Tarawa was an unbelievably small island for the huge and bloody battle that took place here. Virtually the entire island is shown here. It was fiercely defended by 5,000 Japanese Imperial Marines. This photo was taken several weeks after the island was secured. Ships and LST's are in the lagoon unloading supplies. View is looking north-east, and the far side of the Atoll can be seen on the horizon. Two of the big 8-inch coastal defense guns that fired at the convoy were mounted in the near corner of the photo. Note the shell holes in the water nearby from our bombers that tried to knock them out before the landing, but failed to do so. The author, along with the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions of the Sixth Regiment, landed on the beach in the foreground to the left of the two big guns.