Battle of Tarawa, November 20-23, 1943: The successful 76-hour battle became one of the bloodiest battles in U.S. Marine Corps history. Naval ships and aircraft softened the Japanese fortified island in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands in the Pacific Ocean, then a British colony, now the capital of the Republic of Kiribati, for the U.S. Marine Corps to land troops, primarily from its Second Marine Division. However, the landing at low tide and a series of operational difficulties shadowed the hard-fought victory.OHo The Marine Corps suffered approximately 3,000 casualties: 1,000 dead and 2,000 wounded. The American public’s stunned reaction led to changes in subsequent amphibious operations.
The Battle of Tarawa also foreshadowed Japan’s resolve to fight to the very end. Of the 4,700 Japanese soldiers on Tarawa, only 17 survived.