On This Day: Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, thrusting US into WWII
The infamous Japanese surprise attack on the US naval base in Hawaii 80 years ago became immortalized as a "day which will live in infamy."
THE DEVASTATING surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. (photo credit: PIKREPO)
December 7 marks 80 years since the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, an infamous surprise attack on the pivotal US naval base in Hawaii that ended up thrusting the US into World War II.
Though
the US was officially a neutral nation in the ongoing conflict, there
was still ongoing tensions as the US had halted shipments of gasoline,
machinery and more to Japan due to the latter's aggressive actions in
the Pacific.
It should be noted, however, that the roots to these tensions go back much farther, including to the end of World War I.
During the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 following the end of
World War I, Japan had proposed the addition of the Racial Equality
Proposal. While many nations supported it, it faced opposition from two
primary sources: The United Kingdom (due mainly to Australia) and the
United States, both of whom refused to support it. Even though according
to the conference's rules it should have passed, as it passed with a
clear majority, conference chair US president Woodrow Wilson said a
special exception would be made for it and said the motion failed
anyway.
The
decision clouded Japan's ties with the West, especially with the US. But
ties worsened even further after Imperial Japan's military expansion
efforts throughout the 1930s and into World War II.
A ship is seen sinking in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. (credit: PIXABAY)
Negotiation efforts throughout the autumn of 1941 failed to achieve anything of note.
As
tensions worsened, many in the US thought an attack was coming, though
they thought the Philippines, rather than Pearl Harbor, would be the
first target.
In
Japan, some expressed caution about the attack, especially over the
possibility of actually beating the US in a war. When Admiral Isoroku
Yamamoto, head of the Japanese Navy, was asked by then-prime minister
Fuminaro Konoe if Japan could beat the US in a war, Yamakoto famously
said that he would "run wild considerably for the first six months or a
year, but I have utterly no confidence for the second or third years."
Ultimately, the attack itself was carried out. At 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian time, over 350 Japanese airplanes struck the naval base, severely damaging or sinking all eight battleships present, along with several other ships. The attack saw 188 US planes destroyed, over 2,400 killed and over 1,700 wounded. By comparison, Japanese forces saw considerably fewer losses.
Japan had also sent a formal declaration of war that same day, but it was not delivered until the following day.
The
next day, then US president Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed a joint
session of Congress on the attack, describing December 7 as "a date
which will live in infamy," in what is considered one of the most famous
and important presidential speeches in US history and was shortly
followed by a US declaration of war against Japan.
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Address to Congress, December 8, 1941
The attack also saw the US thrust into the war on the side of the
Allies, fighting against Japan and fellow Axis powers Germany and
Italy.
Ultimately,
this would see the Allies emerge victorious, beating back the Axis and,
in Japan's case, see the dropping of two nuclear bombs on Japanese
cities - the only times to this day that nuclear weapons have been
deployed in warfare.
The ramifications and legacy of the attack are widespread and can be
seen in numerous aspects. In terms of tactics, the Japanese attack
failed to damage US aircraft carriers and submarines. And it was with
these very vessels that the US was able to push the Japanese Navy back
throughout the Pacific. Further, Japan failed to target several naval
repair yards and other facilities, which the US was able to make use of.
But one of the most notable immediate ramifications of the attack
was the American public quickly rallying together against Japan, though
it also led to widespread anti-Japanese sentiments in the US and the
placing of over 100,000 Japanese-Americans in internment camps.
It
had also taken many Americans by surprise as while many were aware of a
danger posed by Japan in the military, most others were overly focused
on the threats in Europe, according to historians.
But
also influential was Roosevelt's speech the following day. The phrasing
of a "Day of Infamy" has gone on to be used in other political
speeches, many comparing it to the speeches given by president George W.
Bush following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
The phrasing was also directly referred to in 2021 by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, when referring to the Capitol insurrection
on January 6 that saw supporters of then-president Donald Trump storm
the US Capitol to try to stop Congress from certifying the election in
favor of Joe Biden.
According to the Associated Press, Schumer referred
to the day as a day that will "live forever in infamy."
On
Tuesday, the US will mark the 80th anniversary of the attack, with
survivors having begun arriving in Hawaii late last week, according to
local news outlets.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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