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The John Batchelor Show

WHAT THE ARSENAL OF DEMOCRACY MEANT ONCE UPON A TIME: 3/8: Nimitz at War: Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay by Craig L. Symonds

The John Batchelor Show

John Batchelor

Books, News, Society & Culture, Arts

4.52.8K Ratings

🗓️ 23 October 2023

⏱️ 11 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

WHAT THE ARSENAL OF DEMOCRACY MEANT ONCE UPON A TIME: 3/8: Nimitz at War: Command Leadership from Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay by Craig L. Symonds

https://www.amazon.com/Nimitz-War-Command-Leadership-Harbor-ebook/dp/B09Y64QMZT

From America's preeminent naval historian, the first full-length portrait in over fifty years of the man who won the war in the Pacific in World War Two.

Only days after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt tapped Chester W. Nimitz to assume command of the Pacific Fleet. Nimitz transformed the devastated and dispirited Pacific fleet into the most powerful and commanding naval force in history.

Facing demands from Washington to mount an early offensive, he had first to revive the depressed morale of the thousands of sailors, soldiers, and Marines who served under him. And of course, he also confronted a formidable and implacable enemy in the Imperial Japanese Navy, which, until the Battle of Midway, had the run of the Pacific:

1944 NORMANDY

Transcript

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0:00.0

Why are you listening to this podcast?

0:02.0

When there are puddles to be jumped in?

0:05.0

Come on, let's get outside and take on autumn.

0:09.0

All we need is a pair of wellies in the pot of petie for lo!

0:14.0

It's made with calcium and put him in dee for immune support.

0:18.6

My mom says healthy mischief needs healthy bones.

0:23.0

And she knows best, most of the time.

0:27.0

Take on autumn with Patty Thalou. This is a

0:39.0

CVS I in the world. I'm John Bachelor with Professor Craig Simons, Meredith's Professor of History from the US Naval Academy.

0:42.0

Nimitz at War, command leadership from Pearl Harbor

0:44.7

to Tokyo Bay, the relationships of the flag officers

0:47.9

and the generals as they prosecute the Pacific War,

0:52.2

which it was secondary in the minds of the joint

0:55.0

command, joint chiefs of staff, the British and American working together.

0:59.0

Europe first, Europe first.

1:00.6

Ernest King, however, had other ideas and Ernest King has sent Chester Nimitz to Pearl

1:06.1

Harbor to command this rotating story of ships and men and aircraft. Now King says, Coral Sea and Midway are such a success. We need to go on the

1:19.1

offense of somewhere. They do not have adequate what is called sea lift. They do not have adequate what are called

1:25.3

forces, divisions. However, they're going to get out there even though they're short,

1:31.2

what Nimitz says repeatedly in the professor's book,

1:34.4

do the best we can with what we've got.

1:36.2

So we go to Tulagi, which we know is Guadalcanal, the Marines land,

...

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