Pearl Harbour

Pearl Harbor

On the 17th day of December in 1941a terrible . The attack on Pearl Harbor has quite easily become one of the most investigated, documented, and dissected actions in American military history. Almost all of these investigations struggle to pin down the reasoning for Japan's success on that dreadful day (http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/fag66-7.htm). To this day there is yet no answer, and the only undisputed fact is perhaps the commendable courage of the defending American troops. The effects of World War II were felt worldwide with the United States being no exception. Though we were already in the war, by only giving aid, the attack on Pearl Harbor made the war more personal. America was no longer simply lending a helping hand, it now had its own land to protect.

To have a better understanding of the attack on Pearl Harbor, one must review the events that led up to it. Before World War II, Japan had many problems to deal with. Because of the countries geographical location, it was greatly lacking in raw materials and had to rely on products, mainly oil, to come from outside sources. However difficult, Japan still managed to build a successful empire, a good industrial foundation, and a strong army and navy. Japan's largest program arose when the military became very involved in the government. On and off battling with China eventually lead to a full-blown war known as the Sino-Japanese War. This war is known as one of the bloodiest wars in history and continued four years after the attack on Pearl Harbor(http://web.tampabay.rr.com/mspust/pearlharbor.html).

World War II was beginning in 1939, with Germany launching a string of attacks over in Europe such as Poland and France and included bombings in England. "Many of the European nations that Germany now controlled had control over important colonial empires such as the East Indies and Singapore in Southeast Asia. These Southeast Asian countries contained many of the natural resources that Japan so desperately needed. Now that these countries were worried about matters over in Europe, Japan felt that it should seize the opportunity to take over some of them." (http://web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html). While all of this was occurring in Europe, the president of the United States, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was concerned of the expansion of Japan and Germany. Though remaining neutral, The United States supplied countries at war with Germany and Japan with materials to aid them in the war. As Japan's natural resources ran out they started to become desperate. .

In order to stay in the war, Japan greatly needed to build up their armies. Many of the resources they so desperately needed could be found in Southeast Asia, which is why Japan decided to secure its access to them in July of 1941. "Japan began their seizure with southern Indochina. The United States was in strict opposition to Japan's plans, and began their reaction with an embargo on the shipment of oil to Japan. Oil was necessary to keep Japan's technology and military progressing"(http://web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html). This embargo act was viewed as a declaration of war in the eyes of Japan's government.

Both countries tried to resolve their dispute throughout the next few months. While Japan wanted the United States to dissolve the embargo act and allow them to attack China, the United States refused unless Japan "would back off their aggression with China"(http:web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html). Throughout the next couple of months, neither country would give into the other's demands, and war seemed inevitable.

America responded to Japan's hostility by "adding to the military forces stationed in the Pacific"(http:web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html). General Douglas MacArthur began this revolution by forming an army in the Philippines, but the most powerful and crucial part of America's defense was the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Though usually only training was held in Hawaii, with war lingering near, the fleet was moved to the Pearl Harbor naval base. Hawaii's location was as close to perfect as one could get with it being halfway between the U.S. and the Japanese bases located in the Marshall Islands. Roosevelt felt that with the Fleet's presence being so close to Japanese bases, Japan would dare not risk a strike on America. Though many felt that the facilities at Pearl Harbor were not equipped to maintain the crews and ships for a long period of time, the government insisted that the Pacific Fleet must remain there to protect the East Indies (http:web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html).

On November 12, 1940, British bombers were launched on the Taranto harbor in Italy. The United States began to worry that the very same situation could arise at Pearl Harbor. Suggestions were made to place anti-torpedo nets in Pearl Harbor, only to be denied and being deemed "neither necessary nor practical" (http:web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html). The objectives of the Pacific Fleet was to capture the Caroline and Marshall Islands, disrupt Japanese trade routes, and defend Guam, Hawaii, and the U.S. mainland, therefore taking Japan's attention away from Southeast Asia.

The commander-in chief of Japan's Fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, had to be wary of his country's position in the Pacific Ocean. If Japanese forces only focused on the islands in the Pacific, the mainland would be more easily attacked from Europe. It was after considering these factors that Yamamoto devised a plan, which would destroy both the Pacific Fleet simultaneously as the British, American, and Dutch forces that resided in Southeast Asia. By injuring the Unites States, Japan quickly took advantage of Southeast Asia's natural resources, Yamamoto hoped that his attack would demoralize the American's into signing a peace agreement promising Japan's power in the Pacific. It was then that Yamamoto decided to attack the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. The planning began in January of 1941, eleven months before the attack, and consisted of the following eight guidelines: surprise was crucial (http:web.tampabay.rr.com/mspusf/pearlharbor.html), American aircraft carriers should be the primary targets (http://plasma.nationalgoegraphic.com/pearlharbor/history), U.S. aircraft there must be destroyed to prevent aerial opposition (http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/p/fr32/speeches/ph.html), (4) all Japanese aircraft carriers available should be used, all types of bombing should be used in the attack (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor), (6) a strong fighter element should be included in the attack