The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack against the United States' naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by the Japanese navy, on the morning of Sunday, December 7, 1941, resulting in the United States becoming involved in World War II. It was intended as a preventive action to remove the U.S. Pacific Fleet as a factor in the war Japan was about to wage against Britain, the Netherlands, and the United States. Two aerial attack waves, totaling 353 aircraft, launched from six Japanese aircraft carriers. The attack wrecked two U.S. Navy battleships, one minelayer, and two destroyers beyond repair, and destroyed 188 aircraft; personnel losses were 2,388 killed and 1,178 wounded. Damaged warships included three cruisers, a destroyer, and six battleships (one deliberately grounded, later refloated and repaired; two sunk at their berths, later raised, repaired, and eventually restored to Fleet service). Vital fuel storage, shipyard, maintenance, and headquarters facilities were not hit. Japanese losses were minimal, at 29 aircraft and five midget submarines, with 65 servicemen killed or wounded. The aim of the strike was to protect Imperial Japan's advance into Malaya and the Dutch East Indies — for their natural resources such as oil and rubber — by neutralizing the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Both the U.S. and Japan had long-standing contingency plans for war in the Pacific, continuously updated as tension between the two countries steadily increased during the 1930s. Japan's expansion into Manchuria and French Indochina were greeted with steadily increasing levels of embargoes and sanctions by the United States and others. In 1940, under the Export Control Act, the U.S. halted shipments of airplanes, parts, machine tools, and aviation gasoline, which Japan saw as an unfriendly act. After it was announced in September export of iron and steel scrap would be prohibited, Japanese Ambassador Horinouchi protested to Secretary Hull on October 8, 1940, this might be considered an "unfriendly act". Nevertheless, the U.S. continued to export oil to Japan, in part because it was understood in Washington cutting off oil exports would be an extreme step, given Japanese dependence on U.S. oil exports, . likely to be taken as a provocation by Japan. In the summer of 1941, after Japanese expansion into French Indochina, the U.S. ceased oil exports to Japan, in part because of new American restrictions on domestic oil consumption. . President Franklin D. Roosevelt had earlier moved the Pacific Fleet to Hawaii and ordered a buildup in the Philippines, hoping to deter Japanese aggression in the Far East. The Japanese high command was certain, though mistakenly so, . an attack on the United Kingdom's colonies would bring the U.S. into the war, . so a preventive strike appeared to be the only way Japan could avoid U.S. interference in the Pacific. While the attack accomplished its intended objective, it was completely unnecessary--unbeknownst to Isoroku Yamamoto, who conceived the original plan, the U.S. Navy had decided to abandon any intention of 'charging' across the Pacific towards the Philippines at the outset of war back in 1935 (in keeping with the evolution of War Plan Orange). They instead adopted "Plan Dog" in 1940, which emphasized keeping the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) out of the eastern Pacific and the shipping lanes to Australia, while the U.S. concentrated on defeating Nazi Germany. The attack was one of the most important engagements of World War II. Occurring as it did before a formal declaration of war, it pushed U.S. public opinion from isolationism to an acceptance war was unavoidable, as Roosevelt called December 7, 1941 "... a date which will live in infamy." (more)
Genres: politics, science, technology, business
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Infamy Speech:
The Infamy Speech was delivered on December 8, 1941, by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, one day after the Empire of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. The address is regarded as one of the most famous American political speeches of the 20
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War Plan Orange:
War Plan Orange (commonly known as Plan Orange or just Orange) refers to a series of United States Navy war plans for dealing with a possible war with Japan during the interwar years. Predating the Rainbow plans, which presumed allies, Orange was pre
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Pearl Harbor:
Pearl Harbor is a harbor on the island of O ahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. The attack on Pearl Harbor by th
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Tora! Tora! Tora!:
Tora! Tora! Tora! is a 1970 American-Japanese film that dramatizes the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The title is made up of the code-words that were used by the Japanese to indicate that complete surprise was achieved (虎 tora is Japanese for "tig
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USS Arizona Memorial:
The USS Arizona Memorial, located at Pearl Harbor, Hawai i, marks the resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors killed on the USS Arizona during the Attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 by Japanese imperial forces and commemorates the events o
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In Defense of Internment:
In Defense of Internment: The Case for 'Racial Profiling' in World War II and the War on Terror (ISBN 0-89526-051-4) is a 2004 book written by American conservative columnist, blogger, and political commentator Michelle Malkin. In the book Malkin, in
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Attacks on North America during World War II:
Attacks on North America during World War II by the Axis Powers were rare, mainly due to the continent's geographical separation from the central theaters of conflict in Europe and Asia. This article includes attacks on continental territory (extendi
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Niihau Incident:
The Ni ihau Incident (or Battle of Ni ihau) occurred on December 7, 1941, when a Japanese Zero pilot crash-landed on the Hawaiian island of Ni ihau after participating in the attack on Pearl Harbor. The misadventures of the pilot came to be referred
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Day of Deceit:
Day of Deceit: The Truth About FDR and Pearl Harbor is a book written by Robert Stinnett. First released in December 1999, the book interprets Freedom of Information Act material as a refutation to the official story that the 1941 attack on Pearl Har
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Pearl Harbor advance-knowledge debate:
The Pearl Harbor advance-knowledge debate is a dispute over what, if any, advance knowledge American officials had of Japan's December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Ever since the Japanese attack there has been debate as to how and why the United S
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Pearl Harbor Survivors Association:
The Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, founded in 1958 and recognized by the United States Congress in 1985, is an organization whose members were at or in the vicinity of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii during the Japanese attack of December 7, 1941. Motto: "
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Battleship:
A battleship is a large, heavily armored warship with a main battery consisting of the largest calibre of guns. Battleships are larger, better armed, and better armored than cruisers and destroyers. Battleship design continually evolved to incorporat
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Aircraft carrier:
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a sea-going airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power great distances without having to depend on local ba
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Franklin D. Roosevelt:
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882 - April 12, 1945) (ˈfɹæŋklɪn ˈdɛlənoʊ ˈɹoʊzvɛlt), often referred to by his initials FDR, was the thirty-second President of the United States. Elected to four terms in office, he served from 1933 to 1945 an
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Isoroku Yamamoto:
Fleet Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto (4 April 1884 – 18 April 1943) was Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II, graduate of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy and an alumnus of the U.S. Naval War College and of Harvard University (19
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Midget submarine:
A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by one or two but up to 6 or 8 crew, with no on-board living accommodation. Midget submarines normally work with mother ships, from which they are launched and recovered, and whic
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Preventive war:
A Preventive war or Preventative war is a war initiated under the belief that future conflict is inevitable, though not imminent. Preventive war aims to forestall a shift in the balance of power. Taming American Power, Stephen M. Walt, pp 224 by stra
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USS Arizona (BB-39):
The USS Arizona (BB-39) was a Pennsylvania-class battleship of the United States Navy. The vessel was the third to be named in honor of the 48th state, though the first since its statehood was actually achieved. She was commissioned in 1916 and saw a
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USS Shaw (DD-373):
USS Shaw (DD-373), a Mahan-class destroyer, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Captain John Shaw, a Naval officer. The Shaw was present during the Attack on Pearl Harbor and suffered major damage by Japanese aircraft.
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Opana Radar Site:
The Opana Radar Site is a National Historic Landmark that commemorates the first operational use of radar by the United States in wartime, during the attack on Pearl Harbor. It is located off the Kamehameha Highway on Oahu, Hawaii, but not open to th
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Homer N. Wallin:
Vice Admiral Homer Norman Wallin (December 6, 1893 – March 6, 1984) was a Vice Admiral in the United States Navy, best known for his salvage of ships sunk in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Wallin was born in Washburn, North Dakota. Following brief atten
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First American shots fired in World War II:
While debate over the First American shots fired in World War II existed for some time, specifically concerning the Attack on Pearl Harbor, it is now generally accepted that the first American (and the first American-caused) casualties actually occur
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Mervyn S. Bennion:
Mervyn Sharp Bennion (5 May 1887 - 7 December 1941) was a captain in the United States Navy who died during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. While mortally wounded, he remained in command of his ship — for conspicuous devotion to duty, extr
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Shigekazu Shimazaki:
Shigekazu Shimazaki was a Lieutenant-Commander in the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service and leader of the 2nd wave of the attack on Pearl Harbor by planes. http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/pearlharbor/totsugeskiseyo.aspx For the attack on P
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Second Sino-Japanese War:
The Second Sino-Japanese War (July 7, 1937 to September 9, 1945) was a major war fought between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan before and during World War II. It was the largest Asian war in the twentieth century. Although the two coun
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Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi:
The Akagi (Japanese: 赤城) was an aircraft carrier serving with the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. The only ship in her class, Akagi played a major part in the Attack on Pearl Harbor, but was sunk along with three other large carriers by d
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Aichi D3A:
The Aichi D3A (99式艦上爆撃機, Allied code name Val) was a World War II dive bomber produced by the Aichi company in Japan. It was the primary carrier-borne dive bomber in the Imperial Japanese Navy in the early stages of the war, and participated in almos
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Nakajima B5N:
The Nakajima B5N (Japanese: 中島 B5N, Allied reporting name: Kate) was the Imperial Japanese Navy's standard torpedo bomber for the first years of World War II. While the B5N was substantially faster and more capable than its Allied counterparts, the T
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Japanese aircraft carrier Shōkaku:
Shōkaku (Japanese: 翔鶴 shōkaku meaning "flying crane") was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy, the lead ship of her class. Along with her sister ship Zuikaku, she is most famous for taking part in many key engagements of the World War I
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Walter Lord:
Walter Lord (October 8 1917–May 19 2002) was an American author, best known for his documentary-style non-fiction account A Night to Remember, about the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Lord was born in Baltimore, Maryland to John Walterhouse and Henriett
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Japanese aircraft carrier Sōryū:
Soryu (Japanese 蒼龍 soryu, meaning "blue (or green) dragon") was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. She took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor and was sunk at the battle of Midway. Soryu Soryu was built at Kaigun Kosho, Kure, Japan an
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USS Oglala (CM-4):
USS Oglala (CM-4, later ARG-1) was a minelayer in the United States Navy. She was named for a sub-tribe of Lakota, residing in the Black Hills of South Dakota. She was originally built as Massachusetts at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1907 as a coas
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USS Maryland (BB-46):
USS Maryland (BB-46), a , was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the seventh state. Her keel was laid down 24 April 1917 by Newport News Shipbuilding Company of Newport News, Virginia. She was launched on 20 March 1920 s
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USS Helena (CL-50):
USS Helena (CL-50) was a St. Louis-class light cruiser of the United States Navy, damaged in the attack on Pearl Harbor, and subsequently active in the Pacific War until she was sunk at the battle of Kula Gulf in 1943. Helena was the first ship to be
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USS Honolulu (CL-48):
USS Honolulu (CL-48) of the United States Navy was a Brooklyn-class light cruiser active in the Pacific War (World War II in the Pacific Ocean.) The second Navy ship named for the city of Honolulu, Hawaii, the cruiser was launched on 26 August 1937 a
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USS Ward (DD-139):
USS Ward (DD-139) was a 1247-ton (1,267 metric ton) Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War I, later APD-16 in World War II. She was the first Navy ship to engage the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Ward was name
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Station HYPO:
Station HYPO, also known as Fleet Radio Unit Pacific ( FRUPAC ) was the United States Navy signals monitoring and cryptographic intelligence unit in Hawaii during World War II. It was one of two major Allied signals intelligence units in the Pacific
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Mitsuo Fuchida:
Mitsuo Fuchida( 淵田美津雄)(3 December 1902 - 30 May 1976) was a Captain in the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service and a Imperial Japanese Navy flying ace pilot before and during World War II. He is perhaps best known for leading the first air wave attack
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Bellows Air Force Station:
Bellows Air Force Station is a United States military reservation located in Waimanalo, Hawaii. Once an important air field during World War II, the reservation now serves as a military training area and recreation area for active and retired militar
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Gordon Prange:
Gordon William Prange (July 16, 1910–May 15, 1980) was the author of several World War II-based manuscripts, published after his death in 1980. Dr. Prange was a Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park from 1937-1980 with a br
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Kazuo Sakamaki:
Kazuo Sakamaki (酒巻和男 Sakamaki Kazuo, November 8, 1918 - November 29, 1999) was a Japanese naval officer. He was one of ten sailors (5 officers and 5 petty officers) who volunteered to attack Pearl Harbor in a Ko-hyoteki class midget submarine. Of the
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Robert Alfred Theobald:
Robert Alfred "Fuzzy" Theobald (1884-1957) was a United States rear admiral and, most notably the author of the 1947 book The Final Secret of Pearl Harbor: The Washington Background of the Pearl Harbor Attack. Born in 1884, Theobald graduated from th
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Hull note:
The Hull note, delivered on November 26, 1941, was the final proposal delivered to Japan by the United States before the start of war between the two nations. It is formally called "Outline of proposed Basis for Agreement Between The United States an
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Pearl Harbor Commemorative Medal:
The Pearl Harbor Commemorative Medal, also known as the Pearl Harbor Survivor’s Medal, is a decoration of the United States military which was established by the United States Congress in 1991. The medal recognizes veterans of the U.S. military who w
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