Ralph Ignatowski

Ralph Anthony "Iggy" Ignatowski (April 8, 1926 – March 4–7, 1945) was a United States Marine Corps private who was captured and killed by the Japanese in the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War II. The circumstances of this personally involved one of the Iwo Jima flag raisers, John Bradley.

He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Polish-born Walter Ignatowski and a German mother, the former Frances Thomas.

U.S. Marine Corps

Ignatowski failed the physical examination when he first tried to enlist in the Marine Corps in 1943. However, he tried again, taking a friend's urine sample with him and this time passed the physical. In 1944, after "boot" camp training, he was assigned to the 3rd Platoon of E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division. He became a close buddy with one of his platoon corpsmen named John "Doc" Bradley, who was to become one of the American flag-raisers on Iwo Jima and who was with Ignatowski just before he was captured on the battlefield.

Iwo Jima

Iwo To (硫黄島, Iō-tō, "sulfur island"), known in English as Iwo Jima (/ˌiːwoʊ ˈdʒiːmə, ˌiːwə-/ listen ), is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago also known as the Bonin Islands. The island of 21 km² (8 square miles) is 1,200 kilometres (750 mi; 650 nmi) south of mainland Tokyo and is administered as part of Ogasawara, one of the eight villages of Tokyo (though it is uninhabited). It is famous as the setting of the February–March 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima between the United States and elements of the British Pacific Fleet versus the Empire of Japan during World War II. The island grew in recognition in the west when the iconic photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima was taken on Mount Suribachi, the highest point at 160 metres (528 feet), during the battle by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal. The U.S. occupied Iwo Jima until 1968 when it was returned to Japan.

Name

It was discovered by Spanish sailor Bernardo de la Torre who named it Sufre Island, after the old Spanish term for sulphur (azufre in modern Spanish). At that time Iwo Jima and other islands were the limit between the Spanish and Portuguese Empires in the far East.

Our Fathers

Our Fathers can refer to:

See also

Flags of Our Fathers

Flags of Our Fathers (2000) is a New York Times bestselling book by James Bradley with Ron Powers about the five United States Marines and one United States Navy Corpsman who would eventually be made famous by Joe Rosenthal's lauded photograph of the flag raising at Iwo Jima, one of the costliest and most horrifying battles of World War II's Pacific Theater. The flag raisers included John Bradley (a Navy corpsman, and the author's father), Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes, Mike Strank, Harlon Block, and Franklin Sousley; the latter three men died later in the battle. Strank was a Sergeant who refused several promotions during the battle in order to "Bring his boys back to their mothers." Block was a Corporal who reported to Strank, and the rest were Privates in the Marines, except for John Bradley, a Navy Corpsman who administered first aid to Easy Company of 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division, the company to which all the flag raisers were assigned.

The book, published in May 2000 by Bantam Books, a division of Random House, spent 46 weeks on the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list, spending six weeks at number one. Shortly after the book's publication, Steven Spielberg acquired the option on the film rights for DreamWorks Pictures.

Battle of Iwo Jima

The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February – 26 March 1945) was a major battle in which the U.S. Marines landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. The American invasion, designated Operation Detachment, had the goal of capturing the entire island, including the three Japanese-controlled airfields (including the South Field and the Central Field), to provide a staging area for attacks on the Japanese main islands. This five-week battle comprised some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting of the War in the Pacific of World War II.

After the heavy losses incurred in the battle, the strategic value of the island became controversial. It was useless to the U.S. Army as a staging base and useless to the U.S. Navy as a fleet base. However, Navy Seabees rebuilt the landing strips, which were used as emergency landing strips for USAAF B-29s.

The Imperial Japanese Army positions on the island were heavily fortified, with a dense network of bunkers, hidden artillery positions, and 18 km (11 mi) of underground tunnels. The Americans on the ground were supported by extensive naval artillery and complete air supremacy over Iwo Jima from the beginning of the battle by U.S. Navy and Marine Corps aviators.