Combat· World War II
Northern Okinawa drive and Motobu Peninsula (Yae-Take)
After racing up the lightly defended north of the island, the 6th Marine Division met its first real fight on the Motobu Peninsula, a rugged mountain redoubt built around Mount Yae-Take.
Colonel Udo's Kunigami Detachment held prepared positions in steep ravines and dense vegetation, with naval guns dug deep into caves and the approaches sown with mines. The 4th and 29th Marines fought difficult close combat across the mountain, attacking from multiple directions and hauling water and ammunition up the slopes by hand while bringing the wounded down. The defenders fought to the death. The Marines carried the entire fight, their division's first major test, and the victory dispelled doubts that Marines could conduct rapid mountain warfare over broken terrain, forging the teamwork that served the division through the rest of the campaign.
Podcast episodes on World War II
Record no. 585