Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor -- A Day that will live in Infamy
Overview
USS Arizona – sinking (2)
Sunday, December 7, 1941 at 7:48am, a surprise attack on the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor Hawaii would be as President Roosevelt declared “A day that will live in infamy”.
On December 8, U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt asked Congress for and received a declaration of war against Japan. On December 11, Germany and Italy, allied with Japan, declared war on the U.S. The United States had entered World War II. (5)
U.S. Completely Unprepared and Surprised
Japan was trying to deliver a knock out blow to the United States Navy so they could continue their takeover of the Pacific. There were mistakes made on both sides, especially the United States but Japan didn’t fully understand what this attack would do the American people. “Moreover, the attack united the American people, who, in their rage at what was perceived as a dastardly sneak attack, were determined to defeat Japan at any cost” .[35]
“The attack succeeded not because of American shortcomings but because it was brilliantly conceived, skillfully planned, and carried out with courage and daring”(38)
By Imperial Japanese Navy - Official U.S. Navy photograph NH 50930., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=223876
Quick Facts:
| Date | December 7, 1941 |
| Location | Normandy, France |
| Result | Allied Victory |
| Strength | |
| U.S.: | |
| Japan | |
| Casualites / Losses | |
| U.S.: | (includes 68 civilians) |
| Japan | |
Resources
Web Sites:
Books:
by Walter Lord
By Gordon W. Prange
REFERENCES
- **USS West Virginia Picture at top: By U.S. Navy, Office of Public Relations – This image is available from the United States Library of Congress’s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID fsa.8e00810.This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6815624
- (2) By Photographer: UnknownRetouched by: Mmxx – This media is available in the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration, cataloged under the National Archives Identifier (NAID) 195617., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18147474
- (5) https://www.census.gov/history/pdf/pearl-harbor-fact-sheet-1.pdf
- (35) Miller, Nathan (1995), War At Sea: A Naval History of World War II, Scribner, ISBN 0-684-80380-1, p. 207
- (36) ibid. p. 207