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Two Flags over Iwo Jima: Solving the Mystery of the U.S. Marine Corps' Proudest Moment
The saga of the flags on Iwo Jima has fascinated America for decades. Hammel himself grew up in the company of WWII veterans and has always been intrigued by 'The Photo' of the flag, which became a powerful symbol of patriotism and national pride. But the story of how the flag got there, and even the identity of the soldiers in the photo, has been muddied by history. Eric Hammel here sets the record straight, viewing complex events through the lens of the story of the infantry company in which all the flag raisers served.
Joe Rosenthal's "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima" photo is one of the best-known images of US war history. The photo captures the moment that the first American flag flew over the core of Imperial Japanese territory on the top of Mount Suribachi. The focus of this book lies on the 28th Marine Regiment's self-contained battle in February 1945 for Mount Suribachi, the 556-foot-high volcano on Iwo Jima. It was here that this one regiment defeated more than 1500 heavily armed Japanese combatants who were determined to hold the highest vantage point on the island.
Two Flags over Iwo Jima reveals the all-but-forgotten first-flag raising, and the aftermath of the popularization campaign undertaken by the post-WWII Marine Corps and national press. Hammel attempts to untangle the various battles which lead up to the first and second flag raisings, as well as following the men of the 28th Marine Regiment in the events which took place after. Not only is the full story behind one of the most iconic photographs ever taken revealed, but also the real heroism and stories of the men behind this most fervent expression of American patriotism.
Joe Rosenthal's "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima" photo is one of the best-known images of US war history. The photo captures the moment that the first American flag flew over the core of Imperial Japanese territory on the top of Mount Suribachi. The focus of this book lies on the 28th Marine Regiment's self-contained battle in February 1945 for Mount Suribachi, the 556-foot-high volcano on Iwo Jima. It was here that this one regiment defeated more than 1500 heavily armed Japanese combatants who were determined to hold the highest vantage point on the island.
Two Flags over Iwo Jima reveals the all-but-forgotten first-flag raising, and the aftermath of the popularization campaign undertaken by the post-WWII Marine Corps and national press. Hammel attempts to untangle the various battles which lead up to the first and second flag raisings, as well as following the men of the 28th Marine Regiment in the events which took place after. Not only is the full story behind one of the most iconic photographs ever taken revealed, but also the real heroism and stories of the men behind this most fervent expression of American patriotism.
175 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
22 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Eric Hammel
99 books50 followersEric Hammel was born in 1946, in Salem, Massachusetts, and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Central High School of Philadelphia in January 1964 and earned a degree in Journalism from Temple University in 1972. His road to writing military history began at age twelve, when he was stuck in bed for a week with a childhood illness. Eric's father bought him the first paperback book he ever owned, Walter Lord's Day of Infamy. As he devoured the book, Eric realized that he wanted to write books exactly like it, what we now call popular narrative history. Lord had pieced together the book from official records illuminated with the recollections of people who were there. Eric began to write his first military history book when he was fifteen. The book eventually turned out to be Guadalcanal: Starvation Island. Eric completed the first draft before he graduated from high school. During his first year of college, Eric wrote the first draft of Munda Trail, and got started on 76 Hours when he was a college junior. Then Eric got married and went to work, which left him no time to pursue his writing except as a journalism student.
Eric quit school at the end of his junior year and went to work in advertising in 1970. Eric completed his journalism degree in 1972, moved to California in 1975, and finally got back to writing while he operated his own one-man ad agency and started on a family. 76 Hours was published in 1980, and Chosin followed in 1982. At the end of 1983 Eric was offered enough of an advance to write The Root: The Marines in Beirut to take up writing books full time. The rest, as they say, is history.
Eric eventually published under his own imprint, Pacifica Press, which morphed into Pacifica Military History and IPS Books. At some point in the late 1990s, Eric realized he had not written in five years, so he pretty much closed down the publishing operation and pieced together a string of pictorial combat histories for Zenith Press. Eric nominally retired in 2008 and took up writing as a full-time hobby writing two novels, 'Til The Last Bugle Call and Love and Grace. Fast forward to 2018 and Eric was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and on August 25th 2020, Eric passed from this life to the next at the age of 74.
Eric quit school at the end of his junior year and went to work in advertising in 1970. Eric completed his journalism degree in 1972, moved to California in 1975, and finally got back to writing while he operated his own one-man ad agency and started on a family. 76 Hours was published in 1980, and Chosin followed in 1982. At the end of 1983 Eric was offered enough of an advance to write The Root: The Marines in Beirut to take up writing books full time. The rest, as they say, is history.
Eric eventually published under his own imprint, Pacifica Press, which morphed into Pacifica Military History and IPS Books. At some point in the late 1990s, Eric realized he had not written in five years, so he pretty much closed down the publishing operation and pieced together a string of pictorial combat histories for Zenith Press. Eric nominally retired in 2008 and took up writing as a full-time hobby writing two novels, 'Til The Last Bugle Call and Love and Grace. Fast forward to 2018 and Eric was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and on August 25th 2020, Eric passed from this life to the next at the age of 74.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 5, 2018
This book is about the two different flag raisings on Mt. Suribachi during the battle for Iwo Jima, and the ensuing confusion over who was responsible.
The book covers both flag raisings in detail, with an almost minute-by-minute account of how everything developed. There is no photographic evidence of the first raising unfortunately, and this book probably wouldn't have even been written if Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press hadn't taken his iconic photograph of the second one. Given the limitations of how the photographs were handled back then, as well as the fact the Battle of Iwo Jima was still in full swing, it's not surprising there was a fair deal of confusion about many details relating to the two raisings, with the primary issue being, Who actually raised the flags?
Author Eric Hammel has written a few dozen books on the U.S. Marines in World War II, and while this one is pretty short, it stands out as a great story. The early stages of Battle of Iwo Jima are covered, at least as they pertain to the individuals involved in raising the flags, and then the story switches to the tale of Rosenthal's photo and its enduring legacy. Now, if you've read James Bradley's book "Flags of Our Fathers" and/or seen the movie, you know that Bradley's father was one of men responsible for the second raising as depicted in Rosenthal's photo. Well, **SPOILER ALERT**, it turns out Bradley was not part of the second raising and the story of how this was finally solved is really very interesting. It all starts with a man in Ireland who is home on medical leave...and well, I'll let you read the book to see how the story ends.
A very well-written book about an iconic moment in American history, and the long road it took to finally get the story right.
The book covers both flag raisings in detail, with an almost minute-by-minute account of how everything developed. There is no photographic evidence of the first raising unfortunately, and this book probably wouldn't have even been written if Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press hadn't taken his iconic photograph of the second one. Given the limitations of how the photographs were handled back then, as well as the fact the Battle of Iwo Jima was still in full swing, it's not surprising there was a fair deal of confusion about many details relating to the two raisings, with the primary issue being, Who actually raised the flags?
Author Eric Hammel has written a few dozen books on the U.S. Marines in World War II, and while this one is pretty short, it stands out as a great story. The early stages of Battle of Iwo Jima are covered, at least as they pertain to the individuals involved in raising the flags, and then the story switches to the tale of Rosenthal's photo and its enduring legacy. Now, if you've read James Bradley's book "Flags of Our Fathers" and/or seen the movie, you know that Bradley's father was one of men responsible for the second raising as depicted in Rosenthal's photo. Well, **SPOILER ALERT**, it turns out Bradley was not part of the second raising and the story of how this was finally solved is really very interesting. It all starts with a man in Ireland who is home on medical leave...and well, I'll let you read the book to see how the story ends.
A very well-written book about an iconic moment in American history, and the long road it took to finally get the story right.
April 27, 2021
The iconic Rosenthal photo of the Suribachi flag raising on Iwo Jima tells the story of the men who made it possible with a mention of the fact that two flags were flown in sequence. The reasons for this action are explained. Most of the book is devoted to the men who helped shape and conduct the events. An excellent read about a moment in history that stands with the Battle for the Alamo.
October 18, 2018
This book is for the person or persons that are truly interested in the story behind the two Flag being raised on Iwo Jima that day. That day being four days after the invasion. The author will take you behind the scenes into why it was and is important. Iwo being the first Japanese held soil that we raised the flag on. The reason why we felt it was necessary to take the island, for the length of it for B-29’s could land there to and from bombing raids being made on Japan. The hill 556 was taken and the first flag went up, but after it went up Lt. Colonel Chandler Johnson wanted that flag brought back down and a bigger flag put up instead. Men needed to retake the hill once again because of the interlocking tunnels that were place prior to the invasion. Once the flag went a photo was taken by Joe Rosenthal and that photo is the one that would become famous. The first flag raising a Marine photographer Staff Sgt. Lou Lowery missed the raising of the flag because he was changing the film in his camera. He did take some photos of before and after. The author discusses what happens to some of the men and if they were wounded or killed in action. Any medals they were awarded and the citations along with them. The part of the book deals with some people who years ago because of the age of computers felt that it was necessary to try and get all of the people correct. At the end of the book the author puts in the finding and recommendation of the Navy to have names change of the first photo and second. The author also speaks about why Mr. Bradley did not come forward and say he was not in the photo. First I would like to say that as a son of a WWII VET, we don’t know that he didn’t. At that time the U.S did need more money for the war and bond drive was down. This photo and any way that they the government could put any kind of face with it was going to draw money which it did. Second Ira the Native American Marine did not want to leave his unit, his guys but was ordered to go back to the states, not to his home but on this tour. So I really don’t think it would have made a difference one way or another. Mr. Bradley along with the other two still was not able to return home until they the government said they were done, he did not get married until after he got home, and he never spoke about it again for as much as we know. I grantee you though any Marine who was there with Bradley and him seeing anyone from Iwo had a bound that know else could touch and that was more than having your name at the bottom of the photo. Like my father with the 82nd there was a special bond with the men he went into battle with and when he spoke about it a few times there was a different look in his eyes. Overall a good book if you don’t know the back story about the Flag on Iwo and the brave men who stormed the black volcanic beach on Feb 19, 1945 – March 26 ,1945. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com
June 3, 2021
This is a book about the power of a photograph. There were two flag raisings on Iwo Jima on 2-23-1945. No photos were taken of the first flag raising, the most important one. As a result, the six flag raisers, including Chuck Lindberg of Richfield, Minnesota, have been forgotten to history. The photo of the second flag raising, taken two hours later to put up a much larger flag, became the most well-known photo of the Pacific War, the subject of a highly-popular book and a Clint Eastwood movie. Why two of the second flag raisers--the sixth man (Harold Keller of Grinnell, Iowa) was not officially confirmed until October, 2019-- never spoke of their involvement is a very intriguing question. As is why two of the men (John Bradley and Rene Gagnon) who claimed, or did not deny, being second flag raisers but were not, never corrected the record during their lifetimes. Of course, any Marine who fought on Iwo Jima was a hero, especially any of the men who secured the summit of Mt. Suribachi.
The most interesting person of this story, and perhaps the entire 20th century, was Ira Hayes, a Pima Native American from the Gila River Pima Indian Reservation in Arizona. Hayes was a precocious child who had the characteristic of not wanting to talk, though he had an impressive grasp of English. He was a voracious reader, a highly-uncommon interest then and now for most Americans. After the flag raising, he was brought back to US to participate in a war bond fund drive with Gagnon and Bradley. He lasted only two weeks after getting into trouble for drinking. How bothered was he by the fact that the government was, in effect, committing a fraud on the public? After all, he was the only genuine second flag raiser on the fund drive. Also, a person in his squad with whom he was very close, Harlan Block, later killed in the battle, was not recognized as a second flag raiser despite Hayes's protestations, until 1946, well after the war bond drive. He hitchhiked 1,300 miles to confirm to Block's parents, in person, that their son was one of the second flag raisers. Hayes died under suspicious circumstances in 1955. There is a movie about him starring Tony Curtis entitled "The Outsider," one of the most depressing ever.
I visited Iwo Jima in 2017 for Honor Day, flying out from Guam with a Marine veteran group. This event, involving both the US and Japanese military, has been held every year since shortly after the war. It is the only day that non-military persons can visit the island, which is now a Japanese military installation. The Japanese are still recovering bodies. Mt. Suribachi is an imposing, ugly, volcanic mountain at the south end of the island. It is, within a few feet, of being the exact height as the Washington Monument in DC. I went down to the beach where the Marines came in. From there, it's uphill all the way to the center of the island. What a nightmare this must have been.
The most interesting person of this story, and perhaps the entire 20th century, was Ira Hayes, a Pima Native American from the Gila River Pima Indian Reservation in Arizona. Hayes was a precocious child who had the characteristic of not wanting to talk, though he had an impressive grasp of English. He was a voracious reader, a highly-uncommon interest then and now for most Americans. After the flag raising, he was brought back to US to participate in a war bond fund drive with Gagnon and Bradley. He lasted only two weeks after getting into trouble for drinking. How bothered was he by the fact that the government was, in effect, committing a fraud on the public? After all, he was the only genuine second flag raiser on the fund drive. Also, a person in his squad with whom he was very close, Harlan Block, later killed in the battle, was not recognized as a second flag raiser despite Hayes's protestations, until 1946, well after the war bond drive. He hitchhiked 1,300 miles to confirm to Block's parents, in person, that their son was one of the second flag raisers. Hayes died under suspicious circumstances in 1955. There is a movie about him starring Tony Curtis entitled "The Outsider," one of the most depressing ever.
I visited Iwo Jima in 2017 for Honor Day, flying out from Guam with a Marine veteran group. This event, involving both the US and Japanese military, has been held every year since shortly after the war. It is the only day that non-military persons can visit the island, which is now a Japanese military installation. The Japanese are still recovering bodies. Mt. Suribachi is an imposing, ugly, volcanic mountain at the south end of the island. It is, within a few feet, of being the exact height as the Washington Monument in DC. I went down to the beach where the Marines came in. From there, it's uphill all the way to the center of the island. What a nightmare this must have been.
April 24, 2022
‘Two Flags over Iwo Jima: Solving the Mystery of the U.S. Marine Corps Proudest Moment’ retells Operation Detachment, the American invasion of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during WWII. Eric Hammel describes the overcoming lengths the United States Marine Corps and Navy had to go to land and eventually capture the island, with the Japanese holding heavily fortified positions, with a dense network of bunkers, hidden artillery positions, and tunnels. The minute-by-minute account is tough to read as it details the fiercest and bloodiest five-week battle of the Pacific War. The battle would result in an American victory and one of the most iconic photographs of the American war effort in the Pacific: John Rosenthal’s ‘Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima’ at the top of Mount Suribachi by six U.S. Marines for which the book takes its name. This iconic photo meant fame followed the flag-raisers around for the remainder of their lives. However, this fame often feasted on the guilt of survivalhood as the remaining flag-raisers believed their new-found fame was unearned or that many better men died on Iwo Jima without the same level of recognition. The adulation caused damning symptoms of war neuroses and survivor guilt that plagued some of the flag-raises with depression and drove one of them to alcohol dependency – a sad result that shows the traumatic and tragic impact of war.
January 14, 2019
I really wanted to like this book having read "Flags of Our Fathers" by James Bradley, I wanted to learn all about the process of finally getting the answer to the first flag-raisers and the second flag-raisers as pictured in the famous Joe Rosenthal photograph. Well, that part of the story was only the two small last chapters of the book, with the official investigation reports being in the indices.
I did not like his style of writing at all, it didn't flow well at all. The narrative was interrupted by text blocks which included descriptions of the different Marines and made the information more convoluted and confusing than it should have been.
I did like the multitude of photographs, including individual shots of the Marines, as well as, the diagrams on the Joe Rosenthal photo pointing out who was who then and in 2016 after the "mystery was solved."
In the end, we do find out who was pictured in the Rosenthal photo and who the first flag-raisers were, so I was happy about that. I would recommend reading "Flags of Our Fathers" to learn more about those brave young men, except for the one man, Harold Schultz, who was misidentified as James Bradley in the photo 70 years ago. Although Bradley was one of the raisers of the first flag and earned many awards for his bravery during his time on Iwo Jima.
I did not like his style of writing at all, it didn't flow well at all. The narrative was interrupted by text blocks which included descriptions of the different Marines and made the information more convoluted and confusing than it should have been.
I did like the multitude of photographs, including individual shots of the Marines, as well as, the diagrams on the Joe Rosenthal photo pointing out who was who then and in 2016 after the "mystery was solved."
In the end, we do find out who was pictured in the Rosenthal photo and who the first flag-raisers were, so I was happy about that. I would recommend reading "Flags of Our Fathers" to learn more about those brave young men, except for the one man, Harold Schultz, who was misidentified as James Bradley in the photo 70 years ago. Although Bradley was one of the raisers of the first flag and earned many awards for his bravery during his time on Iwo Jima.
June 10, 2019
Outstanding nonfiction survey of the history of the two flags flown over Mount Suribachi on Feb 23, 1945 and the controversy surrounding the identity of the flag holders that wasn’t resolved until 2016. I’ve read many books about the battle of Iwo Jima as the grandchild of a survivor of the battle, but this book featured several very interesting facts that I had never read. Highly recommended.
February 14, 2019
The mystery to me was why PFC. Rene Gagnon, one of the flag raisers, who landed with fellow members of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines on D-day, 19 February 1945 did not fire his rifle until 13 March - some twenty-two days later.
December 29, 2021
It sometimes amazes me to what lengths we go to agrandize brief moments in history. Don't get me wrong, this was a significant event.
August 22, 2023
More of an analysis of the battles on Iwo Jima; the correct identification of all of the soldiers involved in the flag raisings is not dealt with until the last two chapters.
September 21, 2025
Terribly written - like a bad Wikipedia article.
May 27, 2018
I consider myself to be a smart, knowledge woman but this book went straight over my head. It is densely packed with facts and unfamiliar military terminology. I think this book would be great for someone is really into and up on the military but not for the average reader. A shame as I was looking forward to reading about the 2 flags. #TwoFlagsOverIwoJima #NetGalley
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews