A Split Second Made Immortal

On 23 February 1945, during the battle for Iwo Jima, Marines raised the American flag twice over Suribachi, and each action lasted only seconds. The first raising immediately lifted the spirits of thousands of Marines, bringing cheers and ships' horns, but the 4½-foot-long flag was too small to be easily seen by many Marines fighting on the distant beachheads below. Major General Keller E. Rockey therefore ordered a larger 8-foot-long flag taken to the top. The photograph of Marines struggling together to raise that second flag profoundly moved Americans and became an enduring symbol of Marine Corps spirit and of what it took to win victory in World War II. Associated Press photographer Joseph J. Rosenthal, who won the Pulitzer Prize, did not know his photograph would become world-famous; the image was not seen until it was taken to Guam, 815 miles away, to be developed.

Washington, District of Columbia · United States