The Pacific Naval War 1941–1945

This history examines the naval conflict between Allied and Japanese forces during World War II in the Pacific from 1941 to 1945. Naval power was central to the war: it enabled Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and subsequent advances westward and southward, and it allowed the Allies to counterattack and eventually bring the war to Japan itself. The turning point came quickly with the US victory at Midway in June 1942, which ended Japanese hopes of domination. The book begins with the decisions that led Japan into war and the challenges faced by the Royal Navy elsewhere during this period. It then traces how, within a couple of years, the Royal Navy deployed the strongest and most balanced fleet in its history to disrupt Japanese operations significantly. The account also covers the development of the Royal Australian Navy into a capable naval force that would become a major fleet in the immediate postwar years. Eyewitness accounts from those who fought at sea support the narrative of the war's progression.