SANDY HOOK – Monmouth County freeholders Theodore J. Naro-zanick and Lillian G. Burry, with representatives from Naval Weapons Station Earle, marked the 64th anniversary of the Battle of Midway recently with an overview of the famous World War II battle and a laying of the wreath.
The battle, fought June 4-7, 1942, near the central Pacific island of Midway, is considered the most decisive single naval battle in U.S. history and a turning point in the war in the Pacific. Before this, the Japanese were on the offensive, capturing territory throughout Asia and the Pacific, according to a press release from the county.
The Japanese had planned to capture Midway to use as an advance base, as well as to entrap and destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Because of communication intelligence successes, the U.S. Pacific Fleet surprised the Japanese forces, sinking the four Japanese carriers that had attacked Pearl Harbor only six months before. After Midway, the Americans and their Allies took the offensive in the Pacific.
“We can never forget the ultimate sacrifices that were made by some 301 U.S. Navy seamen and 39 U.S. Marines during this important decisive battle,” said Narozanick, who fought in World War II and earned a Bronze Star for bravery and heroism for his role in the Normandy invasion and the Battle of the Bulge. “The Battle of Midway was the turning point for our boys in the Pacific and the victory signaled the beginning of the end for the Imperial Japanese Navy.”
Following welcoming remarks by Capt. William Roberts, commanding officer at Earle, Commander Steven Steuer presented an overview of this decisive battle.
The Japanese were shaken by an April 1942 air raid led by Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle, in which targets in Tokyo, Yokosuka and a score of other towns were hit.
A battle scheme was drawn up by the Japanese to attack the U.S. Pacific Fleet in the waters around Midway in order to move the line of battle away from Japan. However, earlier that year, Americans had broken the Japanese naval code and had been able read at least 10 percent of the Japanese Navy’s radio transmissions.
“The Battle of Midway enabled the U.S. Navy to go on the offensive, which is why this battle was so important,” Burry said. “Thanks to American signals intelligence, judicious aircraft carrier tactics and some luck, the U.S. Navy inflicted a devastating defeat on the Japanese. The Japanese could never again operate offensively, while the United States could do so at a place of its own choosing.”
The wreath laying ceremony led by Roberts and attended by former state Assemblyman Joseph Azzolina, a retired U.S. Navy captain, Narozanick and Burry, was held shortly thereafter to commemorate those who died in the Battle of Midway.