A Gathering Darkness: The Coming of War to the Far East and the Pacific, 1921–1942

Total War

by Haruo Tohmatsu, H.P. Willmott

The United States' involvement in World War II began with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. But for Japan, the conflict began at a much earlier date. This book focuses on Japan and the events in its military history leading up to and including Pearl Harbor. Unique in its perspective, A Gathering Darkness shows how historical events in the 1920s and 1930s steered the country into war with America and its allies.

A Gathering Darkness looks at what happened inside Japan in the 1920s to change its outlook on the West. There was a general repudiation of western values by Japanese society, and Japan turned its back on the outside world and an international order that were making life difficult for the country. The treaties made in Washington in the 1920s left Japan with a local supremacy that no other power, including Britain and the United States, could challenge on the account of their lack of forward bases and their commitments that precluded full deployment of forces in the western Pacific.

A Gathering Darkness shows why Japan became increasingly militant in the 1930s. The authors look at Japanese military involvement in Manchuria beginning in September 1931. They cover the beginning of Japan's involvement in China in 1937, a conflict in which Japan would up in a deadlock with the China theater of operations in the period 1939–1941.

The book then analyzes the first five months of the Pacific War, including the Pearl Harbor strike and the synchronization of offensive operations across more than four thousand miles of ocean. It also investigates the dilemma Japan faced as it realized in early 1942 that the United States was not going to collapse.

A Gathering Darkness is the first volume in SR Books' trilogy on the Pacific War. This book offers a fascinating look at the prelude to the Pacific War and the early stages of the conflict that no one interested in World War II, military history, or Japanese history will want to miss.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Japan

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Hans · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book tells the background of the war of Japan with China and why it sought a confrontation with the US and its allies. And why this was not the most clever move to make.

Yes, we now know that the US industry went full speed ahead and supplies streamed all over the world to defeat Germany and Japan. But during the 20's and 30's the writing was already on the wall that if Japan went to confront the US that they were in for trouble. And yet they did...

Some parts of the book were somewhat hard to follow, mainly because we in the West know so little about Japan's war against China and the various factions involved, both Japanese and Chinese. Next to this, the theater of war is filled with names of places that are not familiar to us, making it hard to project were the fighting took place and why this was of importance.

But if you are interested in the how and why of the war in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, which the book follows till the preparations for the Midway operation, it is worth reading this. It shows a lot of ground not covered by other books that were important to understand the Japanese point of view. It also shows a lot of alternative plans that were considered but not put into motion.

[Trav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview of the domestic and international factors that contributed to the outbreak of war between Japan and the Western powers in 1941. What is most interesting is that Tohmatsu and Willmott emphasise the difference between the war in the west and that in Europe. As they rightly highlight, the Asia-Pacific War really began in 1931, the fact that the West did not become interested until 1940 is the result of Eurocentrism.

I cam away from this book with a deeper appreciation of the dynamics that shaped the Asia-Pacific region during the interwar period. This book is an excellent addition to the other literature on the interwar period.

[T. Martin Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many have written about what happened in the Pacific War, but few about why, especially from the Japanese perspective. I found "A Gathering Darkness ..." one of the very best books on the subject and later traveled to Tokyo and spent the day interviewing Dr. Tohmatsu for my screenplay and book, Wounded Tiger. This is an excellent source of little-known information I highly recommend.