240 - The Battle of Midway

The WW2 Podcast

Angus Wallace

Rifle, Gun, Second, Army, Ww2, War, Society & Culture, Carlin, Aircraft, Military, Navy, Wwii, World, History, Plane, Armour, Infantry, Tank

4.7 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 1 October 2024

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In April 1942, the Imperial Japanese Navy's Combined Fleet was at the height of its power, having delivered a crushing blow to the US Navy at Pearl Harbor just months earlier. This fleet spearheaded Japan's aggressive expansion through Southeast Asia and unleashed havoc across the South Pacific. However, the tides of war were soon to change. By June 1942, the US Navy achieved a decisive victory over this formidable force at the Battle of Midway, shifting the strategic momentum in the Pacific Theater to the Allies.

Midway stands as the most renowned naval battle of the Pacific War and one of the most storied in military history. The traditional narrative, shaped immediately after the conflict and enduring to this day, portrays an outnumbered American fleet snatching victory against overwhelming odds. While this depiction has become deeply ingrained, it oversimplifies the true nature of the battle.

Joining me is Pacific War expert Mark Stille, whose new book is Midway: The Pacific War’s Most Famous Battle, where he contends that a Japanese defeat was not only possible but likely. This perspective redefines the engagement not as a miraculous American triumph or a mere stroke of luck but as a complex confrontation where the factors at play heavily favoured the United States.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Folks I have some exciting news to share.
0:02.4	Join me for a live podcast recording at the Imperial War Museum in London.
0:07.2	On Saturday, October 19th, I'll be participating in the Imperial War Museum's
0:12.4	Podcast Live Festival.
0:14.0	At this festival, podcasters from across the UK will record episodes in front of a live audience.
0:21.0	I'm thrilled to have been asked to record an episode of the World War II
0:24.2	podcast there and I'll be joined by postgraduate researcher Matthew Huff from the University of
0:29.9	Leeds. Together we'll discuss Harold Alexander's role as Supreme Commander in the Mediterranean during
0:36.4	World War II.
0:37.4	Now, this is a ticketed event, so sign up in advance to secure your spot.
0:43.2	And after a full day of live podcast recordings at the Imperial War Museum,
0:47.8	there will be a special panel discussion at the Church Hill Warrooms. We'll explore the rise of
0:53.8	podcasting, share how we got started and discuss how podcasts are
0:58.0	transforming the way we connect with history and bring it to a wider audience.
1:02.1	I'd love to see as many of you there as possible,
1:05.0	so for more details on tickets and event timings,
1:08.0	visit the Imperial War Museum website
1:11.0	IWM.org. UK and search podcast live.
1:16.0	This country is at war with Germany.
1:20.0	We shall go on to the end.
1:22.0	I remember the sheets of flame which came up and almost blinded us from our guns. In April 1942, 1942, the Imperial Japanese Navy's combined fleet was at the height of its power, having delivered a crushing blow to the US Navy at Pearl Harbor just months earlier,
1:49.0	this fleet spearheaded Japan's aggressive expansion through Southeast Asia and unleashed havoc across the Pacific.
	...

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