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World War Two is said to be the bloodiest wars of all time. Around sixty million,
both soldiers and civilians, were killed, and about twenty-five million were wounded
(National WW2 Museum). Although no battle in this war was easy or non detrimental,
some of them were worse, or more significant, than other battles. One of the most
dreadful battles was The Battle of Peleliu. This battle was said to be one of the bloodiest
battles to happen during World War Two.
The Battle of Peleliu was fought in the Pacific Islands, more specifically, the
Island of Peleliu of the Palau Islands. The battle began on the 15th of September in the
year of 1944. Peleliu was fought between America and Japan in order to determine who
had control of the Pacific. Having control the Pacific was critical to determining the
outcome of the war. America, at first, did their very best to keep out of the war. Both
treaties and tariffs were created to help keep the war and all of its casualties out of our
country as well as to keep the peace between America and all the other nations. However,
even amid all of the exhausting efforts to keep the peace, America ending up joining the
Allies to battle against the Axis Powers for control and to keep both Hitler and Hirohito
from taking over the world. What ultimately caused America to join the war was the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, by none other than Japan. Therefore, not only was having
control of the Pacific crucial, it was also personal.
To control the Pacific, you needed to control both the sea and the sky. Countless
efforts and battles were fought using both airplanes and battleships. However, the Battle
of Peleliu was fought on land on a small island about six miles around. Peleliu was not
the only island to be fought on though. America used the island hopping strategy to
gain control and make their way closer and closer to the island of Japan (Taylor). It just

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so happens that Peleliu was the deciding factor to find out who ultimately had the Pacific
in their hands. In the beginning the battle, Japan fired heavy artillery from their planes
and killed a large number of American marines. It seemed as though Japan was in control
in the beginning, and American marines were doomed to fall to the Japanese soldiers and
their harsh tactics of torture.
However, after pushing through the hot weather and harsh conditions, the
American marines began to put up a strong fight against the Japanese soldiers. The first
step toward seizing Peleliu was the massive pre-invasion naval and air bombardment, and
it was executed with the typical noise, smoke, and overestimation of its lethality,
(Gypton). America used their advanced aircrafts to help gain control over this battle and
keep America on top of this war. American marines fought long and hard for
approximately two months against the Japanese soldiers to conclusively win The Battle
of Peleliu.
Throughout the duration of this battle, approximately 9,800 American soldiers
were killed, and an estimated 10,700 Japanese soldiers were killed along with 200
Japanese men captured by the American soldiers (History Net). Although the numbers of
deaths do not seem to be as gruesome as some of the other battles, The Battle of Peleliu is
remarkably significant considering the battle only lasted about fifty days.
Overall the Battle of Peleliu was significant to help America and the Allies win
World War Two. Some people may say it was unnecessary, however if Japan won this
battle, they would have had control of the Pacific and the outcome of World War Two
would have, possibly, ended with the Axis Powers winning and the world as we know it
today being completely different than how we know it.

Works Cited
"By The Numbers: World-Wide Deaths." The National WWII Museum. Web.
"Peleliu." History Net. World's Largest History Magazine, 2015. Web.
Gypton, Jeremy. "Proven Courage, Slight Reward." Military History Online. N.p.,
2015. Web. 9 Nov. 2015. <http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/
peleliu/provencourage.aspx>.
Taylor, Alan. "World War II: The Pacific Islands." The Atlantic. N.p., 25 Sept.
2011. Web. 9 Nov. 2015. <http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2011/09/
world-war-ii-the-pacific-islands/100155/>.