February 19, 1945, a beautiful clear morning in the central Pacific.

A fleet of over 500 ships had been sitting off shore of the island of Iwo Jima for the last three days. The large warships bombarded the island at six hour intervals, stopping only to cool down their guns before starting again for another six hours. The bombardment was originally supposed to last 10 days but had been shortened, for various reasons, to just three. The man in overall command of the operation was U.S. 5th Fleet commander-in-chief, Admiral Raymond Spruance.

The plan was very simple. Land Marines on the southwestern part of the island, drive for the airfields, and isolate and capture Mount Suribachi. The whole operation was expected to be concluded within a matter of days thanks to the constant naval and aerial bombardments. What the Americans didn't count on, however, was the fact that the Japanese had turned the entire island into an underground fortress with tunnels running for miles beneath the surface. The bombardments did little to injure the Japanese force of 21,000 men nestled safely in their bunkers.

The USS New York firing on Iwo Jima (February 16, 1945)

At around 8 AM, the Marines disembarked from the naval vessels aboard landing craft and began to head for the beaches. The weather was absolutely beautiful and there looked to be no movement observed on the beaches. The Japanese, the Marines thought, had been annihilated by the big guns.

The first wave approaches Iwo Jima (February 19, 1945)

At 8:59 AM, the first wave of the 5th Marine Division hit the beaches. There was no resistance. Unfortunately for the Marines, expecting good, solid soil...they were confronted by layers and layers of volcanic ash that made advancing off the beaches a little tricky. Foxholes could not be dug and it was difficult to find footing in the softer-than-expected soil.

The first wave hits the beach (0859, February 19, 1945)

Airborne view of the landing area (February 19, 1945)

The Marines advanced steadily and cautiously off the beach and made their way inland. The Japanese, still very much alive, stayed hidden and held their fire. They were under strict orders from their commander-in-chief, General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, to hold their fire to draw the Americans further inland. Only then would they open up on the western invaders.

That time came shortly after 10 AM. From their hidden positions, the Japanese opened fire and rained unholy hell upon the Marines advancing inland as well as the Marines still on the beach.

Ambush! Marines take cover while under enemy fire (February 19, 1945)

Marines pinned down on the beach, with dead and wounded sprawled around. Mt. Suribachi rises in the background. (February 19, 1945)

One of the few U.S. Army units in the fight, the 147th Infantry Regiment, was tasked to take pressure off the Marines on the beach to scale a high ridge about .75 miles away from Mt. Suribachi. They climbed onto the ridge using grappling hooks and quickly found themselves engaged in some of the fiercest combat of the battle. They would be in non-stop action for the next 31 days.

Men from the 147th Infantry Regiment in action (February 19, 1945)

Despite heavy resistance and heavy casualties, a contingent of Marines did manage to reach the southern tip of Airfield No. 1 by 11:30 AM. The Japanese attempted a counter-attack which culminated in a 100-man banzai charge. The Marines held and kept a toehold on the airfield heading into the evening hours.

On the left flank of the assault, the Americans actually managed to achieve their first day's objective. The 28th Marines, led by Colonel Harry Liversedge, managed to cross the island at its narrowest point and successfully isolated Mt. Suribachi from the rest of the Japanese defense.

The Marines on the right flank of the assault, however, weren't so lucky. The 25th Marines attempted to overrun a powerful Japanese defensive position known as the Quarry utilizing a two-pronged attack. 2nd Lt. Benjamin Roselle, described what happened next:

quote:
Within a minute a mortar shell exploded among the group ... his left foot and ankle hung from his leg, held on by a ribbon of flesh ... Within minutes a second round landed near him and fragments tore into his other leg. For nearly an hour he wondered where the next shell would land. He was soon to find out as a shell burst almost on top of him, wounding him for the third time in the shoulder. Almost at once another explosion bounced him several feet into the air and hot shards ripped into both thighs ... as he lifted his arm to look at his watch a mortar shell exploded only feet away and blasted the watch from his wrist and tore a large jagged hole in his forearm: "I was beginning to know what it must be like to be crucified," he was later to say.

The 25th Marines endured horrific losses. The 3rd battalion entered the fight in the Quarry with 900 men. By nightfall, its fighting strength had been reduced to just 150 men - a casualty rate of over 83%.

By that evening, the Marines had secured a tenuous beachhead on Iwo Jima. Some 30,000 men had come ashore with an additional 40,000 to follow in the coming hours. Surveying the casualty lists for the day as well as the slow progress on the beach aboard his command ship, General Holland Smith despaired. He turned to the war correspondents attached to his headquarters and said rather grimly: "I don't know who he is, but the Japanese general running the show is one smart bastard."

The first day of the Battle of Iwo Jima had ended. There would be 31 more.