Harry S. Truman and His Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb Harry S. Truman once said, “Carry the battle to them. Don’t let them bring it to you.” In World War II, that is exactly what he did. While Japan was breaking treaties and fighting with allied countries, the United States was developing a powerful weapon that would cripple Japan and end World War II. This weapon was called the atomic bomb. After it was fully developed and tested, Harry S. Truman made the decision to drop this deadly weapon on two cities in Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
After World War 1 had ended, the world leaders spoke seriously to prevent upcoming future wars but since Hitler had come to power, Hitler violated the treaty of Versailles and began to make his army. Hitler reoccupied the Rhineland and militarized it with the army. He created a lot of many new tactics and military strategies that stunned the European nations before World War II. One of the military tactics he used was Blitzkrieg which was also known as the "Lightning war" but before that Hitler had to test it on a nation. Hitler stunned Europe with the speed and efficiency of the German attack on Poland.
Truman, who was interested in the suggestion, recommended that he discuss it with Byrnes. However, Byrnes ‘swiftly killed the idea’ because he was adamantly against any compromises with Japan as it could be considered a weakness. Later, McCloy wrote that Truman had ‘succumbed to the so-called hardliners’ of the State Department in a letter to the presidential advisor Clark Clifford. When Leo Szilard and other scientists brought up their concerns of the bomb, they were again redirected to Byrnes. Although Byrnes knew that a Japanese surrender was eminent, he was more anxious of the increasing Russian influence in Eastern Europe and was adamant that the atomic bomb would be necessary in managing Russian
The atomic bomb was a nuclear weapon of war, and the first of these bombs were dropped on two Japanese during the second world war. The dropping of the atomic bomb was justified because of the fact that Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor, they had participated in many atrocities and a land invasion would have caused more of the allies to die. It’s because of these big reasons that the United States had to drop the atomic bomb because without it the Japanese would’ve just continued to fight and kill more allies. The atomic bomb also showed the Japanese and the axis powers that they were a nation not to fight with. The atomic bomb being dropped was justified due to the fact the Japanese had attacked the U.S. at a military base named Pearl Harbor.
To prevent going through an invasion, Truman made a hasty decision to drop the bombs. He saw the decision as an improvement to the country’s outlook. Another difference between the two as stated in an article titled, “Would FDR have dropped the bomb?”, there was much evidence that Roosevelt had been pondering possible alternatives to using the bomb on Japan, while Truman’s first instinct was to utilize the bomb at first chance only a few months after Roosevelt’s death (Mitchell
Japan attacked Hong Kong as it was under Britain, which were their enemies, and it would be a jab to them if they lost, and the Japanese were on a train ride, with every stop being another success; after winning against China, a huge country, Hong Kong didn’t seem like a strong opponent. And since they had just attacked Pearl Harbour and taken away multiple vessels from the USA, they knew that America would have cared more about Pearl Harbour. They also knew that the land was good land to own, as it can work in many different strategic ways. And in order to be able to collect this piece of land, the Japanese needed a large amount of soldiers. In the category of manpower, they delivered, as they sent 50,000 men, whereas the defence,
The War in Germany was over, and fighting continued only throughout the Pacific Islands, where American troops were “island hopping” frenziedly in an effort to finally vanquish the Japanese. The Japanese tactics were simple; they did not cease fighting until they won, and their Kamikazes, the original suicide bombers, sunk hundreds of American ships. The United States, tired of incessant violence, issued the Potsdam Declaration, which outlined the consequences that the Japanese would face should they refuse to surrender, it however was ignored. Meanwhile, just months after the European theater of the war ended, the infamous atomic weapons had been completed and were ready for use. Everything was coming to the end.
At first, the States decided to remain neutral on the war, before politicians and businesses began to pressure for campaigns. The U.S.’s posters mostly focused on positive attitudes and nationalism. The U.S. also created multiple comics to support the war effort, with plots from heroes fighting Axis Powers to purchasing war bonds. After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the United States began dropping leaflets that doubled as propaganda and surrender sheets. Movies about the war followed the same attitude to the war as the U.S. did, starting out neutral and then being engineered to put the U.S. in the best light.
The point of this investigation is to examine if America's choice to drop the atomic bombs on Japan, and more specifically Nagasaki, is justified or not. This examination will specifically cover the circumstances that carried the US into World War 2 and its associations with Japan amid the war before the atomic assault. This examination will likewise analyze the US's authorization of the bombs to be dropped over Japan. Content from an assortment of
Through the military perspective, the idea bombing was something that was necessary to do. The United States could have used weapons that were more practical for the situation however, they were probably not sufficient enough to end the war and America would still be feuding with Japan today. Stimson wrote to Truman, with the importance of a private meeting between them about the concerns of the Atomic Bomb and “bearing on our present foreign relations” (Stimson). Prior to the bombing of Japan, the United States tested