The on July 10, 1945, was part of the

strategic bombing Strategic bombing is a systematically organized and executed military attack from the air which can utilize strategic bombers, long- or medium-range missiles, or nuclear-armed fighter-bomber aircraft to attack targets deemed vital to the enemy' ...

campaign waged by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

against the civilian population and military targets during the Japan home islands campaign in the closing stages of the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

in 1945.

Background

The city of

Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan. ...

was the largest population and commercial center of the Tohoku region of northern

Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

island, but lacked specific targets of strategic military significance. The

Tōhoku Main Line The Tōhoku Main Line () is a railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line starts from Tokyo Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo and passes through such cities as Saitama, Saitama, Saitama, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Uts ...

railway connecting

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

with

Aomori , officially Aomori City (, ), is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 264,945 in 136,781 households, and a population density of 321 people per squa ...

also ran through the city. The industrial city of Kamaishi was bombed on July 14, 1945, which was also the first air raid experienced in Miyagi Prefecture during the war. The first experience of Sendai with bombing was on March 10, 1945, when three

B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to ...

bombers from the Tokyo Air Raid dropped their bomb load on Mount Zaō for unknown reasons, killing 34 civilians, and an additional two B-29 bombers attacked Sendai Airport causing minor damage. On May 25, 1945, a photo-reconnaissance B-29 overflew Sendai at an altitude of 8000 feet, compiling a detailed map of the downtown area of the city. On July 10, 1945, another B-29 made an over flight of Sendai, this time dropping propaganda leaflets warning the residents of the city of its imminent destruction.

The air raid

On July 9, 1945, 131 B-29 bombers from the

USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

58th Bombardment Wing launched from

Tinian Tinian () is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern ...

island in the

Marianas The Mariana Islands ( ; ), also simply the Marianas, are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly Volcano#Dormant and reactivated, dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean ...

. Several aircraft turned back due to mechanical problems, and 123 aircraft arrived over the target at an altitude of 10,000 feet at just after midnight in the early morning of July 10, 1945. The bombers split into 25 groups of between two and five aircraft each to carpet bomb the densely packed residential center of the city with 10,961 incendiary bombs. The resultant

firestorm A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires and wildfires. Although the term has been used ...

destroyed most of the historic center of city. A five square kilometer portion of the center of the city was destroyed, with 11,933 residences burned (approximately 23% of the city). Also lost in the bombing were a number of cultural treasures, include the structures of Sendai Castle, and the Zuihoden mausoleum of

Date Masamune was a Japanese ''daimyō'' during the Azuchi–Momoyama period through the early Edo period. Heir to a long line of powerful feudal lords in the Tōhoku region, he went on to found the modern-day city of Sendai. An outstanding tactician, he w ...

. On the other hand, the large Sendai Arsenal, and the structures of the IJA 2nd Division were untouched by the air raid. According to a survey report compiled by the Defense Division of Sendai City Hall during July, there were 987 dead, 50 missing, 260 seriously injured and 1423 mildly injured. Victim lists were compiled in two books written in 1973 and 1995. The second calculated that 1064 people were killed by the air raid, and 335 more were thought to have been killed, including unidentified and missing persons. These numbers include people killed in all raids on Sendai during the war. During the air raid, the only American loss was a B-29 destroyed in a crash on the runway at Tinian (its crew escaped without injury). A year after the war, the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

's Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific War) reported that 21.9 percent of the city had been destroyed.Wainstock. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb. Page 9 Sendai experienced a number of minor air raids afterwards. On July 12, a single B-29 dropped 36 incendiary bombs on a Sendai suburb. On July 13, July 25, August 9 and August 10, the city and airport were bombed and strafed by

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

carrier-based aircraft.

References

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Notes

External links

Pacific War Chronology
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sendai History of Sendai

1945 in Japan Military history of Miyagi Prefecture

Background

The air raid

See also

References

Notes

External links