In 1281, the intervention of a powerful force saved Japan from a massive invasion by Mongols. Men and boats were engulfed by a sudden, fierce typhoon which seemed to arise from nowhere, and the grateful Japanese, who would surely have been conquered, called the wind kamikaze, which means "divine wind." Over 650 years later the Japanese would look to kamikaze to save their island nation from invasion yet again, but the nature of the modern kamikaze would forever change the meaning of the word.
Notice to Readers - I apologize for offering nothing but this teaser introduction to what will be a fascinating article (I hope), but I have recently completed a cross country move. I have been driving for six days straight with two young children and have not unpacked my computer yet. This is being posted on a borrowed machine. The rest of the article will be posted as soon as possible and this notice will be deleted.
The remainder of this article will attempt to answer these main questions:
- Why, how and where did the Japanese use kamikaze pilots?
- Who were the kamikaze pilots and what were the motivations for volunteering?
- What effects, both actual and psychological, did the kamikaze pilots have and were they effective in the overall war effort?
Thank you for your patience and understanding, and in the meantime, you can visit some excellent and informative pages offered by the Simon Wiesenthal Center Museum of Tolerance Online which include rare pictures and a photo album of the kamikaze pilots, along with background information.
- Maria Christensen
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