Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on the morning of December 7, 1941. The surprise attack was conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy and took place in the early hours of the morning when most of the American fleet were still anchored in port. The attack went on for two hours and resulted in extensive damage to American naval power in the Pacific.
The attack was carried out by a force of six aircraft carriers with a total of 360 planes, under the command of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo. The attack was targeted at the ships in the harbor, specifically the battleships, as well as the airfields throughout the island of Oahu. The Japanese achieved complete surprise and the majority of their targets were destroyed or severely damaged in the initial strike. 2,403 American servicemen were killed in the attack, in addition to 68 civilians and 608 wounded.
The day after the attack it became clear that the Japanese had intended to cripple the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet and prevent them from intervening in the Japanese conflict with China. It also served as a powerful propaganda symbol for Japan, who could claim to have inflicted a devastating blow to the American pacific fleet.
The attack shocked America and President Roosevelt declared Dec. 8 1941 a “date which will live in infamy”. On Dec. 11 Congress passed a declaration of war on Japan and the United States was then thrust into the Second World War. In response, the United States began a massive retaliation effort against Japan and the war in the Pacific theater began in earnest.
Despite the damage inflicted, the American navy had suffered no permanent damage. Within six months they had repaired and replaced the lost vessels, and were readily prepared to fight back against the Japanese. Over the rest of the war, the Pacific would become the theater of some of the most intense and consequential battles in the entire conflict. From the Battle of Midway to the island hopping campaigns of General Douglass MacArthur, the consequences of the attack still reverberate today.
In total the attack lasted about two hours and left behind a devastated American fleet but ultimately failed to achieve its strategic aims of preventing the US from intervening in the Pacific War. The shock of the attack and the Japanese threat to US Pacific possessions rallied resistance to the war effort, leading to a successful campaign to defeat the Japanese Empire. The attack on Pearl Harbor remains one of the most iconic moments in modern warfare and an important reminder of the cost and consequences of war.