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1942 in Japan

  • Battle of the Java SeaOn the 27th of February 1942, Rear Admiral Karel Doorman led a multinational Allied fleet from Surabaya toward the Java Sea.
  • Doolittle RaidPresident Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a meeting at the White House on the 21st of December 1941 and said that Japan should be…
  • Indian Ocean raidThe island of Ceylon commanded the Indian Ocean in early 1942. It controlled access to India and vital Allied shipping routes to the Middle East.
  • Battle of MidwayOn the 18th of April 1942, sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers launched from the aircraft carrier Hornet to bomb targets in Tokyo and other Japanese cities.
  • Bombing of TokyoOn the 18th of April 1942, sixteen North American B-25 Mitchells took off from the aircraft carrier Hornet. These modified bombers flew toward Tokyo and…
  • Guadalcanal campaignOn the 7th of December 1941, Japanese forces attacked the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack killed almost 2,500 people and…
  • Battle of Changsha (1941–1942)The Third Battle of Changsha began on the 24th of December 1941, just days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This timing was no accident for Imperial…
  • Zhejiang-Jiangxi campaignOn the 18th of April 1942, sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers took off from the aircraft carrier Hornet. They flew toward Tokyo, Nagoya, and Yokohama to drop…