Marsh Is.#481 US Liberates Marshall Is. - 1994 Imperforate Mint Issue
February 4, 1944 The U.S. Marines had learned a valuable lesson from the massive losses encountered during the invasion of Tarawa the previous year. Extensive planning and reconnaissance intelligence was gathered in preparation for the invasion of the Marshall Islands. The focus was on the largest island, Kwajalein Atoll, located in the center of the Marshalls. Assuming that the U.S. would first attack the smaller islands to the east, the enemy did not reinforce Kwajalein. The Navy opened fire with relentless air and sea bombardments, destroying most of the enemy bunkers. Yet fighting was still intense as snipers and ambushers lurked everywhere in the wreckage. Despite this disadvantage, the marines were able secure the island in only four days while sustaining minor casualties. Less than 300 Japanese survived out of the 8,000 stationed on the island. This was a major victory for the U.S. since the Japanese mainland was now well within bombing range of this island atoll.
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