Landing in Hell, Peter Margaritis
Landing in Hell, Peter Margaritis
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Landing in Hell
The Pyrrhic Victory of the First Marine Division on Peleliu, 1944

Author: Peter Margaritis

Narrator: Shawn Compton

Unabridged: 10 hr 2 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 04/28/2020

Synopsis

On September 15, 1944, the United States invaded the tiny Pacific island of Peleliu, located at the southern end of the Palau Islands. Boasting a large airfield from which the Americans could mount bomber campaigns, Peleliu was a strategically essential part of Gen. MacArthur's long-awaited liberation of the Philippines. With the famed 1st Marine Division making the amphibious assault, Pacific High Command was confident that victory would be theirs in just a few days.

They were drastically wrong. A mere week after landing, having sustained terrific losses in fierce combat, the 1st Marine Regiment was withdrawn. The entire division would be out of action for six months after sustaining the highest unit losses in Marine Corps history.

This book analyzes the many things that went wrong in the Battle for Peleliu, and in doing so, corrects several earlier accounts of the campaign. It includes a comprehensive account of the presidential summit that determined the operation, details of how new weapons were deployed, a new enemy strategy, and command failure in what became the most controversial amphibious operation in the Pacific during WWII.

About Peter Margaritis

Peter Margaritis minored in history at Ohio State University. A retired chief petty officer, he has an extensive military background in communications and naval intelligence. He now writes and lectures on military history. He has written many technical manuals and guides as a civilian, dozens of reports in the military, and several articles on World War II and the Civil War. He is coauthor (with George Peto) of Twenty-Two on Peleliu and has also written several short books on the European theater.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Fredrick on April 29, 2021

Peleliu was the bloodiest battle in the Pacific during World War II. The author concentrates on the big picture: planning, logistics, strategy, tactics, and the aftermath. The men mentioned by name are the higher ranking individuals. A fair read for those interested in planning battles.......more

Goodreads review by Brian on February 10, 2020

Good descriptions of Peleliu island invasion planning and concurrent strategic planning for the overall progress toward Japan. Also well described was the geography of the Palaus island group, Peleliu island specifically, the naval bombardment, the landing and the battle. The rifle companies of the......more

Goodreads review by Steve on April 07, 2021

A book about one of the fiercest and most unrecognized battle of WWII, the battle for Peleliu. The First Marine Division assault on the Japanese-held island which led to many casualties and speculation that the battle never needed to be fought. The battle was pretty much overlooked by many historian......more

Goodreads review by Al on November 27, 2020

Interested in this little remembered but bitterly fought battle? The First Marine Division became famous at Guadalcanal, fought at Cape Gloucester, and then, after "rest and refit" at Pavuvu, they were thrown at a coral and cave island called Peleliu. Combined with an overconfident Commanding Office......more

Goodreads review by Dan Bukowski on April 14, 2023

Thoroughly researched book regarding the landings on Peleliu. Only complaint is, when dealing what happened and why tended to get a bit tedious. In his defense the author was dealing with the people's recollections as viewed thru the fog of war. And again the level of detail speaks to the thorough n......more

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