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As the American offensive prepared to claim the coral atoll of Tarawa in November of 1943, they were confident that their more potent force and resources would be enough to defeat the outnumbered Japanese on the island.

Previous amphibious landings had met little resistance, but the Japanese were angrier and more prepared than ever this time.

The resistance posed by the enemy proved a massive challenge for the Americans, who fought a force that had given up on any chance of winning and only wanted to create as much damage as possible, resulting in one of the most brutal battles in Marine Corps history with much more losses than expected and a harsh public outcry that haunted President Franklin D. Roosevelt for years.

Still, while Japanese top brass initially bragged that it would take the United States 100 years and a million soldiers to claim Tarawa, 18,000 Marines did it in just 76 hours.

And part of it was even caught on camera…