The Columbia Guide to Hiroshima and the Bomb

by Kort, Michael

• ISBN13: 9780231130165
• ISBN10: 0231130163
• eBook ISBN(s): 9780231527583
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-03-15
• Publisher: Columbia Univ Pr

Summary

Few aspects of American military history have been as vigorously debated as Harry Truman's decision to use atomic bombs against Japan. In this carefully crafted history, Michael Kort provides an overview of the circumstances and thinking behind Truman's decision to deploy these weapons, a discussion of the major debates that have surrounded that decision, and a comprehensive collection of key primary source documents that historians have used to understand why the United States and Japan behaved as they did during the closing days of World War II. Kort begins by summarizing the debate over Hiroshima as it has evolved since 1945. He then provides an historical overview of the events in question, beginning with the decision and program to build the bomb. He describes the decisive battles of the Pacific War and revisits the motivations of American and Japanese leaders, following the sequence of events all the way to Japan's surrender. The author then examines in detail ten key issues that are part of the overall discussion of Hiroshima, guiding readers to relevant primary source documents and to scholarly books and articles that focus on those issues. The largest part of this book consists of those documents. They are organized into seven categories: American civilian; American military; "MAGIC" diplomatic summaries; Japanese government and military documents and diary entries; Japanese surrender documents; the United States Strategic Bombing Survey Summary Report and Interrogations of Japanese Officials; and Statements of Japanese Officials on World War II compiled by the Military Intelligence Section of the United States Army. Kort's rich narrative throws the reader into the center of the action but remains impartial throughout. Above all, by providing a broad range of documents, including translations of Japanese language materials, he makes it possible for readers to join in the ongoing debate and reach their own conclusions.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. ix
Introduction	p. xiii
Historical Narrative	p. 1
The Debate Over Hiroshima	p. 3
Building the Atomic Bomb	p. 14
The Pacific War	p. 28
The Decision to Drop the Bomb	p. 46
The Japanese Government, Ketsu-Go, and Potsdam	p. 58
Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Japan's Surrender	p. 67
Hiroshima and American Power	p. 75
Key Questions and Interpretations	p. 79
Resources	p. 117
Chronology	p. 119
Glossary of Military Terms and Abbreviations	p. 127
Glossary of Names	p. 131
Selected Bibliography	p. 135
Archival Collections	p. 135
Government Publications	p. 135
Microfilm Document Collections	p. 136
Published Document Collections	p. 136
Interviews and Personal Communications	p. 137
Books, Articles, and Transcripts	p. 137
Web sites	p. 145
Documents	p. 147
Guide to the Documents	p. 149
American Civilian Documents	p. 171
American Military Documents	p. 240
Magic Diplomatic Summaries	p. 277
Japanese Government Documents, Military Documents, and Diary Entries	p. 291
Japanese Surrender Documents	p. 323
United States Strategic Bombing Survey: Summary Report and Interrogations of Japanese Officials	p. 337
Statements of Japanese Officials on World War II, Military Intelligence Section, Historical Division, U.S. Army	p. 369
Notes	p. 395
Index	p. 421
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