Скачать или смотреть The Most Ruthless WW2 Event That Built the US’s Most Unstoppable Force

The volcanic ash dragged Franklin Sousley down as he staggered off the landing craft. That February 19, 1945, on the beaches of Iwo Jima, bullets whistled past the steel pot on his head, mortars detonated with teeth-shattering force, and friends fell all around him.

There was no cover, nowhere to hide. Marines desperately tried to dig foxholes, but after every shovelful of sand, the wet, mushy, black sand filled the hole again.

Ahead, a Marine dropped, his body twisting before crumpling into the ash. Franklin lunged forward, grabbing the man by his collar, and dragged him behind a half-buried Amtrac. His chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath, his fingers trembling against the man’s still form.

As he hugged the treacherous sand, his mind reeled at the scale of the nightmare. He was one of 6,200 Marines spearheading the assault along a 3,000-yard beachhead, all part of the same collective nightmare.

By the end of that blood-soaked day, the Marines had gained just 200 yards, all paid for in suffering and loss. For a fleeting moment, he thought of home, of the promise he’d made to his mother: (QUOTE) “Momma, I’m gonna do something to make you proud of me. When I come back, I’ll be a hero.”

And he would keep his word…