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JAPAN SURRENDERS. By Colton Wiklund and James Koss. Japans dwindling Power. With the intensified war in the pacific, Japan had lost most of its air and naval forces Americans began fire-bombing J apanese cities in an attempt to make them surrender
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JAPAN SURRENDERS By Colton Wiklund and James Koss
Japans dwindling Power • With the intensified war in the pacific, Japan had lost most of its air and naval forces • Americans began fire-bombing Japanese cities in an attempt to make them surrender • Japan stated that they would “fight to the last person”. (Cranny, 149) (Cranny, 149) (Cranny, 149)
The Manhattan project • Einstein wrote a letter to Roosevelt about the idea of creating a nuclear weapon • Top secret plan to develop an atomic bomb by American and British scientists • The Canadian government secretly bought the Eldorado mine in the Northwest Territories to supply uranium • Cost over $2 billion, equivalent to $24.4 billion today (Wales, 1) (Cranny, 149) (Cranny, 149) (Wales, 1)
The bombing of Japan • On August 6, 1945, the atomic bomb, “Little Boy”, was dropped on Hiroshima • Three days later, on August 9, 1945,the atomic bomb, “Fat Man”, was dropped on Nagasaki • There were approximately 200 000 casualties and many more citizens were affected by long-term effects; such as cancer. (Cranny, 149) (Wales, 1) (Cranny, 149) (Wales, 1) (Cranny, 149)
The War Ends • The Japanese surrendered August 14, 1945, due to the bombs destructive capabilities • After six years, and the loss of millions of lives, World War II was over. (Cranny, 149) (Cranny, 149)
The Justification of Weapons of Mass Destruction • High civilian death toll • Japan almost collapsed due to the bombings • Without the atomic bomb, the war would have lasted longer • The Japanese military was readying a defensive attack which would have produced mass casualties for Japan and the United States • Both sides used strategic bombings that resulted in large numbers of civilian casualties, similar to that of the atomic bombs (Stoski, 1)
Bibliography • Cranny, Michael, and Garvin Moles. Counterpoints. Toronto, Canada: Pearson Canada, 2010. Print. • Wales, Jimmy. "Manhattan Project." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Project>.