An Iconic 20th Century Image

On February 23, 1945 Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press took perhaps one of the most remembered pictures of World War II: the raising of the US Flag over Iwo Jima's most dominating physical feature - Mount Suribachi. Rosenthal's image was actually of the second flag raising. The first had been done earlier in the morning by men of the 5th Marine Division, but this second raising would be of a larger flag.  

All told five U.S. Marines and one U.S. Navy Corpsman are pictured raising the second flag (only three of whom would survive the ongoing battle for the island of Iowa Jima). Invaded on February 19, 1945, Iowa Jima, was stoutly defended, and would not fall until the end of March, 1945. Over one third the U.S. invasion force would become casualties. As for the Japanese all but approximately 200 men of the roughly 22,000 man garrison were killed in one of the most brutal battles of the war.