Pearl HarborDec. 7, 1941

“A date which will live in infamy”

Pearl Harbor video clip

Japanese Expansion• Japan was becoming overcrowded and

lacked raw materials

Solution: Build an empire

• 1931- Japan takes over Manchuria

• 1937 – Japan invades China

• The battle in China was costing $ and Japan needed resources so they set their sites on the rich Southeast Asian colonies

US Response to Expansion

1) Sent aid to China to protect Guam and Philippines (US colonies)

2) 1941- cut off oil shipments to Japan

Inevitable War?• US realized that cutting off oil supplies

might lead to war

• Japan allied with Italy and Germany

• Hideki Tojo (Japanese Prime Minister) very hostile toward US

Preparing for Attack• US troops located in the Pacific were told

to be ready for a possible attack from Japan

• Japan had been planning their secret attack on Pearl Harbor

Attack brought air craft carriers

Most of the destruction brought by aircraft via bombs and torpedoes

A date which will live in infamy’

* Sunday December 7, 1941 Japan achieved complete surprise

* In two hours they destroyed the American Pacific battleship fleet

• 8 battleships suffered damage

• 200 aircraft destroyed

• 2400 Americans lost their lives

US Response to Attack• December 8, 1941 FDR declared war on

Japan

• 3 days later Germany and Italy declared war on the US

Why were US troops stationed at Pearl Harbor unprepared and what warning signs did they miss?

1) No single commander in charge

2) No airplanes watching for approaching ships

3) US radar detected planes but inexperienced Lieutenant thought they were B-17s from CA

4) Warning message from Washington via telegraph received too late

Video questions

• What happened at 7:02am?• What did the Lieutenant think the unidentified

aircraft on the radar were?• Why was the battleship Oklahoma moved from

its original position? Problem with position?• How did the attack taking place on a Sunday

help Japan achieve an element of surprise• What does Tora Tora Tora mean?• What other types of places on Oahu were

targeted besides the Harbor?• What warship sunk in 9 minutes after being

directly hit by a delayed action bomb?

Battleship Row

Ford Island Burning Barracks

Naval Air Station

USS Oklahoma

D-Day• D-day video clip