The History of the Twentieth Century 437 Where Do We Go From Here?
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Mar 1, 2026 A detailed look at the brutal fighting for Saipan, from chaotic landings and cave-clearing to a massive banzai charge and tragic civilian mass suicides. Personal wartime stories surface, including a nurse's survival and guerrillas who hid for months. The capture of airfields shifts strategy, sparks political crisis in Japan, and forces Allied debates over the next Pacific target.
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Teenage Nurse Who Watched Her Brother Die
- Miura Shizuko volunteered as a field nurse after watching her brother die in a tank counterattack and helped with amputations and open-air surgery.
- A doctor gave her a Red Cross armband and helmet, turning a civilian into an army medical assistant amid brutal combat.
Mass Suicides At Suicide Cliff
- Hundreds of Japanese civilians committed mass suicide by jumping from cliffs despite American pleas and promises of safety.
- Fathers threw children off Suicide Cliff, and some soldiers reportedly shot civilians who tried to back out at the last moment.
Suicide Attempt Turned Rescue By Black Soldiers
- Miura attempted suicide with a grenade when she saw black American soldiers approaching, believing rumors they were the cruelest.
- She survived, woke in an American officer's care, and learned those black soldiers had actually saved her life.