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The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii, in the United States, just before 8:00 a.m. (local time) on Sunday, December 7, 1941.
- December 7, 1941; 81 years ago
- Japan and The Path to War
- Where Is Pearl Harbor?
- USS Arizona
- Impact of The Pearl Harbor Attack
- How Many People Died in Pearl Harbor?
- 'A Date Which Will Live in Infamy'
- America Enters World War II
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The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise, but Japan and the United States had been edging toward war for decades. The United States was particularly unhappy with Japan’s increasingly belligerent attitude toward China. The Japanese government believed that the only way to solve its economic and demographic problems was to expand into its neighbor’s...
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is located near the center of the Pacific Ocean, roughly 2,000 miles from the U.S. mainland and about 4,000 miles from Japan. No one believed that the Japanese would start a war with an attack on the distant islands of Hawaii. Additionally, American intelligence officials were confident that any Japanese attack would take plac...
The Japanese plan was simple: Destroy the Pacific Fleet. That way, the Americans would not be able to fight back as Japan’s armed forces spread across the South Pacific. On December 7, after months of planning and practice, the Japanese launched their attack. At about 8 a.m., Japanese planes filled the sky over Pearl Harbor. Bombs and bullets raine...
In all, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor crippled or destroyed nearly 20 American ships and more than 300 airplanes. Dry docks and airfields were likewise destroyed. Most importantly, more than 2,000 people died. But the Japanese had failed to cripple the Pacific Fleet. By the 1940s, battleships were no longer the most important naval vessel: Ai...
The attack on Pearl Harbor killed 2,403 U.S. personnel, including sailors, soldiers and civilians. Additionally, 1,178 people were wounded. 129 Japanese soldiers were killed. Half of the dead at Pearl Harbor were on the USS Arizona. Today the sunken battleship serves as a memorial to all Americans who died in the attack.
President Franklin D. Rooseveltaddressed a joint session of the U.S. Congress on December 8, the day after the crushing attack on Pearl Harbor. “Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” He went on to say, “No matt...
After the Pearl Harbor attack, and for the first time during years of discussion and debate, the American people were united in their determination to go to war. The Japanese had wanted to goad the United States into an agreement to lift the economic sanctions against them; instead, they had pushed their adversary into a global conflict that ultima...
Learn about the surprise attack by Japanese forces on December 7, 1941, that killed over 2,400 Americans and brought the U.S. into World War II. See photos of the devastation, the aftermath and the memorials at Pearl Harbor.
5 days ago · Pearl Harbor attack, (December 7, 1941), surprise aerial attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu Island, Hawaii, by the Japanese that precipitated the entry of the United States into World War II. The strike climaxed a decade of worsening relations between the United States and Japan.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Learn about the background, causes, and consequences of the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, that brought the US into World War II. Explore articles, oral histories, artifacts, and more from the museum's collection.
Learn about the surprise attack by the Imperial Japanese Navy on 7 December 1941 that brought the U.S. into World War II. Explore the impact, casualties, heroes, and legacy of the attack through photos, videos, oral histories, and more.
Learn about the unprovoked aerial attack on the US naval base by Japan in 1941 that brought the US into World War II. Explore the historical context, the strategic goals, and the consequences of the Pearl Harbor attack.
Dec 6, 2021 · Learn how Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, propelled the U.S. into World War II and altered the course of world history. Explore the lead-up, the aftermath, and the legacy of the infamous date.
