Essay about Pearl Harbor

The book about the day that will live in infamy did get many things right, including the damage control on all of the ships. However, I do doubt that a fighter whose mission is to sink ships would peel away from his squadron to attack a lone person. But the battleship Arizona really was sunk, like all of the other ships in the harbor. Like I said at the beginning, this book brought to life some aspects I never looked at before. Not only that, it had all of these aspects correct. There were actually two waves of bombers and fighters that attacked the harbor, and there is a Hickam air force base in on the east side of Pearl

The main focus on this essay is “Why Did Japan Attack Pearl Harbor?”. On a normal Sunday morning when the American navy units were busy doing their normal routine work, the Japanese navy planned a surprise attack that stunned the world. This attack was so unpredictable that the entire American navy went in deep shock. Very few of them realized the need to manage and control their position to save the naval power. All the staff and ships that were present at the Pearl Harbor suffered massive loss. Just a couple of hours of bombing gave the Pearl Harbor, a battlefield view with fire and smoke emerging from every corner. The attack left American navy at a loss of 2400 of her best men as well as 21 ships that were either sunk or completely demolished.

Just after midnight on June 4th,1942, the United States attacked a fleet of Japanese transport ships. One American torpedo plane took out fleet tanker "Akabono Maru". Later that morning at about 6:30am, Japanese planes began bombing midway island installations, though causing minimal damage to the U.S. naval

December 7, 1941, was on of the worst attacks ever on the United States. Out of that day, 2,403 soldiers were killed in action, 1,178 were wounded in action. Through the misjudgments of numerous U.S. armed forces personnel, the Japanese were able to carry out this terrible attack, which crippled the United States’ Pacific Fleet in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

“A date which will live in infamy (Roosevelt).” There were three part to this attack, what lead to the attack, the actual attack and the aftermath. The world was at war and the United States didn’t want to get too involved until the attack happened. During the attack on Pearl Harbor the United States made the decision to join the War. The United States joining the war brought the most crucial years to follow along with the dropping of the atomic bomb. The attack on Pearl Harbor was the beginning of the a very long war that cost the lives of many people but brought a nation together.

“Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval plus the air forces of the Empire of Japan.” The bombing of Pearl Harbor was the start of America’s entrance into the Second World War. Just before 08:00 on the Sunday morning, hundreds of fighter planes descended onto the naval base incapacitating almost 20 naval vessels along with over 300 airplanes. The attack on Pearl Harbor also killed over 2,400 Americans

Gowrie, Iowa native, Orval Hasty needed money to attend college, so he joined the marines in 1940, he ended up earning this money after the war. He got assigned at Ford Island to guard In February 1941. Around the 450 acre island there were other vessels and battleships. Orval said, "It was good duty. The climate was nice, we weren 't overworked and it was fun," with regard to the Naval Air Station Ford Island. When not at work Orval attended flying lessons, visited shows, and hung out at beaches. Sleeping in on Sunday mornings was normal for Marines and Sailors not on duty. Orval got up early asking his parents about his driver’s license through the mail. Orval didn’t know what was about to happen. No one knew. Before dawn 183 Japanese bomber planes, torpedo planes and fighter planes took flight on their way to Pearl Harbor. Wave two came later.

”At the time of the attack I was in my room shaving. The word was passed "Away Fire and Rescue Party;" just as I was leaving my room the second word was passed for all hands to man their General Quartets Stations closely followed by a shock of a hit. I glanced at my clock as I was leaving my room and noticed the time was a few minutes before 8:00 A.M. I started for my station in Radio Central; as I was passing along the third deck up a port ammunition passageway, I felt two more hits. The lights went out in the passageway except for one battle light and two panel lights in the boat crane machinery space. By the time I reached the compartment abreast the armory the ship had picked up a ten to fifteen list to port; there were a couple of battle lights on in this compartment. Water and oil were bubbling up along the junction of the bulkhead and deck of the electrical work shop, port side”(D.L. Westfall)

December 7, 1941, was one of the worst attacks on the United States in U.S. history. Of that day 2,403 soldiers were killed in action, 1,178 were wounded in action. Numerous U.S. armed forces personnel were misjudged, which allowed the Japanese to carry out this terrible attack. Not only did the Japanese hit the U.S. where they knew it would hurt the most, but it crippled the United States’ entire Pacific Fleet.

The “list includes 2,335 servicemen and 68 civilians killed, with 1178 wounded. Included are 1104 men abroad the Battleship USS Arizona killed after a 1,760-pound air bomb penetrated into the forward magazine causing catastrophic explosions”. Now the Japanese assaults have been completed, The United States along with Great Britain have declared war in order to return the damage dealt at Pearl Harbour.

World War II was a war that everyone will remember and will be remembered for many years to come. It could even be said that it killed more people, destroyed more property, and had far more reaching effects than any other war in history. New technologies were used in the war, such as the Atomic bomb, which opened up the nuclear age. Pearl Harbor was one of those events that will never be forgotten by Americans. Pearl Harbor was especially memorable to America because that caused us to get involved in the war and it outraged everyone in the country. The United States played a key role in the war. The bombing of Pearl Harbor was a major turning point in World War II.

results of that was the greatest death ratio on any ship that day, the igniting of the

On December 6, President Roosevelt made his final plea to the Japanese Emperor for peace.4 The Japanese did not respond. Later that day the U.S. received and decoded 13 out of 14 messages from Japan. These messages led the U.S. to believe that Japan was on the verge of attacking somewhere in Southeast Asia. On December 7, the U.S. received the final part of the Japanese message that all diplomatic relations were to be severed. Another message was intercepted about an hour later. Due to delays the message could not be forwarded to Pearl Harbor until noon, 4 hours after the attack started. The first attack by Japan consisted of 183 planes, and took off for Pearl Harbor at 6 am. At 7:02 Army operators detected these planes and alerted Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor mistook these planes for American B-17’s due from the U.S. West Coast. At 7:15 the second group of Japanese planes took off for Pearl Harbor. At this point Pearl Harbor did not see itself in any danger and did not see an attack coming.5

The bombing of Pearl Harbor was a very startling attack that altered American history. It is a significant moment in American history that will not be forgotten. This confrontation happened between America and Japan for different reasons that are presented in this paper. America and Japan had weak negotiations and communications, which led to the attack on Pearl Harbor; however, America reacted on the attack effectively. Because of these circumstances, the rival led to the bombing and destruction of Pearl Harbor, America showed the world how tall and proud it can stand after a silent, sneak attack; however, America may have been knocked down, but ultimately not defeated.

In July 1940, the U.S. placed an embargo on Japan, hoping they would restrain Japan 's military aggression in China. Japan, a proud nation, would not hear of being dictated to by the United States and began to prepare for the attack on Pearl Harbor in early 1941. Meanwhile, there was some warning of the attack on America, but it went without being duly acknowledged. The day before the attack occurred, a code-breaker intercepted a message from the Japanese concerning the movement of ships at Pearl Harbor. The operator relayed the message to the superior officers who said they would get back to the radioman on Monday, December 8, 1941 (Socolow 43). Also, on the morning of the attack, a radar operator saw a large group of airplanes on the radar screen, and when he reported this, the senior officer said it was probably just some US Bombers and not to worry about them (HistoryNet.Com). The Japanese planes flew under the radar by flying through a pass in the mountains called Kolekole Pass. This maneuver added to the surprise of the attack. The frantic attack began on Sunday at 7:55 in the morning. A little before ten the entire attack was over (Pearl Harbor, Attack On). The men of Pearl Harbor fought with valor.