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Essay on 'A Day in Infamy' Very Powerful Words that Moved a Nation

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World War II was undoubtedly the biggest war of the 20th century. It was fought in the Pacific and in Europe. Early in the war the United States, which consisted of 48 states at the time, was not involved. Suddenly all that changed on the fateful morning of December 7, 1941 when Pearl Harbor was bombed. This changed the course of the entire war. Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed Congress to inform them of Japan's attacks on the United States, to get them to declare war, and to rally the American people against the evil powers that were threatening freedom. Japan had its reasons for the attack on Pearl Harbor. First, the Japanese started by protecting itself from attack. They signed a treaty declaring that Japan and the Soviet Union were …show more content…

A warning was sent from Washington to Pearl Harbor, but reached too late. Also, at the time, radar was still a new technology so the Japanese planes that were detected were thought to be American B-17s (Pearl Harbor).
The target was Pearl Harbor located, "on the Island of O'ahu, Hawaii, (then a territory of the United States)" (Pearl Harbor- A Day of Infamy). The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred on December 7, 1941 at attack started at 7:55, and the Japanese attacking force included "4 heavy aircraft carriers, 2 heavy cruisers, 35 submarines, 2 light cruisers, 9 oilers, 2 battleships and 11 destroyers." (Fact Sheet: Pearl Harbor). The attack was split into two waves; the first consisted of 183 aircraft, and the second consisted of 170 aircraft (Fact Sheet: Pearl Harbor). "The attack was launched from six heavy aircraft carriers accompanied by 24 supporting vessels. A separate group of submarines was to sink any American warships which escaped the Japanese carrier force” (Fact Sheet: Pearl Harbor). Japan did not just choose this location to attack they attacked many Pacific islands and US Naval ships that same day. That American harbor was chosen though, because it was the closest to Japan and attacking mainland US would have been suicide. The Japanese would not have to attempt to attack the West Coast and face retaliation, but the fleet that is in Pearl Harbor would attack from behind. Furthermore, the

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