The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S Navy’s Finest Hour serves as a chronicle of the Battle of Samar. The author, James Hornsfischer referred to this battle as the ultimate upset in the naval warfare history. The author brilliantly combined the different accounts from official reports and firsthand witnesses of the warfare that occurred in the Gulf of Leyte. Despite being the underdog during the encounter, the ‘tin cans’ of the American forces were able to overcome the overwhelming forces of the Japanese military.
It was on January 20, 1944 when the DE-413, a U.S Navy warship was launched with the perceived prayer of people who witnessed her launching: “May she be a sound ship, capable of rising to the heights when her supreme moment comes” (Hornfischer, 17). As this ship, together with other fleets prepared for battle, many young men were being commissioned and trained for the same task. As recounted, the would be sailors “began a six-week program of drill-field marching, obstacle-course running, weapon maintenance, latrine cleaning, and more (Hornfischer, 19). The young men eventually have each their calling, with some who went directly to the sea, while others who were commissioned to have further training. Some of these young men will become members of the American forces that accompanied Douglas MacArthur as he made good on his grand on his grand promise to return (Hornfischer, 7).
That was on October 20, 1944 when Douglas MacArthur, supported by his soldiers pushed inland in personal command of the American troops. Meanwhile, the Task Unit 77.4.3 or otherwise called ‘Taffy 3”, stood far from the center stage. It is their role to provide support to the higher commanders, and the officers aboard the Taffy 3 knew that their task “was far from being the most formidable American force operating in the Leyte Gulf Area” (Hornfischer, 8). In the morning of October 24, the Third Fleet Pilots were able to make out sightings of the Japanese warships, and in the same morning an attack was made by the American forces patrolling Sulu Sea against the Japanese flotilla which was evidently heading towards the Surigao Strait.
The fall of the Japanese forces is attributed to the well-planned tactical strategy and brilliant troop commanders of the American forces. For instance, Vice Ad. Thomas Kinkaid immediately saw the plan of the Japanese forces when he sighted the enemy flotilla in the Sibuyan Sea in the morning of October 24. He was quick and accurate to deduce that the Japanese forces are headed towards the Surigao Strait in the south. The officer was able to make out that the enemy planned to challenge the Americans positioned on the Leyte Gulf both from the south and the north. While there was a threat of being overpowered, the carrier pilots maneuvered and were successful in sinking the super battleship of the Japanese (Hornfischer, 98).
In the late afternoon on the same day, Admiral Oldendorf had already planned for the coming of the Nishimura force that would come through the Sulu Sea. Before reaching the forces commanded by Oldendorf, Nishimura has already faced a beating from American PT boats that charged and withdraw under the darkness. The strategy was to weaken the advancing Japanese forces while making an accurate report of its position to the waiting forces of Olderndorf. This was where the Japanese forces faced the beating from the ‘tin cans’, which was actually Olderdorf’s hard-hitting destroyers.
Another reason why Japan was immediately demolished comes from the fact that they were-ill prepared for an all-out war. Not only did their fleet suffered from oil shortage, but they relied on miracles to happen during the war, despite the apparent weakening of their forces. As Hornfischer (119) wrote, the weakness of the Sho-1 plan was that: “It relied on the optimistic notion that Japan could fight a complex sequence of battles on its own precise timetable.” The decisive strategy of Japan was geared towards the vision of getting hold of the Philippines and other possible tactical bases, but it failed to give into the idea of a more powerful and carefully planned strategy of its American adversary.
Nevertheless, the American forces were not without difficulty as they faced the Japanese forces. On October 25, Admiral Kinkaid, the fleet of Taffy 3 and its men were expecting support from the battleships of Oldendorf; unfortunately, the later’s forces were kept by the enemy from coming (Hornfischer, 168). With a vast Japanese forces pressing on his group, Sprague knew he had to think and decide fast. There was no way to escape, but to fight, as Copeland told his crew: “This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can” (qtd in. Hornfischer, 150). Despite massive loss, the ‘tin can’ were able to charge and cause severe destruction of the enemy, their feat is something to be remembered as they were able to hold the line until support arrived.
Critique Paper
James Hornfischer came up with an intense and clear depiction of what actually happened during the return of Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines. Initially, the title makes the reader think about a conflict that did not have anything to do with World War II, because of the word tin can and sailors. This is because, when one thinks of WWII, the idea of aircrafts, machine guns and other powerful military equipments come to mind, which is far far from the concept of tin cans. However, a closer examination would amuse and interest a reader to think about who these sailors could be, and what have they been up to that deserves the merit of a book.
Only when the reader goes through the first few lines would one find that the book is about the story of the heroic WWII pursuit of the United States Navy in the historic fight against the Japanese forces in the Philppines. Particularly, this was the Battle of Leyte Gulf, which has a considerable significance to the warfare success of the United States in terms of its struggle during WWII.
One finds it interesting that the author came up with a book that specifically deal with the struggle of a particular group of the American forces. In history books, the reader often gets to be informed of the cold facts, such where, who and when it happened. However, Hornfischer brilliantly picked the right words to recount what actually transpired about 70 years ago in the Gulf of Leyte, and this makes the reader have a vivid picture of the events like this happened in the life of someone who is very dear. Reading the books was like watching a film re-make of the event, because one can sense the feelings of those who were involved in that warfare.
It is commendable how the author took a considerable effort to gather all the data concerning this historic event. From the names of the officers and the preparation that they have to go through for the war. Further, it adds credibility that Hornsficher provided the names of the different fleets that navigated for the Gulf of Leyte mission.
But what is most heart pounding in the author’s narrative was during the time of the actual engagement with the Japanese Imperial Army. It was like reading a fictional warfare, where one employs a tactic that are aimed to annihilate the enemy. Yet this story was far from being a fiction. It was a historic event during WWII, where one army aims to destroy the other and the party that employed the better military tactic eventually won.
Works Cited
Hornfischer, James. The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=Dg-k2AmFucwC&dq=This+will+be+a+fight+against+overwhelming+odds+from+which+survival+cannot+be+expected.+We+will+do+what+damage+we+can.%27%22&source=gbs_navlinks_s, 2008. Print.
