Aleutian Islands Research Paper

Much like the Korean War is referred to as “The Forgotten War”, the battles to reclaim the Aleutian Islands could be referred to as “The Forgotten Battles of the Aleutian Islands”. The two battles were fought during World War II, on two islands near Alaska, called Attu and Kiska. In fact, these battles were a part of what is called the “Aleutian Islands Campaign”. It was the only battles of World War II that were fought on American soil. The islands were part of the tail of Alaska between the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean. But the islands of Attu and Kiska were invaded by the Japanese and reclaimed by the US, ending in 1943. The battle for Attu was known as “Operation LandGrab” and the battle for Kiska was known as “Operation Cottage”.
The Battle for the Aleutian Islands took place between June of 1942 - August of 1943 (Battle of the Aleutian Islands, 2009). The objective of

The battle for Attu was known as Operation Landgrab. They had expected that the battle would take not more than a few days, but the unforgiving terrain had different plans. It extended the fighting out to more than two weeks. The Japanese troops had retreated back to the safety of high ground and not fight the Americans in the initial landing. With the 11,000 Americans that landed, the Japanese were greatly outmanned and outgunned. But even with the Army’s might, the soldiers still suffered greatly due to being unprepared for the terrain and weather conditions. More US soldiers died from frostbite, gangrene, trench foot, and other sickness than from combat deaths (Battle for the Aleutian Islands, 2009). There also was not a lot of food for the US soldiers while they were on the island. The fighting consisted of small but ferocious firefights, all while crossing the mountains. They also had to keep an eye out for booby traps, snipers, and enemy