Operation Stalemate II: The Invasion of Peleliu

First Division Marines head for the beach as their LVTs churn past the offshore line of LCI gunboats on September 15, 1944. USS LCIG-452 can be seen in the center and USS Mississippi (BB 41) is likely bombarding in the left distance. (80-G-59498, Naval History and Heritage Command)

 

By Zachary Smyers

HRNM Educator 

“As more than one Marine historian has said, it's unfortunate to the memory of the men who fought and died on Peleliu that it remains one of the lesser-known and poorly understood battles of World War II.” -Eugene B. Sledge, With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa 

Map of Peleliu with invasion beaches

This year marks the 76th anniversary of Operation Stalemate II, the invasion of Peleliu. Part of the Palau Islands in the Pacific Ocean, the island Peleliu is only 6 miles long, 2 miles wide. Military strategists deemed it a target in hopes that it could be used to support a future invasion of the Philippines. Located approximately 600 miles east of the Philippine Islands, the island has an extremely hot climate as well as high humidity, creating less than ideal conditions for the invading Marines. 

USS Maryland (BB 46) provided gunfire support with its 16-inch/45-caliber guns (80-G-455340, Naval History and Heritage Command)

The 1st Marine Division had the task of taking Peleliu, and would later be supported by soldiers from the Army’s 81st Infantry Division. Naval gunfire support centered around five battleships, including three built at Newport News Shipbuilding: USS Pennsylvania (BB 38), USS Maryland (BB 46), and USS Mississippi (BB 41). Prior to the Marines' landing on Peleliu, these battleships fired 519 rounds of 16-inch ammunition and 1,845 rounds of 14-inch ammunition, as well as shells from smaller caliber guns. Seven cruisers also lent their firepower to the three days of pre-invasion bombardment, and Navy aircraft from 19 aircraft carriers hit targets around the island, dropping 1,793 500-pound bombs.

 5-inch gun mounts aboard USS Pennsylvania (BB 38) fire at targets on Peleliu (Navsource)

Smoke billows from the pre-invasion bombardment (80-G-59497, Naval History and Heritage Command)

Despite the tremendous amount of firepower poured onto the island, the Japanese defenders remained safe in the various caves on Peleliu, having spent months preparing their defenses. The 10,000 Japanese troops under Lt. Col. Kunio Nakagawa had adjusted their tactics based on previous battles. Instead of immediately opposing the landing force, they developed a series of defenses inland, utilizing the terrain to their advantage.

Major General William Rupertus was in command of the invasion force. The 1st Marine Division would land at beaches divided into three landing areas with the three regiments (1st, 5th, and 7th Marines) of the division assigned different objectives. The invasion force had various support units, including three platoons of Marine War Dogs.

A Marine war dog and handler take a break (US Marine Corps Archives)

The initial landings took place at 8:32am on September 15, 1944. As the Marines made their way toward the beach, the Japanese held their fire and waited until the amphibious vehicles were in range. Then, the Japanese opened up with deadly accuracy, firing from concealed positions. The first wave suffered heavy casualties. The Marines managed to make it to their assigned beach sectors, and from there, attempted to carry out their objectives while facing heavy resistance.

Marines move forward slowly under heavy fire (US Marine Corps Archives)

On day 2 of the invasion, the 5th Marines captured the airfield despite heavy casualties. On day 3, Navy Seabees had the airfield ready for flight operations and F-4 Corsair fighter bombers from VMF-114 started to arrive at the airfield on the 11th day of the operation. They would provide much-needed close air support for the rest of the campaign. 

The island’s high ground, referred to as “The Point,” the Umurbrogol Pocket, would eventually earn a new name, “Bloody Nose Ridge.” The fight for the ridge was extremely costly for the 1st Marines. The Japanese not only held the high ground, but they also had well-concealed machine gun and mortar positions. The enemy maintained fire discipline, firing only when the Marines were in the kill zone. The 1st Marines suffered 70 percent casualties trying to capture the fortified position. The 81st Infantry Division was sent in after the Marines were bloodied from repeated attempts to take the ridge. With the Army's assistance, and using siege tactics, the high ground was taken. The island was declared secured on November 27, 1944.

Marines move through the rough terrain on the island toward the front lines (US Marine Corps Archives)

This operation was expected to take 3 to 5 days, but ended up taking 2 months, 1 week, and 5 days. The price to capture the island and the airfield was extremely costly. The 1st Marine Division suffered over 6,000 casualties, making them unable to fight again until the invasion of Okinawa in April 1945. The Army’s 81st Infantry Division took over 3,000 casualties. Ultimately, Peleliu would never be used as a staging area for future operations in the Pacific theater. 

A Navy corpsman gives water to a wounded Marine on Peleliu (US Marine Corps Archives)

Despite the heavy losses, the military learned valuable lessons about how to assault heavily-fortified positions. These lessons proved to be extremely helpful during the invasion of Okinawa in 1945. The lessons learned from “Bloody Nose Ridge” and how to assault a fortified position have been incorporated into Marine officer training at Quantico. The tactics used by the 5th Marines incorporating combined arms, concentrated fire, and movement during their assault on the airfield are taught at the Marine Corps’ School of Infantry.

Dedicated to Dot O. Headrick, who landed on Peleliu with the 5th Marines.

Battleship Gunnery at the Battle of Surigao Strait

This gunnery trophy plaque off USS West Virginia (BB-48) hangs in our World War II gallery. As can be seen on the plaque, West Virginia won it five times in the first ten years after it was commissioned in December 1923. Although the plaque dates from the interwar period, the sailors of West Virginia lived up to their ship’s tradition during WWII. Built at Newport News right after WWI, it was at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked on December 7, 1941. Rebuilt and brought back into service, the ship was part of the invasion fleet at Leyte Gulf in October 1944. Sailing alongside it were several other survivors of Pearl Harbor, including other Newport News-built battleships USS Maryland (BB-46) and USS Pennsylvania (BB-38).

In October 1944, the Japanese launched an all-out naval assault on the invasion fleet in Leyte Gulf. Their plan had multiple moving parts which led to problems. The Japanese divided their fleet into three sections. First a diversion force in the north would draw the main American force (under Halsey) away from the invasion fleet. Then two fleets would deploy in a pincer formation to attack the vulnerable landing and supply ships. The southern force (divided into two parts) was to head through the Surigao Strait.

Navy planes spotted and attacked the first part of the southern force under Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura on the morning of October 24 as it cruised south of the Philippine island of Negros. The detection of this force allowed Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf, in charge of bombardment/fire support for the invasion fleet, to set a trap for when the enemy force entered Surigao Strait that night. First the Japanese fleet had to make it through PT (patrol torpedo) boat attacks, then a crossfire of more torpedoes launched from destroyers, before having to deal with both a line of cruisers and a line of battleships, which would be maneuvering in the classic naval tactic of “crossing the T.” This tactic would allow for the greatest number of guns to bear on the Japanese while their return fire was largely limited to the lead ship. Besides West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, the American battleship force included two other Pearl Harbor survivors: USS Tennessee (BB-43) and USS California (BB-44). The sixth battleship included in the force was the Newport News-built battleship USS Mississippi (BB-41), which was doing escort duty near Iceland when the war started.

As the Japanese fleet headed into Surigao Strait, the torpedoes from the PT boats missed, but the destroyers had much better success. The U.S. destroyers were deadly with their torpedo attack, as they sank the battleship Fuso (one of two in the first striking force) and a destroyer, crippled another destroyer, and damaged another destroyer enough that it limped back the way it came. The flagship Yamashiro was also damaged but continued on toward the strait, along with the cruiser Mogami and a remaining destroyer. The second half of the Japanese force (under Adm. Shima) was nearly 30 miles behind, as strict radio silence had prevented close coordination. 

As opposed to their predecessors who earned the gunnery plaque, the sailors onboard West Virginia were aided by a new fire control radar system (Mk 8) which enabled them to detect the enemy at a great distance. In the early morning hours of October 25, the ship’s radar picked up the Japanese force at 42,000 yards (nearly 24 miles, or the length of 140 football fields). By the time they had approached to 30,000 yards, the gunnery crews had a firing solution, and when the Japanese ships approached to about 26,000 yards (nearly 15 miles) away, the 16-inch guns opened fire shortly before 0400 on October 25.

Mogami was badly damaged at the Battle of Midway, so the two aft turrets were removed and it was converted to an “aircraft cruiser.”

Yamashiro was the focus of most of the fire emanating from the American battleships and cruisers. It was hit numerous times and quickly caught on fire. In addition to the gunfire pouring in, the Japanese battleship was struck by more torpedoes, and it sank less than 30 minutes after West Virginia opened fire. Mogami was also badly damaged and on fire. In roughly 15 minutes of engagement, the U.S. battleships alone fired 285 (16 or 14-inch) armor piercing shells. West Virginia expended near half of the armor piercing ammunition, firing 93 rounds from its eight 16-inch guns. The old battle wagons resurrected from Pearl Harbor had exacted their revenge on the Japanese navy.

Shima’s force arrived too late to assist Nishimura’s ships and quickly fled the scene. Some U.S. cruisers and destroyers pursued them, sinking another destroyer and causing fatal damage to Mogami. The Japanese thrust from the south had utterly failed, but the northern part of the pincer was still a major threat, although Adm. Halsey inexplicably ignored it. The consequences of this decision would be readily apparent when the sun came up east of Samar on October 25, 1944. 

Clipper Battleship Mississippi at Newport News Shipbuilding - 1917

This is a photograph of the battleship Mississippi (BB-41) being launched from Newport News Shipbuilding into the James River on January 25, 1917. Displacing 31,000-tons and equipped with twelve 14-inch/50 rifles, Mississippi and her sister ships were the centerpieces of Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels' "Second-to-None" shipbuilding program.

From this angle, the battleship looks like any other battleship constructed in the previous thirty years. Fortunately, a photographer with an eye for detail took a picture of the battleship from the starboard side a few hours before workers launched the ship. Notice that the bow has a very sharp angle, like a razor blade. This was called a "clipper bow."

Taking a page from the clipper ships of the 19th century, naval architects decided to break with tradition on battleship bows with the New Mexico-class battleships, of which Mississippi was the third ship of the class. As the concept of this bow came from wooden clipper sail vessels, architects labeled the bow a "clipper bow." Older classes of battleships, such as Pennsylvania, had what was called a "straight stem" bow. Even older ships had what was called a "bell bow." Commodore Richard Meade (nephew of Civil War General George Meade) wrote about the problems with non-clipper bowed ships: "There was no doubt something graceful and majestic about the aspect of these bows and they buffeted the waves triumphantly. Meanwhile, the vessel was engaged in something other than its duty."

Clipper bows allowed a ship to slice through a wave, instead of going over it, allowing the ship to navigate more efficiently. While the clipper bow had been known about for sometime, the Navy did not adopt the design until the New Mexico-class ships and was subsequently used on other types of vessels, such as heavy and light cruisers. In time, the clipper bow was found to have its flaws, namely water pouring over the decks in heavy seas. This led architects to develop the "hurricane bow" found on Iowa-class battleships.



1916 artist sketch of the New Mexico-class battleship

1853 View of Gosport With the New and Old Navy on Display



(click to enlarge)

This is an 1853 engraving in the museum's collection of the Gosport Shipyard that appeared in the Boston-based Gleason's Pictorial Room Companion. In contrast to the 1820 print shown in the previous blog post, this illustration shows the Yard for what it was: an active industrial site and military base. The ships in the illustration are interesting mix of old and new ships and is good representation of how the U.S. Navy was slowly changing and modernizing its fleet. On the far right is the White Elephant that was the 120-gun ship-of-the-line USS Pennsylvania. To her left is second generation 44-gun frigate USS Columbia. Her sister ship USS Savannah can be seen on the far left. Also on the far left is the remains of the historic first generation 44-gun frigate USS United States. At this point in her career, the old frigate, best known for her War of 1812 operations, was being allowed to have a quiet retirement.

Mixed among these grand sail ships of war are three steam warships, USS Powhatan, Princeton, and Allegheny. While each of these ships had a coal-fired boiler, they were very different ships. Each of them had a different form of propulsion. We often assume that widely used technology must have been obvious choice when the inventor first created his invention. But that is often not the case and was especially true when it came to figuring out what type of propulsion should go on U.S. Naval warships. Powhatan represented the first and oldest concept for steam propulsion: the paddle wheel. When Robert Fulton commissioned the first steam ship, he used this technology and the Navy adopted it for its first steam warships such as USS Mississippi and Missouri. But paddle wheels present a serious problem for warships in that they are large and above the water line, thus making the ship an easy target to immobilize.

So, the Navy went looking for a propulsion system that operated below the water line. It received two other options: Princeton with a "screw propeller" designed by the Swedish inventor John Ericsson, and Allegheny that came equipped with a horizontally mounted paddle wheels that were placed below the water line. This radical idea came from U.S. Navy lieutenant William Hunter. After building a small prototype vessel named Germ, the Navy provided the funding to try the experiment on a larger scale with Allegheny. In the end, the Navy went with Ericsson's idea after discovering it was twice as energy efficient as Hunter's design.

Ship-of-the-Line USS Pennsylvania, Ship Model

Shown here is the museum’s model of the giant ship-of-the-line Pennsylvania. The museum has had the model for many years and it was one of our earliest acquisitions. The ship model company Arthur G. Henning, Inc. of Mount Vernon, New York built the model in 1970. 

The model impressively shows the ship’s massive battery of guns and her large hull. It size is a show stopper for museum visitors.  One cannot help but notice the battlion of guns, the size of the model, and the detail of the ship’s rigging. As a result, the model is one of the more popular artifacts at the museum.

Unfortunately, the model does not fully present the vision of the ship's deigner Samuel Humphries. Like many builders of large warships before him, Humphries wanted Pennsylvania to have a bold artistic presence to accompany her massive broadsides. The first issue is the ship’s figurehead.  On the model is the bust of woman with a crown and has the appearance of Egyptian Pharaoh Cleopatra. According to Humphries’ original drawings, not only was the figure not a woman but rather a bust of the Greek demi-god/hero Hercules. 

The second issue is the stern art.  On the model, there are a series of human figures, a ship, and what looks like the Acropolis.  These are all correct, but it is incomplete. 



Picture of Cleopatra on th ship model at left and a drawing
of Hercules on the right as Samuel Humphries intended.

According to Humphries' original drawing of Pennsylvania’s stern, in the middle are two representations of war: the brute strength of Hercules with his club in hand and several modern weapons of war surrounding him.  On the starboard side is the goddess Athena, who represented skill and wisdom in war.  Her hand is on the Acropolis, which was her main temple in Athens, Greece.  She is surrounded tools used to plan war. 

On both sides of the ship, Humphries intended for there to be a series of aquatic creatures from Greek myths such as sea nymphs and mermaids.  He also intended for there to be an eagle on an American shield, which is a classic representation of the United States. 

A comparison between the art on the
 model and what Humphries intended.

 The actual ship was impressive. Rated at 120-guns and displacing over 3,000-tons, the ship was the largest sailing warship ever constructed for the U.S. Navy. Her designer, Samuel Humphries, drew inspiration for the design from the Spanish battleship and Battle of Trafalgar-veteran Santisima Trinidad and the British battleship Royal Sovereign.  The Navy intended her to be the ultimate blockade buster, should another European war occur.

The ship's size, however, was the cause of many issues. To build just the hull of a ship of the size cost the taxpayers over $800,000 (1830’s dollars).  The annual budget for the entire Department of the Navy during this time period was about $4,000,000 a year.  The consequences for Pennsylvania and other new ships was lengthy build times.

The ship was not only expensive to build, she was expensive to operate.  If the Navy had sent her into battle, it would have taken 3,000 sailors to man all of her weapons and sails.  The battleship made one voyage: Philadelphia to the Gosport Navy Yard in Portsmouth, Virginia.  Here, workers put her in the new constructed Dry Dock Number 1 and placed copper on her hull.  She never sailed again.  The Navy burned her in 1861 to prevent capture during the evacuation of Gosport. 

Ship's Plans-USS Electrican, 1917

Shown here is a building plan from the museum's collection.  It appears to be the Navy's newest battleship, ready to be built at a big shipyard like Newport News Shipbuilding rd.  The plans are indeed for a battleship.  This one, however, would never touch the water. 

When the Navy started Naval Operating Base Hampton Roads in 1917, the Department already began shifting the way sailors trained.  As ships became more complex, there was a need to train sailors first on shore in their respective rates before sending out to the Fleet.  To make new sailors into electricians, the Navy constructed a wooden battleship at NOB Hampton Roads. 

Christened the USS Electrician, the battleship had class rooms inside for basic instruction.   It also had all the bells, whistles, circuits, and wires of a Pennsylvania-class battleship (the newest battleship at the time), to give sailors accurately apply what they learned.   Go here to see what Electrician looked once the Navy finished building it.

Happy Holidays from USS Augusta (CA-31) and Pittsburgh (ACR-4)

This holiday greeting card comes from the Norfolk-based heavy cruiser USS Augusta (CA-31). Built by Newport News Shipbuilding, Augusta was a well-balanced warship that served as a squadron and fleet flagship for most of her career. She was assigned duty as flagship for Commander, Scouting Force, Vice Admiral Arthur L. Willard, on 21 May 1931. During the summer of 1931, she operated with the other warships of Scouting Force carrying out tactical exercises off the New England coast. In August 1931, she was reclassified a heavy cruiser, CA-31. In September, Augusta moved south to Chesapeake Bay, where she joined her colleagues in their normal fall gunnery drills. That employment lasted until mid-November when the cruisers disbanded and retired to their respective home yards. Augusta entered the Norfolk Navy Yard at that time. At the beginning of 1932, she and the other cruisers of the Scouting Force reassembled in Hampton Roads, whence they departed on 8 January on their way to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Augusta conducted training evolutions with the Scouting Force in the vicinity of Guantanamo Bay until 18 February, when the force headed for the Panama Canal on its way to the eastern Pacific to participate in Fleet Problem XIII. She arrived in San Pedro, Calif., on 7 March but returned to sea three days later to execute the fleet problem. During the maneuvers, Augusta and her colleagues in Scouting Force squared off against Battle Force in defense of three simulated "atolls" located at widely separated points on the west coast. The exercises afforded the Fleet training in strategic scouting and an opportunity to practice defending and attacking a convoy.

The second card is from the Newport News Shipbuilding-built armored cruiser USS Pittsburgh (ex-Pennsylvania) (ACR-4). We are not sure when the card was produced, but the ship was renamed Pittsburgh in 1912 to make room for the giant battleship Pennsylvania (BB-38). Our best guess for this card is between 1917 (when she conducted war patrols) and 1922 (when she served as flagship of the U.S. Navy's European Squadron).

Robert Foster Collection and USS Shawmut (CM-4)

One of many cartoons collected by BM3 Robert Foster

We recently received several items that belong to BM3 Robert Foster, a sailor who served on board the Norfolk-based mine layer USS Shawmut (CM-4) from 1918 to 1922. Shawmut most famously served in the 1918 North Sea Mine Barrage during World War I. When not laying mines, she served as a seaplane tender for the fleet. The Navy later changed the name of the vessel to Oglala to avoid confusion with USS Chamount (AP-5).

Shawmut at her home pier at NOB Hampton Roads
(now Naval Station Norfolk).

Foster took several photographs of Shawmut's time in the Caribbean, when the vessel was deployed to Panama for the Atlantic Fleet's 1921-22 winter fleet exercises. Foster also took several pictures of the other ships participating  in the exercises, particularly the battleships.  He also collected newspaper cartoons about the Navy (see above) and kept them in a scrapbook.

Shawmut's sailors load up mines while
at the Yorktown Mine Depot
(now Yorktown Naval Weapons Station).

Foster took these images of the Atlantic Fleet's battleships during the 1922 winter exercises. In this set are ships that would be at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941: USS Tennessee (BB-43),USS California (BB-44), USS Arizona (BB-39), USS Pennsylvania (BB-38), and the newly built hospital ship USS Relief (AH-1).