of the war. In addition to this series, Rear Admiral Morison wrote many other popular and award-winning books on maritime history, including Two Ocean War. Morison, who died in 1976, was the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes, two Bancroft Prizes, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The eighth volume of Admiral Morison’s History of United States Naval Operations in World War II covers five of the most eventful months of the Pacific war, from March to August of 1944. It describes the submarine patrols of this period, the fast carrier strikes of March and April and the bold leaps of the Southwest Pacific Forces under General MacArthur’s command, to Hollandia, Wakde, Biak and Vogelkop.Here, also, is the story of the Pacific Fleet operations from the end of the Marshall Islands campaign to the recovery of Guam. The battle of the Philippine Sea in June, a naval action equal to Midway in tactical interest, and decisive in the outcome of the war, receives particular emphasis as the greatest carrier action of all time– the Jutland of World War II. The first two assaults of Operations “Galvanic” and “Flintlock” of Volume VII were “sudden death” affairs, but the bitterly contested Marianas operation lasted two months. Events forced changes in the original plans, and our naval and ground forces displayed the greatest flexibility and fortitude. About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught history at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy on board eleven different ships in all theatres of the war. In addition to this series, Rear Admiral Morison wrote many other popular and award-winning books on maritime history, including Two Ocean War. Morison, who died in 1976, was the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes, two Bancroft Prizes, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The ninth volume in Admiral Morison’s history takes up the story of American naval activities in the Mediterranean where Volume II left off, and covers three major amphibious operations – the invasion of Sicily (Husky), and the capture of the Salerno beachhead (Avalanche), and the long Anzio beachhead struggle (Shingle). As the operations in this volume were both joint and combined, it covers a great many besides those of the United States Navy, also providing a balanced account of Mediterranean operations in 1943-1944. As he relates the individual exploits of American bluejackets, he also discusses higher strategy, such as the British concept of nourishing operations in the“Sea of Destiny”.This is but one of the many controversial subjects covered in this volume. Morison considered that the whole plan of the Sicilian operation was ill-conceived, that the evacuation of three German divisions from Sicily could and should have been prevented, that the Italian armistice was woefully bungled, and that the hard-fought Anzio operation was a mistake. He concluded, however, that the Italian campaign, like the Wilderness campaign of 1864,“was fought because it had to be fought.”About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught history at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy on board eleven different ships in all theatres of the war. Before he died in 1976, he was the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes, two Bancroft Prizes, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Combining meticulous detail with a forceful account of the action, Morison describes the landings themselves as well as the "dirty work in the dark" that preceded them: deceptions, diversions, commando raids, parachute drops, mine sweepings, air bombing, and naval bombardment. As he shows, the fire curtain provided by the powerful guns of the navy proved to be one of the most valuable trump cards of the Anglo-United States invasion armies. Morison covers the vital capture of Cherbourg as an invasion port and the diversionary landings in southern France that, together with Overlord, comprised the two main operations in the invasion of Europe in which the U.S. Navy played a leading part. At every stage, the fate of thousands of men depended not only on their own raw courage and resourcefulness but on quirks of timing and sheer luck. Morison offers a magnificent chronicle of these heroic days that definitively turned the tide of the war in Europe.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison, an eminent Harvard professor, was appointed by close friend Franklin D. Roosevelt to write the history of U.S. naval operations during World War II after convincing the president that too many wartime histories were written after the fact or from a distance. Morison called his classic work a“shooting history” of World War II, because it was documented by historical observation during each specific naval operation in the Atlantic and Pacific. Hailed for its accuracy, narrative pace, and detail, this monumental work presents a complete record of the U.S. Navy’s war at sea, covering the strategic planning, battle tactics, and technological advances, as well as the heroic actions of American sailors.

After the Battle of Leyte Gulf, which crushed Japanese naval power in the Pacific even more effectively than American naval chiefs were aware at the time, the U.S. moved against Japan to liberate the Philippines. Here, the carrier actions supporting these operations are told in detail. Through Admiral Samuel Morison’s eloquence, the half-forgotten, far-off names of these Philippine battles come to life again, as he tells of the preliminary bombardments, the assaults over the beaches, and the land fighting for the islands and Manila, as well as of the countermeasures taken against the fanatical air attacks of the Japanese. Here too is Admiral Halsey’s famous raid of Task Force 38 in the South China Sea, ranging from Formosa to Indochina. Of particular interest to sailors and landsmen alike is the chapter on the frightful typhoon of 18 December, 1944, in which three U.S. ships went down and over eight hundred lives were lost.Additional chapters tell the story of the three amphibious assaults on Borneo by Australian troops covered by the U.S. Navy; of submarine operations in the southwest Pacific in 1945; and of Captain Milton Miles’s amazing U.S. Naval Group, China, which carried out cloak-and-dagger operations on the mainland for years and fought the last naval battle of the war with sailing junks.About the AuthorSamuel Eliot Morison taught history at Harvard from 1915 to 1955, except for active duty service in the Navy on board eleven different ships in all theatres of the war. Before he died in 1976, he was the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes, two Bancroft Prizes, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.