WWII Turning Points: October 1943-February 1944

WORLD WAR II TURNING POINTS

It is difficult to pinpoint a single battle as the turning point marking the end of World War II especially in a theater which encompassed an area as large as the Pacific , in a war lasting more than four years . A concrete claim could be that the attack at Pearl Harbor was a turning point since it involved Japan in a war with the United States which had superior economic resources . This attack also made the American public to support the war effort . On the other hand , some

br historians have viewed Tarawa 's invasion in November 1943 as the turning point since a direct attack was made on a territory which the Japanese had held before the war

The debate over the turning point of World War II partly lies on the importance attributed to numerous factors which were necessary in conducting operations in the theater . The land bases as well as logistical , naval , air , amphibious and ground forces were all integral factors in the war . From the perspective of the balance of naval forces the attack on Pearl Harbor was not of much significance since the ships which were lost together with those which were later mended were not so much needed in the campaign . Tarawa on the other hand did not posit much naval casualties even though it had an impact on the Japanese defense perimeter , stripping away from them a forward base . Guadalcanal and the Midway campaign , by contrast , had a massive...