American History

The Japanese military leaders planned a surprised aerial attack on the American Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in order to handicap them to retort and defend their strategic objectives in Far East Asia. This attack led Americans to quickly get involved in the World War II and served as the anticlimax of the US and Japanese worsening relations. The Japanese invasion of China in 1937 and its amiable ties and military alliance with Axis Powers, Germany and Italy, and its activity in the French Indochina in 1941 provoked the United States to freeze all the Japanese assets in America.

Furthermore, America also declared a restriction on petroleum and war materials shipments to Japan and disengaged all commercial and financial relations with Japan. The Japanese diplomatic offices continued to negotiate with the American delegates until the day of the Pearl Harbor Assault, while the government of then Prime Minister Tojo Hideki was determined to get involved in the war.

In the beginning of 1941, the Commander of the Japanese Combined Fleet, the Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku laid down the plan for the surprise attack. By September 1941, the Japanese military forces were all prepared for the secret assault in Philippines and West Indies, along with the major blow directed at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on the Island of Oahu. The Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo was made the commander of the Pearl Harbor planned assault. Nagumo has detailed the surprise attack with great care against the pacific fleet. Once the fleet was eliminated, there was no force stopping the Japanese conquest of the South East Asia and Indonesian Archipelago.

Nagumo led the force of 30 Ships together with six aircraft carriers having about 430 planes. About 360 fighter planes were used as part of the planned attack. In addition 20 submarines of the Japanese Advance Expeditionary Forces were stationed at Kure Naval Base on the west coast of Honshu, to assist the attack. These submarines journeyed across the pacific during mid-November and arrived at the Oahu Island on December 5th. Midnight 6-7 December five of the submarines surfaced at the Pearl Harbor.

Nagumos forces sailed to the coast of Oahu and arrived unobserved by the Americans about 200 miles north of Oahu at six AM Hawaiian time on December 7, 1941. The air attack was launched in three waves utilizing 360 planes, which started at 6 AM and ended at 715AM. The planes flew to the south for the target assignments and then flew towards Oahu for the synchronized attacks. The airstrike assault included torpedo planes, bombers, and fighters. Japanese dive bombers targeted the ships anchored at the Harbor, as they were unmanned. The Japanese choose Sunday to launch the strikes to attain maximum advantage while few were available to launch counterattack if any.

The Japanese attacks principal mission was to cripple the American Naval Pacific fleet, which was accomplished easily, as Americans were unprepared. All in all, the Japanese severely damaged 18 ships, including eight battle ships, three light cruisers and destroyers each.  In addition the airfields also suffered tremendous losses, as about 161 American planes were blown away or destroyed and 102 planes were severely damaged. The American Navy and Marine Corps suffered from 2986 fatalities, resulting in 2117 dead and 779 wounded. Much criticism and dissatisfaction was aggravated against the US militarys unpreparedness and the extent of damage.  As a result Admiral Husband Kimmel and General Walter Short, Navy and Army commanders respectively were relieved of their duties and official investigations began.
Americans had about 96 vessels stationed at Pearl Harbor, comprising the bulk of its Pacific Fleet. On airfields about 390 Army and Navy planes of all types were available and less than 300 were ready for any kind of combat or assault. However Americans quickly recovered from the shocking attack and fought back austerely, and ordered their planes to strike the counterattack. Hence the Japanese lost over 29 planes, five midget submarines and one large submarine during the attack, losing 55 airmen and several crew onboard their submarines. While Nagumos task force was able to sail away unnoticed and unharmed.

The Pearl Harbor assault disabled Americas Naval and Air forces in the Pacific. However, the Japanese were unable to destroy the biggest and most important oil storage facilities on Oahu Island and three other aircraft carrier fleets that were not at the harbor at the time of attack. In addition out of the eight battleships, two were repaired and were back to service.

As declared by the United States President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, the date which will live in infamy. After the presidents stirring six minute address, congress voted to wage war against Japan with all of the countrys available resources. The day unified the American public and eliminated their earlier demands to remain neutral.  Four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Germany and Italy also declared war with United States, which was also immediately recognized by congress. Some historians blamed President Roosevelt for having invited the attack at the Pearl harbor, and bringing in the Axis Powers in war, however later investigations and analysis disclosed that Japans attack was anticipated but the magnitude, extent and location could not be deciphered accurately.

The United States wanted to isolate Japan economically to cut credits for them to purchase petroleum and subsequently force them to pull them out from China. Japan purchased petroleum from three main sources namely USA, Indonesia (Dutch East Indies) and Burma (controlled by British in 1940s). The withdrawal from china was not acceptable to the Japanese think tanks and, hence, the surprise strike against the US Navy was planned. The removal of the US pacific Fleet by the Japanese strike made Japanese Navy paramount, and helped them gain control of Burma and Dutch East indies in order to attain enough oil resources to run their economy and military and beat the economic slump that United States had planned.