U.S. History Collection
You Decide: Should Truman Have Used Atomic Weapons?

How to End the War?

Strategy

Was it necessary to use atomic weapons to end the war with Japan, or could more traditional (or conventional) methods have been used instead?

There was considerable debate about how to quickly defeat Japan and end the war. Some advisors supported using conventional tactics, such as an Allied military invasion of the Japanese homeland. Others argued that using atomic weapons was the only way to force Japan to surrender, quickly end the war, and save both Allied and Japanese lives.

“It wasn’t necessary to hit them with that awful thing.”

–Dwight D. Eisenhower, former U.S. president and Supreme Allied Commander Europe during World War II, 1963

“It occurred to me that a quarter of a million of the flower of our young manhood was worth a couple of Japanese cities, and I still think they were, and are.”

–President Truman, late 1945

Click on each Highlight It button below. Read through the evidence presented and use the Highlight It tool to highlight the arguments you find most persuasive.

Harry S. Truman.

A black and white portrait photograph of President Truman. He is wearing a suit and tie and wire-rimmed glasses. He smiles slightly as he gazes toward the camera.

The Case for Conventional Weapons

The Case for Conventional Weapons

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The Case for Atomic Weapons

The Case for Atomic Weapons

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Take Notes

Based on the information about strategies for ending the war with Japan, do you believe that President Truman was correct in his decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? List two to three pieces of evidence to support your position.

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