Pearl Harbor

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

• Suffers from polio since 1921• Former NY senator and governor• Served under Woodrow Wilson as the

Secretary of the Navy• Elected in 1932• Runs for and wins a historic third term as

president in 1940– The American public did not want a change of

power in the face of a possible threat of war with Germany

American Foreign Policy

• Isolationism– Adhering to a national policy of non-participation

in alliances, engagements, or conflicts with other nations

– Roosevelt still prepared the US for war just in case, even while sticking to isolationism

Reasons why US is Isolationist

• Still disturbed by the outcomes of WWI• Anti-war writings of ex-patriots, veterans• Concerned with the Great Depression• New Deal projects (FDR)• Anti-war films and entertainment• Peace movement

Path to War (1935-1941)

• Neutrality– Neutrality Act of 1935: Forbids shipment of weapons to those

at war• Non-Neutrality

– Cash and Carry Act of 1937: Allows sale of non-military items– Revised Act: Allows sale of weapons, but must be shipped in

foreign vessels• Belligerency

– Lend/Lease Act of 1941: Allows US to become weapons arsenal to democratic nations or those fighting for democracy

USA in 1940

• Not prepared for war• Experiencing an economic boost due to the

sale of weapons overseas• Witnessing the balance of power shifting in

Europe• Congress increases defense budget

Japan’s Motivations

• Wants to conquer neighboring China, Southeast Asia, and establish a “Greater East Asia Pact”

• Military alliance with Germany and Italy

Action vs. Reaction (1940-41)

• Japan: Granted military bases in southern Asia• USA: Bans shipments of scrap iron to Japan

• Japan: Signs Tri-Partite Pact with Germany and Italy• USA: Lend/Lease Act approved by Congress

• Japan: Moves into bases in southern Asia• USA: Freezes Japanese stock assets in America and bans

export of aviation fuel

Continued…

• Japan: Proposes summit meeting over pacific issues and plans for war

• USA: Secretary of State Cordell Hull rejects summit idea (FDR was at a funeral and could not attend)

• Japan: Prime Minister Prince Konoye resigns, Hideki Tojo takes over and orders a surprise attack on USA base at Pearl Harbor. Authorized in November of 1941

Reluctant Warriors

• Emperor Hirohito constantly asks the Japanese government to come up with a solution other than war

• Reads a peace poem at one of their meetings:– “Across the four seas, all are brothers.

In such a world why do the waves rage, the winds roar?”

Continued…

• Prime Minister Hideki Tojo is convinced war is the only way. Orders highest ranking commander, Isoroku Yamamoto, to plan the attack

• Pearl Harbor is decided upon because Tojo thinks it will crush the American spirit and keep them from joining the war

• Yamamoto attended college in the US, and knows their fighting spirit. He plans the attack out of his sense of duty, but knows it will fail– Made two predictions that came true

The Honorable Yamamoto

• Held out hope until the last moment that another solution could be found

• Officers thought him cowardly when he told them they would have to turn back if a peace agreement was reached after the attack was planned– “If anyone will disobey orders and not turn back

when the path for peace is open, resign now!”

American owned

Where is Hawaii?

Why is this island so important?

• On December 7, 1941, Japanese warplanes bombed the huge American naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The attack came as a complete surprise. About 2,400 Americans, both servicemen and civilians died. Many US war planes and ships were destroyed or damaged.

Japan’s Pacific Strategy

• Stage 1: Combined fleet attacks on U.S Pacific Fleet while Southern Asia is seized

• Stage 2: Fortify the chain of islands running through Wake Island and the Marshalls

• Stage 3: Find, intercept, and destroy any forces violating their defensive perimeter. Wage a war of attrition (Total War) with US.

• Key to victory: the American fleet at Pearl Harbor must be DESTROYED

The Operation

• Entire Japanese fleet put on alert to prepare for battle

• Pearl Harbor assault ordered• Plan for war, but negotiate for peace• Submarines must be at Pearl Harbor entrance

to sink exiting ships• Outcome must be decided in one day

Striking Force

• Attack:– 6 large carriers– 8 destroyers– 1light cruiser– 360 combat planes

• Support:– 2 battleships– 2 heavy cruisers– 3 submarines

The Attack

• Yamamoto insists on not attacking until the US has been given a declaration of war at least a half hour before the attack

• He is assured they will receive it by his superiors, and orders the attack

• Sits in silence in his ship’s dining room with hands folded to await any news

U.S Intelligence

• Intercepted a Japanese code:– “Climb Mount Nitaka 1208”

• Some believe it means an attack is coming on December 8, while others ignore it

• Receives a warning from Japan in 14 parts through a telegram but does not decipher it in time

• Japanese planes detected on radar but ignored because no one was in their office on a Sunday morning

• Responsible for defense of Pearl Harbor: Gen. Walter C. Short

December 7

• Attack occurred on a Sunday morning, just after 7 a.m.

• Many men were either still sleep or relaxing• Men were awoken by the sound of bombs and

explosions– Taken completely by surprise

• Were able to shoot down some Japanese planes, but the damage done was overwhelming

Damage• 4 battleships sunk

3 battleships damaged1 battleship grounded2 destroyers sunk1 other ship sunk3 cruisers damaged1 destroyer damaged3 other ships damaged188 aircraft destroyed159 aircraft damaged

• 2,402 killed (1,700+ on the USS Arizona)1,247 wounded

The Tragedy of the Arizona

Mistakes made by Japanese

• Failure to destroy oil fields on Oahu • Failure to destroy air craft carriers• Failure to properly assess damage• Failure to send a third wave• Why no third wave?

– Commander Chuichi Nagumo felt that enough damage was done to the base. Ordered ships to turn back.

– Feared that the US would send a strike force to attack his ships

– Carriers were needed for another operation in the South Pacific

Shame for Yamamoto

• After the attack ended and he was congratulated by his officers, he was informed that the Declaration of War did not arrive until a half hour after the attack had begun, meaning the US did not have warning of the attack. He thought this was very shameful and dishonorable

• Predicted: “We have awakened a sleeping tiger.”

Pearl Harbor End Results

• US Fleet crippled (not destroyed) for 18 months• Motivation for US to declare war on Japan• Unites American people through patriotism to

support a war when they did not want one originally

• Pearl Harbor is slowly rebuild and refitted and remains a strategic naval base

• Dolittle Raids were carried out against Tokyo

Why was there a surprise?

• US Government thought Japan would attack Britain before them, since they had ships in South China Sea

• Attack on Pearl Harbor was thought possible, not probable

• All messages intercepted did not mention Pearl Harbor

• FDR was more concerned with Germany than Japan• Japanese planning, organization, and skill