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Pearl Harbor is a US Navy base in Hawaii that was attacked by Japan in 1941, killing 2,350 people and launching the US into WWII. The base was established by the US Army and is now home to the Pacific Fleet. Visitors can visit the USS Arizona Memorial. The attack triggered anti-Japanese sentiment and President Roosevelt asked Congress to authorize a war against Japan.
Pearl Harbor is a United States Navy base located on the island of Oahu in the state of Hawaii. Besides being an active naval base and the home of the US Pacific Fleet, this port was also the site of an infamous attack that launched the United States into WWII. Because Pearl Harbor is an active base, access is limited, though guests can visit the USS Arizona Memorial, a site created to commemorate the events of the 1941 attack.
This natural harbor had been used by Native Hawaiians for generations before the Hawaiian Islands were annexed by the United States in 1900. The United States Army recognized the potential value of the site and decided to establish a naval base there, using Pearl Harbor to accommodate the Pacific Fleet. The site is ideally located for the location of a Navy base, as it can be used as a jumping off point to travel to large parts of Asia.
On December 7, 1941, the Empire of Japan launched a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. The goal of the Japanese attack was to cripple the Pacific Fleet, making it difficult for the United States to enter the escalating world war. Approximately 2,350 people were killed in the attack, while 19 ships and over 200 aircraft were destroyed or seriously disabled. However, since the Japanese did not attack the American shipyards in California while the fleet was deactivated, the Americans were still able to rebuild it.
The attack on Pearl Harbor both frightened and enraged Americans, many of whom learned the news after Sunday church services. It triggered a wave of anti-Japanese sentiment, with many Americans understandably upset by what they saw as an underhanded decision to make a sneak attack, rather than make a formal declaration of war. The events of Pearl Harbor catapulted the United States into World War II, forcing the nation to take sides and become involved in both the Pacific and European theaters.
Although the attack on Pearl Harbor is typically described as a bolt from the blue, the fact is that most members of the American government were well aware that hostilities between the United States and Japan were escalating and that the war between the two nations it was probably inevitable. Some conspiracy theorists even claim that the Americans knew about the impending attack, although this is debatable; people like President Roosevelt certainly knew, however, that matters between the United States and Japan would soon come to a head, forcing a decision.
One day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt addressed a joint session of Congress, asking Congress to authorize a war against Japan. This discourse includes the famous line “a day that will live in infamy.”
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