War Plan Orange
Encyclopedia
War Plan Orange refers to a series of United States
Joint Army and Navy Board
war plans for dealing with a possible war with Japan
during the years between the First and Second World Wars.
Informal studies as early as 1906 covered a number of possibilities, from basing at Gibraltar
or Singapore
(an idea revived by the British before World War II) to "a quick trans-Atlantic dash" to the Pacific. The plan eventually adopted was conceived by Rear Admiral Raymond P. Rodgers
in 1911.
The plan was formally adopted by the Joint Army and Navy Board beginning in 1924. Predating the Rainbow plans, which presumed the assistance of allies
, Orange was predicated on the U.S. fighting Japan alone.
As originally conceived, it anticipated a withholding of supplies from the Philippines
and other U.S. outposts in the Western Pacific (they were expected to hold out on their own), while the Pacific Fleet
marshaled its strength at bases in California
, and guarded against attacks on the Panama Canal
. After mobilization (the ships maintained only half of their crews in peacetime), the Fleet would sail to the Western Pacific to relieve American forces in Guam
and the Philippines. Afterwards, the fleet would sail due north for a decisive battle against the Imperial Japanese Navy
's Combined Fleet
, and then blockade the Japanese home islands
. This was in keeping with the theory of Alfred Thayer Mahan
, a doctrine to which every major navy subscribed before World War II
, in which wars would be decided by engagements between opposing surface fleets (as they had been for over 300 years).
Rodgers' concept was closer to the one ultimately used in the Pacific War
: a "leapfrog" campaign to conquer the Marshalls
and Carolines
(held by Japan before the war); liberation of the Philippines; and blockade. Absent was the "decisive battle" of Mahan, and of Japanese planning.
American war planners failed to appreciate that technological advances in submarine
s and naval aviation
had made Mahan's doctrine obsolete. In particular, they did not understand aircraft could sink battleships, nor that Japan might put the U.S. battleship force (the Battle Line) out of action at a stroke—as in fact happened at Pearl Harbor
.
American plans changed after this attack. Even after major Japanese defeats like Midway
, the U.S. favored a methodical "island-hopping" advance, never going far beyond land-based air cover. Meanwhile, blockade was imposed from the very beginning of the war, with the first American submarine, Joe Grenfell's Gudgeon
, arriving off Japan on about 31 December.
A number of requirements grew out of Orange, including the specification for a fleet submarine with high speed, long range, and heavy torpedo armament. These coalesced in the submarine Dolphin
in 1932 (only to be rejected and returned to with the Gato class
in around August 1941). The demand for submarines of this size also drove the development of the notorious Mark XIV
torpedo
(and its equally notorious Mark VI exploder), under the guidance of Commander Ralph W. Christie
. The Navy also spent "several hundred thousand dollars" to develop powerful, compact diesel engines, among them the troublesome Hooven-Owens-Rentschler
(HOR), which proved useful for railroads.
), also in line with Mahanian doctrine, which Japan had enthusiastically embraced. It was the basis for Japan's demand for a 70% ratio (10:10:7) at the Washington Naval Conference
, which was considered necessary to provide Japan superiority in the "decisive battle area", (taking into account that the United States had naval commitments in other theaters, while Japan did not), as well the U.S.'s insistence on 60%, which amounted to parity.
The Imperial Japanese Navy, obsessed with the "decisive battle", ignored the vital need for defence against submarines
. Germany and the U.S. demonstrated the need for this with their submarine campaigns against Allied and Japanese merchant shipping
respectively. The American campaign ultimately choked Japan's industrial production and paralyzed her navy. Japan also notably failed to institute an anti-commerce campaign herself; systematic use of commerce raider
s could have made Allied operations much more complex and conquering and holding Japanese-held islands more difficult.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Joint Army and Navy Board
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Joint Chiefs of Staff is a body of senior uniformed leaders in the United States Department of Defense who advise the Secretary of Defense, the Homeland Security Council, the National Security Council and the President on military matters...
war plans for dealing with a possible war with Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
during the years between the First and Second World Wars.
Informal studies as early as 1906 covered a number of possibilities, from basing at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
or Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
(an idea revived by the British before World War II) to "a quick trans-Atlantic dash" to the Pacific. The plan eventually adopted was conceived by Rear Admiral Raymond P. Rodgers
Raymond P. Rodgers
Rear Admiral Raymond Perry Rodgers was an officer in the United States Navy. He succeeded Lt. Theodorus B.M. Mason as the second head of the Office of Naval Intelligence....
in 1911.
The plan was formally adopted by the Joint Army and Navy Board beginning in 1924. Predating the Rainbow plans, which presumed the assistance of allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
, Orange was predicated on the U.S. fighting Japan alone.
As originally conceived, it anticipated a withholding of supplies from the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and other U.S. outposts in the Western Pacific (they were expected to hold out on their own), while the Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
marshaled its strength at bases in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and guarded against attacks on the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
. After mobilization (the ships maintained only half of their crews in peacetime), the Fleet would sail to the Western Pacific to relieve American forces in Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
and the Philippines. Afterwards, the fleet would sail due north for a decisive battle against the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
's Combined Fleet
Combined Fleet
The was the main ocean-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Combined Fleet was not a standing force, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units normally under separate commands in peacetime....
, and then blockade the Japanese home islands
Japanese Archipelago
The , which forms the country of Japan, extends roughly from northeast to southwest along the northeastern coast of the Eurasia mainland, washing upon the northwestern shores of the Pacific Ocean...
. This was in keeping with the theory of Alfred Thayer Mahan
Alfred Thayer Mahan
Alfred Thayer Mahan was a United States Navy flag officer, geostrategist, and historian, who has been called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century." His concept of "sea power" was based on the idea that countries with greater naval power will have greater worldwide...
, a doctrine to which every major navy subscribed before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, in which wars would be decided by engagements between opposing surface fleets (as they had been for over 300 years).
Rodgers' concept was closer to the one ultimately used in the Pacific War
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
: a "leapfrog" campaign to conquer the Marshalls
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
and Carolines
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
(held by Japan before the war); liberation of the Philippines; and blockade. Absent was the "decisive battle" of Mahan, and of Japanese planning.
American war planners failed to appreciate that technological advances in submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s and naval aviation
Naval aviation
Naval aviation is the application of manned military air power by navies, including ships that embark fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters. In contrast, maritime aviation is the operation of aircraft in a maritime role under the command of non-naval forces such as the former RAF Coastal Command or a...
had made Mahan's doctrine obsolete. In particular, they did not understand aircraft could sink battleships, nor that Japan might put the U.S. battleship force (the Battle Line) out of action at a stroke—as in fact happened at Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
.
American plans changed after this attack. Even after major Japanese defeats like Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
, the U.S. favored a methodical "island-hopping" advance, never going far beyond land-based air cover. Meanwhile, blockade was imposed from the very beginning of the war, with the first American submarine, Joe Grenfell's Gudgeon
USS Gudgeon (SS-211)
USS Gudgeon , a Tambor-class submarine, was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the gudgeon). Her keel was laid down by the Mare Island Navy Yard. She was launched on 25 January 1941, sponsored by Mrs. William S. Pye, and commissioned on 21 April 1941 with Lieutenant Commander...
, arriving off Japan on about 31 December.
A number of requirements grew out of Orange, including the specification for a fleet submarine with high speed, long range, and heavy torpedo armament. These coalesced in the submarine Dolphin
USS Dolphin (SS-169)
USS Dolphin , a submarine and one of the "V-boats", was the sixth ship of the United States Navy to be named for that aquatic mammal. She also bore the name V-7 and the classifications SF-10 and SSC-3 prior to her commissioning. She was launched on 6 March 1932 by the Portsmouth Navy Yard,...
in 1932 (only to be rejected and returned to with the Gato class
Gato class submarine
The United States Navy Gato class submarine formed the core of the submarine service that was largely responsible for the destruction of the Japanese merchant marine and a large portion of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II...
in around August 1941). The demand for submarines of this size also drove the development of the notorious Mark XIV
Mark 14 torpedo
The Mark 14 torpedo was the United States Navy's standard submarine-launched anti-ship torpedo of World War II.This weapon was plagued with many problems which crippled its performance early in the war, and was supplemented by the Mark 18 electric torpedo in the last 2 years of the war...
torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
(and its equally notorious Mark VI exploder), under the guidance of Commander Ralph W. Christie
Ralph Waldo Christie
Ralph Waldo Christie was an admiral in the United States Navy who played a pivotal role in the development of torpedo technologies...
. The Navy also spent "several hundred thousand dollars" to develop powerful, compact diesel engines, among them the troublesome Hooven-Owens-Rentschler
Hooven-Owens-Rentschler
The firm of Hooven, Owens, Rentschler, and Company manufactured steam and diesel engines in Hamilton, Ohio. Because the firm was frequently known by its initials, H.O.R., the Hooven is sometimes incorrectly rendered as Hoover, and the Owens may be mistaken for Owen.The firm was the successor to the...
(HOR), which proved useful for railroads.
Japanese plans
The Imperial Japanese Navy developed a counter-plan to allow the US Pacific Fleet to sail across the Pacific while using submarines and carrier attacks to weaken it. The Japanese fleet would then attempt to force a battle against the weakened U.S. fleet in a "decisive battle area", near Japan (see Kantai KessenKantai kessen
The was a naval strategy adopted by the Imperial Japanese Navy following the Russo-Japanese War. It called on the use of a strong battleship force, which would destroy an invading fleet as it approached Japan after suffering losses through attrition as it penetrated Japanese perimeter defenses.The...
), also in line with Mahanian doctrine, which Japan had enthusiastically embraced. It was the basis for Japan's demand for a 70% ratio (10:10:7) at the Washington Naval Conference
Washington Naval Conference
The Washington Naval Conference also called the Washington Arms Conference, was a military conference called by President Warren G. Harding and held in Washington from 12 November 1921 to 6 February 1922. Conducted outside the auspices of the League of Nations, it was attended by nine nations...
, which was considered necessary to provide Japan superiority in the "decisive battle area", (taking into account that the United States had naval commitments in other theaters, while Japan did not), as well the U.S.'s insistence on 60%, which amounted to parity.
Outcome
Actual events were very close to the final plan. Carrier battles overshadowed surface action, but the "leapfrog" campaign was very much as anticipated.The Imperial Japanese Navy, obsessed with the "decisive battle", ignored the vital need for defence against submarines
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
. Germany and the U.S. demonstrated the need for this with their submarine campaigns against Allied and Japanese merchant shipping
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
respectively. The American campaign ultimately choked Japan's industrial production and paralyzed her navy. Japan also notably failed to institute an anti-commerce campaign herself; systematic use of commerce raider
Commerce raiding
Commerce raiding or guerre de course is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt the logistics of an enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging the combatants themselves or enforcing a blockade against them.Commerce raiding was heavily criticised by...
s could have made Allied operations much more complex and conquering and holding Japanese-held islands more difficult.