Blood-Soaked Sands: The Battle of Iwo Jima and the Day the Flag Was Raised

One Photograph Changed the War

Imagine it: a black sand beach covered in volcanic ash, ear-splitting artillery fire, and in the midst of it all, six Marines raising a massive American flag atop Mount Suribachi. The instant captured by AP photographer Joe Rosenthal was not merely a "war photo." It was a ray of light offered to a weary American public.

Why Iwo Jima? -- A Tiny Island, A Massive Strategy

Iwo Jima is a small volcanic island of just 21 square kilometers, located about 1,200 km south of Tokyo. Why was this island, barely visible on a map, so critically important?

The answer was singular: runways. B-29 Superfortress bombers raiding the Japanese mainland had round-trip distances that were too long, and with no place for emergency landings, they crashed into the Pacific in alarming numbers. Capturing Iwo Jima would enable fighter escorts and serve as a lifeline for damaged bombers. After the island was secured, over 2,000 B-29s made emergency landings on Iwo Jima, saving tens of thousands of lives.

36 Days of Hell -- Beginning February 19, 1945

U.S. Marines first set foot on Iwo Jima's beaches on February 19, 1945. But Japanese commander Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi was different. He abandoned the conventional "stop them at the beach" approach and instead built a network of underground tunnels stretching 18 km across the island. When the Marines landed, the beach was quiet. Too quiet.

Then hell broke loose. Artillery poured from underground fortresses. Bullets came from invisible positions. Over 36 days, 6,821 Americans were killed and more than 19,000 wounded. Of the 21,000 Japanese defenders, only 216 were captured alive.

On March 16, 1945, the U.S. officially declared Iwo Jima secured. However, the last two Japanese holdouts did not surrender until 1949.

A Legacy Beyond War -- The Weight of One Photograph

The photograph taken atop Mount Suribachi on February 23 won the Pulitzer Prize and became the model for the Marine Corps War Memorial in Washington, D.C. But there is a painful side to this image. Of the six men in the photo, three were killed on Iwo Jima. The three who survived found the burden of being called war heroes difficult to bear. Ira Hayes, in particular, suffered severe post-traumatic stress and passed away in 1955 at just 32 years of age.

This History on Screen

Director Clint Eastwood released twin films in 2006 that captured the same battle from two perspectives. Flags of Our Fathers depicts the guilt and confusion the surviving flag-raisers experienced as they were paraded around to sell war bonds as "heroes." It closely follows historical fact, though Ira Hayes' inner conflict is dramatically emphasized.

Shot from the opposite side, Letters from Iwo Jima -- based on General Kuribayashi's actual letters -- delivered a powerful shock by portraying the human side of Japanese soldiers awaiting death. The HBO miniseries The Pacific vividly recreates the broader Pacific War, including the Battle of Iwo Jima, based on actual Marine testimonies.

The Question Left in the Sand

The Battle of Iwo Jima was a "victory" for America, but the cost was staggering. Marine General Holland Smith said: "On Iwo Jima, there were no cowards. Some simply lived a little longer than others."

Eighty-one years later, only the wind blows across those black sands. Atop Mount Suribachi, where the flag was raised, memorials from both the United States and Japan now stand side by side. The sight of two former enemies honoring their fallen together may be the quietest and most profound legacy of all this sacrifice.