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Quiz about World War II  Pacific Theater
Quiz about World War II  Pacific Theater

20 Questions: World War II - Pacific Theater Multiple Choice Quiz | History


Test your knowledge of land, sea, air battles, important people and significant places of the War in the Pacific, 1941-1945.

A multiple-choice quiz by dmiles. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
dmiles
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
23,776
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
20
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
12 / 20
Plays
4670
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 69 (19/20), piratecdr (16/20), Guest 216 (18/20).
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Question 1 of 20
1. On what island in the Central Pacific did US Marines make an heroic stand in December 1941? Hint


Question 2 of 20
2. On what date did combined Japanese land, air, and naval forces assault the Philippine Islands? Hint


Question 3 of 20
3. What US Commander was the overall commander of US Army and Aircorps personnel in the Philippines when the Japanese invasion occurred? Hint


Question 4 of 20
4. Dive bomber pilots from USS Enterprise and USS Yorktown drew first blood against three of the Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway.


Question 5 of 20
5. When did the Battle of Midway occur? Hint


Question 6 of 20
6. Name the 4 Japanese carriers sunk during the Battle of Midway. Hint


Question 7 of 20
7. Name the one US Navy carrier lost to attacks by Japanese planes and later a submarine during the Battle of Midway.

Answer: (One Word)
Question 8 of 20
8. What 'watershed' event for US Ground Forces took place in the South Pacific in early August 1942? Hint


Question 9 of 20
9. What was the name of the US airfield on Guadalcanal? Hint


Question 10 of 20
10. What was the front-line fighter flown by US Navy and Marine pilots throughout 1942? Hint


Question 11 of 20
11. What was the nickname used by the Marines to describe the parade of Japanese warships that nightly bombarded Henderson Field on Guadalcanal in October 1942? Hint


Question 12 of 20
12. Name the Commander-in-Chief of all US Forces in the Central Pacific Theater of Operations: Hint


Question 13 of 20
13. In 1943, US Marines spent three bloody days taking Tarawa, a small group of islets. Name the largest island where most of the fighting took place. Hint


Question 14 of 20
14. Please name the island in the Marianas taken by US Marines and Army personnel in 1944 on which Japanese civilians committed suicide by jumping off 600-foot bluffs overlooking the Pacific.

Answer: (One Word)
Question 15 of 20
15. Gen. Douglas MacArthur fulfilled his pledge ('I shall return.') to the Filipino people when he stepped ashore on which Philippine island in October 1944? Hint


Question 16 of 20
16. Which US Admiral was completely fooled into leaving the San Bernadino Strait unguarded when he raced North to engage a decoy force of Japanese carriers during the Battle of Leyte Gulf? Hint


Question 17 of 20
17. 'The Battle of the Philippine Sea' was one of the largest air battles of the Pacific War. In it, Japanese carrier air power was destroyed. What is the more popular nickname of this battle? Hint


Question 18 of 20
18. Name the battle at which the Japanese first introduced the 'kamikaze'. Hint


Question 19 of 20
19. Which of the following islands in the Pacific took the US Marines or combined Marine and Army Forces the longest to secure? Hint


Question 20 of 20
20. Please name the Aircorps pilot who dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan.

Answer: ((First and last name only))

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Most Recent Scores
Mar 27 2024 : Guest 69: 19/20
Mar 26 2024 : piratecdr: 16/20
Mar 21 2024 : Guest 216: 18/20
Mar 20 2024 : Guest 2: 12/20
Mar 17 2024 : Guest 69: 18/20
Mar 15 2024 : Guest 96: 19/20
Mar 10 2024 : Guest 38: 14/20
Mar 07 2024 : Guest 208: 14/20
Mar 07 2024 : Guest 98: 8/20

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. On what island in the Central Pacific did US Marines make an heroic stand in December 1941?

Answer: Wake Island

US Marines repeatedly foiled Japanese attempts to invade and capture Wake Island in December 1941. Only the addition of Japanese reserve ships, planes, and troops turned the tide during the third week of the month. The survivng Marines spent the remainder of the war in Japanese POW camps, where many died.
2. On what date did combined Japanese land, air, and naval forces assault the Philippine Islands?

Answer: December 8, 1941

Japanese attacks on both American and British colonies in Asia were coordinated with their December 7, 1941 attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. The attack on US forces in the Philippines occurred almost simultaneously, but, because of the International Date Line, the attack on the Philippines took place on December 8, 1941.
3. What US Commander was the overall commander of US Army and Aircorps personnel in the Philippines when the Japanese invasion occurred?

Answer: Gen. Douglas MacArthur

MacArthur was in command of all US Army and Army Aircorps personnel and Filipino units on Luzon and the other Philippine islands. After he was evacuated to Australia, MacArthur was appointed CINC of all land and air forces in the Southwest Pacific.
4. Dive bomber pilots from USS Enterprise and USS Yorktown drew first blood against three of the Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway.

Answer: True

Enterprise bombing 6 attacked Kaga and Akagi. Yorktown's Bombing 8 attacked Soryu.
Lt. Cmdr. McClusky's divebombing squadron from the Enterprise spotted a lone Japanese destroyer. Using the ship's wake as a 'compass needle', he turned his squadron northeast, and began an attack that would turn the tide in the Pacific War.
5. When did the Battle of Midway occur?

Answer: June 4 - 6, 1942

The Battle of Midway occurred less than two weeks after the Battle of the Coral Sea, during which the Yorktown was severely damaged. Crews at Pearl Harbor, working around the clock, patched her together so that she could fight at Midway along with the Enterprise and the Hornet.
6. Name the 4 Japanese carriers sunk during the Battle of Midway.

Answer: Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu

The Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu (the largest carriers) were sunk by US Navy divebombers on the morning of June 5. The carrier Hiryu was sunk late on the afternoon of June 5.
7. Name the one US Navy carrier lost to attacks by Japanese planes and later a submarine during the Battle of Midway.

Answer: Yorktown

The Yorktown was attacked in the early afternoon of June 5th by dive bombers from the Japanese carrier Hiryu. Superior damage control and firefighting units from Yorktown and other ships, and skillful counter-flooding, righted the ship. As she was being towed back to Pearl Harbor, she took two fatal torpedo hits from a Japanese submarine.
8. What 'watershed' event for US Ground Forces took place in the South Pacific in early August 1942?

Answer: US Marines invaded Guadalcanal

US Marines of the First Division went on the offensive for the first time, landing virtually unopposed on Guadalcanal.
9. What was the name of the US airfield on Guadalcanal?

Answer: Henderson Field

Henderson Field was named after a Marine fighter pilot who died defending the island of Midway from fierce Japanese air attacks on June 4, 1942.
10. What was the front-line fighter flown by US Navy and Marine pilots throughout 1942?

Answer: Grumman F4F Wildcat

The F4F Wildcat was the principal fighter used by both Naval and Marine aviators in the first year of the war. The Japanese Zero could do almost everything better than the Wildcat -- except dive -- and the Zero lacked sufficient armor and self-sealing fuel tanks.
11. What was the nickname used by the Marines to describe the parade of Japanese warships that nightly bombarded Henderson Field on Guadalcanal in October 1942?

Answer: The Tokyo Express

Beginning in October 1942, Japanese battleships, heavy cruisers, light cruisers, and destroyers cruised along the north shore of Guadalcanal, plastering Henderson Field with 5-, 8-, 12-, and 14-inch shells. They almost succeeded in knocking out the airfield.
12. Name the Commander-in-Chief of all US Forces in the Central Pacific Theater of Operations:

Answer: Adm. Chester Nimitz

Nimitz was in charge of all US Forces in the Central Pacific. His 'island-hopping' campaign was meant to support MacArthur's forces in their attacks on Japanese-held territory in the South West Pacific. MacArthur felt slighted that Nimitz held so much power.
13. In 1943, US Marines spent three bloody days taking Tarawa, a small group of islets. Name the largest island where most of the fighting took place.

Answer: Betio

Betio, a parrot-shaped island, had been built into a fortress of bunkers, machine-gun nests, underground passageways, and underwater obstacles by the Japanese. The Marines were very nearly thrown back into the sea on the first day of the battle.
14. Please name the island in the Marianas taken by US Marines and Army personnel in 1944 on which Japanese civilians committed suicide by jumping off 600-foot bluffs overlooking the Pacific.

Answer: Saipan

After a failed mass 'Banzai' charge, Japanese soldiers began committing 'seppuku' (ritual suicide). Many civilians, believing that US troops were brutal barbarians ('gaijin'), chose suicide by jumping (sometimes as whole families) off the cliffs to their deaths on the rocks below.
15. Gen. Douglas MacArthur fulfilled his pledge ('I shall return.') to the Filipino people when he stepped ashore on which Philippine island in October 1944?

Answer: Leyte

US Navy and Army forces landed in Leyte Gulf (southeast of Luzon) in October, 1944.
16. Which US Admiral was completely fooled into leaving the San Bernadino Strait unguarded when he raced North to engage a decoy force of Japanese carriers during the Battle of Leyte Gulf?

Answer: Adm. William 'Bull' Halsey

'Bull' Halsey, probably the most agressive Admiral in the US Navy at that time, was fooled into pursuing a group of Japanese carriers that had no planes. He was supposed to guard the invasion fleet which was anchored in Leyte Gulf. Halsey's actions allowed the Japanese super battleship Yamato and several cruisers and escorts to attempt a serious attack on the invasion force. US Task Force 17, consisting of DD's, DE's and 'jeep' Carriers, so confused the Japanese admiral, that he turned back, thinking that he'd run into Halsey's Third Fleet.
17. 'The Battle of the Philippine Sea' was one of the largest air battles of the Pacific War. In it, Japanese carrier air power was destroyed. What is the more popular nickname of this battle?

Answer: The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot

It was called the '...Turkey Shoot' because the Japanese carrier and land-based pilots, with very little training, were slaughtered at a ratio of almost 10:1 by the better-trained US Navy pilots, now flying the Gruman F6F Hellcat, a great air-superiority fighter. The 'Zero' was no match for it.
18. Name the battle at which the Japanese first introduced the 'kamikaze'.

Answer: Leyte Gulf

Japanese land-based aircraft undertook suicide missions from their bases in the Philippines. Their first big score was the US Carrier 'Princeton'. Undertrained Japanese pilots volunteered for these suicide missions. 'Kamikaze' is Japanese for 'Divine Wind'.
19. Which of the following islands in the Pacific took the US Marines or combined Marine and Army Forces the longest to secure?

Answer: Guadalcanal

The Battle for Guadalcanal lasted from August 1942 to February 1943. In the end, the Japanese Navy evacuated the lion's share of the Japanese garrison. It was one of the few times when the Japanese did not fight to the death.
20. Please name the Aircorps pilot who dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan.

Answer: Colonel Paul Tibbets

The B-29 that Tibbets flew, the 'Enola Gay', was named after Tibbets' mother. The lone B-29 dropped the 'Little Boy', a uranium bomb, on Hiroshima at about 8:15 a.m. (local time) on August 6, 1945.
Source: Author dmiles

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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