PEARL HARBOR: AN INVITATION TO WAR
I. INTRODUCTION- On December 7, 1941, to the astonishment of the United States, the Navy fleet at Pearl Harbor unceremoniously attacked resulting in the immediate involvement of the United States into WWII. Although the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was unexpected and unprovoked, it is a direct result of multiple failures in military policies and procedures. Early warning signs of a pending attack would have decreased the causalities and limited the overall collateral damage at Pearl Harbor.
A. Key points
1. Under estimation and overconfidence, lead the United States to misinterpret the Japanese striking capabilities.
2. Due to the overwhelming surprise of the attack at Pearl Harbor, the United States
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had minimal reaction time to form a formidable defense against an overwhelming Japanese attacking force. 3. The United States military on the Hawaiian Island of Oahu was ill prepared for an attack by the Japanese Navy resulting in mass casualties and destruction to massive amounts of equipment. 4. Information flow, break downs in reporting, and lack of individual comprehension directly lead to oversights of an impending attack. II.
BODY-
A. The United States thought the Japanese to be inferior war fighters lacking aggressiveness and the ability to adapt to military challenges.
1. United States thought the Japanese pilot training was inferior and that they lacked the proper skill to execute a coordinated attack.
2. The U.S Navy thought the depth of water at Pearl Harbor was too shallow for effective torpedo attacks from the air.
B. The quick and decisive nature in which the Japanese attacked was so initially devastating that the U.S. forces on Oahu suffered catastrophic losses denying them the ability to effectively fight off a well-executed and coordinated Japanese attack.
1. United States overestimated its ability to properly defend Hawaii from possible attacks.
2. Swift and surprising attacks by the Japanese quickly devastated and disorientated forces on Oahu.
C. The military services on Oahu were not postured properly to thwart off a large-scale attack by a sizable Japanese military
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force. 1. Commanders at Wheeler Army Airfield felt that impending attacks by saboteurs were likely so the commanders chose to move to protect their air assets from ground attack. To do this, they decreased the size needed for patrols by parking the plane’s nose to tail and wing tip to wing tip in the center of the airfield. When the Japanese air attack commenced, the aircraft parking plan it virtually impossible to launch a reaction force and made it easier for Japanese bombers to cause large-scale damage to the Army’s air fleet. 2.
While docking ships force at Pearl Harbor was a good practice in order to increase supply, fueling, and ammunition restocking efficiency, it was not an optimal docking procedure in a high alert situation.
D. A culmination of many individual events throughout the early morning of December 7, 1941 should have raised red flags and caused reason for concern of an impending attack.
1. Personnel of the minesweeper Condor spot a periscope in the
water while patrolling off the entrance to Pearl Harbor.
2. The destroyer Ward fires first shot at the sub, misses, fires second
shot and hits. The submarine appears to be slowly sinking so the captain of the destroyer orders depth charges dropped.
3. Oahu radar station operator sights 50 or more aircraft bearing down on Oahu and misinterprets it as scheduled friendly aircraft incoming.
4. President Roosevelt and General Marshall learn from a decoded
Japanese message that the two Japanese negotiators receive a message ordering them to cease negotiations. Believing this may mean war, they notify the commander of the U.S. Army forces in Hawaii.
III. SUMMARY- Although a total repel of a Japanese force so large would have been impossible, the United States hubris attitude toward the Japanese left them vulnerable and poised for an attack of such devastating
nature. A. The United States underestimation of Japans capabilities left them vulnerable to attack B. Japans quick strike capability and audacious attacking methods left the United States unable to fight off the massive Japanese attack. C. Improper posturing of forces to delay, disrupt, or defend against an attack. D. Inability to recognize potential warning signs of an impending attack caused the United States to be unprepared for the inevitable attack.
To begin, the attack on Pearl Harbour was devastating to U.S. naval capabilities in the Pacific at the onset of their entry into the war. Japanese officials had grown tired of the U.S. oil embargo, which was meant to limit their territorial expansion and aggression in South-East Asia as well as China, and as negotiations weren’t reaching any conclusions they decided that the only course of action was a first strike on the aircraft carriers at Pearl Harbour to cripple U.S. naval capability in the Pacific (Rosenberg 1). The attack, which lasted about two hours, had resulted in the sinking of four battleships, among ...
Previous to the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour on December 7th 1941, tensions had been forming between the USA and Japan in the pacific. The US had cut of most supplies to Japan with the fear of Japanese expansion. The conflict that had been escalating between Japan and China since 1937 had the US treating Japan with great cautiousness. They had been monitoring Japanese Americans in anticipation of a surprise attack. However the attack on Pearl Harbour still shocked and outraged the American nation and affected the American psyche. After being assured that “a Japanese attack on Hawaii is regarded as the most unlikely thing in the world”(1), the sudden mass destruction of the U.S Navy’s Pacific fleet and deaths of roughly 2400 U.S soldiers and civilians as a result of such an attack undoubtedly lead to confusion and racial hatred amongst many US citizens. The assumption on the War Department’s behalf that Japan’s Navy were incapable of launching a full scale assault on the US Navy’s chief Pacific base was more than inaccurate. As a result, the US Naval base was unprepared and was quickly taken out. A hidden bias would soon become evident in both average civilians and higher positioned government officials. This bias against Japan aided in the formation of the Executive Order 9066, signed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) on February 19th 1942.
The Battle of Pearl Harbor was one of the most atrocious events that happened in U.S. history. On December 7, 1941, Japan made a surprise aerial attack on the United States naval base and airfields at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. More than two thousand Americans died and a thousand two hundred were wounded. Eighteen ships were badly damaged, including five battleships. The next day, President Franklin Roosevelt with the support of the Congress, declared war on Japan. It led United States’ official involvement in World War II. Japan attacked Pearl Harbor because of a deteriorating relationship with the U. S. The “New World Order”, expansion and resources, and economic sanctions were factors that conducted to another disaster on the Second World War.
From Tokyo to the Japanese Embassy in Washington, it was stipulated as the highest priority in Japanese "Purple Code" and, stated that the Japanese were going to bring an end to relations with the United States. Both the film and Prange's book note the importance of the message: noting that the reason that the message was delivered late was due to the slow decoding of the message by the Japanese diplomats at the embassy . They both emphasize a great deal about the typist who was decoding the message.
While Japan was greedy for more land and industrial materials, no one believed that the Japanese would start war with America by planning an attack on American soil. Another reason that the United States thought that the attack wouldn’t happen so close was because they were confident that Japan would try and take over the the Dutch East Indies, or French
Initially, Japanese strategists assumed that the tiny island would be overwhelmed in a matter of hours. However, they underestimated the fighting spirit of the military personnel and civilians stationed on the island. For sixteen days these brave men fought against overwhelming odds, but demonstrated both to the Japanese and to their fellow Americans back at home that the Americans could and would put up a courageous fight.
The attack was well organized and the Japanese were prepared. The continental United States was receiving telegrams warning them that there would be an attack. Unfortunately, people in Hawaii were not warned; they were living their normal lives, doing things they were accustomed to doing such as going to parties, writing letters home, and just doing things that a man stationed in Hawaii would do. Many men wrote letters home to their girlfriends or parents or kept a journal. The following letter is an example.
Even before the battle started, America saw his attack coming. Japan had bombed the Dutch harbor in Alaska on the days of June 3rd and 4th. Japan landed there instead of on the islands of Attu and Kiska, in fear the United States might be there. There attacks failed when the plan to get the American fleet from Midway to aid the freshly bombed Dutch harbor. At 0900 hours an American patrol boat spotted the Japanese fleet seven hundred miles from Midway. At that point admiral Soroku Yamamoto’s plans of a sneak attack were over. Admiral fletcher commanded the U.S.S. Yorktown before it was sunk by the Japanese. Then at 0750, japan spots nine enemy (American) planes fifteen miles out. Tones, a Japanese cruiser, opened fire on the American pilots. Almost instantly if an American bomber plane were hit it would explode and go down. The bombers dropped their torpedoes to far from their targets, so the torpedoes didn’t land a single blow to Japan. At 1040 japan sent from Hiryu,...
On December 7th 1941, Japanese Planes and submarines attacked the United States Naval base at Pearl Harbor. This event singlehandedly brought the U.S from its then neutral stance in World War Two to a fighting member of the “Allied Powers.” Pearl Harbor was the first of a long series of confrontations between the U.S and the Japanese in an effort to gain control of the Pacific. Unlike the “War in Europe” the Pacific strategy was dominated by naval and aerial battles, with the occasional land-based “Island Hopping” Campaign. As such, one of the most important factors in the war in the pacific was Fleet Size, the more ships a country could send to war, the better. Pearl Harbor was the Japanese’s way of trying to deal with the massive U.S Pacific fleet. However, Pearl Harbor was not the turning point of the war. After December 7th the United States began work on numerous technological developments which would ultimately help them in one of the most important battles of WWII, the largest naval confrontation of the war, The Battle of Midway. The battle, which took place from June 4th to June 7th , 1942 is widely considered the turning point of the Pacific Theater (James & Wells). Through the Post-Pearl Harbor desire for “Revenge” and various technological advantages including code breaking and radar, the U.S were able to outsmart the Japanese at Midway and ultimately win the battle, eventually leading to a victory in the Pacific.
The attack on pearl harbor . It was the most dramatic effect of the World War II for the UNITED STATES . The pearl harbor attack gave the Japanese the advantage of the war . They attacked out American fleet at Pearl Harbor . This made UNITED STATES very angry at Japan . Here are some facts about the Pearl Harbor attack . 18 ships were destroyed at Pearl Harbor . Around 2,400 Americans were killed . The Japanese forces were 6 carriers with 400 aircraft .
On the day of the attack, Japan succeeded with their plan of “surprise.” The United States had “ no defenses and many of their guns were not loaded” (Keegan 255). Although they saw many aircrafts approaching through the radar that was installed at the harbor, the Americans thought nothing of it (Keegan 254). Because of the unexpected Japanese move, the United States suffered greatly on December 7, 1941; Japan successfully sank and damaged 18 US ships, 8 battleships, and 180 planes. In addition, thousands of innocent Americans lost their lives that day, and many homes were completely destroyed. Once Yamamoto heard the results of the attack, he was thrilled; Japan successfully carried out their long scheduled attack (Axelrod 152). However, his joy soon ended as on December 8, the day after the bombing, when Roosevelt declared war against Japan (Axelrod 149).
Introduction – Pearl Harbor was vulnerable to attack because of the obstruction of defense and warning.
As the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 the United States officially entered World War Two. The Japanese government later learned later that this single event sets off an explosion that subsequently caused the United States to attack the Midway Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Pearl Harbor was one of the United States largest naval bases and the largest in the Pacific Ocean. This attack ceased all trade with Japan and officially added Japan as one of the US enemies. With a new world war started it created new concerns for the army. “World War II introduced a whole new set of problems in naval tactics” (Smith, 1). The main change driving these changes was the fact that aircraft carriers became more prevalent and common in every major countries naval force. Japan was able to pull off the Pearl Harbor attack as a result of aircraft carriers to launch their airplanes. As a result of the battles leading up to the Battle of Midway and conflicts with Japan this created a lot larger of an impact on WWII as a whole and to boost unity in America leading to a more prosperous period of history following the war.
Did you know that plans for the surprise attack against the United States began as early as January 1941? Did you know Japan also chose specifically to attack on a Sunday because they believed the Americans would be less alert? By December of 1941, the Japanese Army consisted of 2,400,000 trained ground troops and an air force of 7,500 planes in December 1941. The U.S., however, was obligated to produce a large portion of war equipment for Europe. Therefore, the U.S. only had 1,500,000 ground troops, 1,157 combat aircraft, and 347 war ships. Only 500,000 of the ground troops were combat ready. The U.S. Pacific Fleet was fairly large and Japan believed it posed a threat. A surprise air attack would be just what Japan needed to nullify the fleet.
In the morning hours of December 7, 1941 the Japanese attacked the Hawaiian islands at Pearl Harbor. The Japanese had been feeling the pressures of World War II (WWII) as did many others. With the resources of the Japanese dwindling, the Japanese decided to attack the U.S. while simultaneously planning the attack during the negotiations of continued peace between our two countries. The Japanese were able to cover up there planning for nearly a year. Planning for the attack and ultimately war in the pacific, started in January of 1941, and was finalized during the war games in November of 1941. The U.S. on the other hand would become a reactive force after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The inability to crack the Japanese code lead, to a lack of intelligence during this time making the plan of attack for the Japanese a successful one. It would seem that the year of planning and the strategies laid out in the “Combined Fleet Operations Top Secret Order 1” of the Japanese navy would become a reality in the pacific, allowing for an easy sweep of the military targets for the Japanese fleet.