Forewarnings about the Pearl Harbor Attack
It was the lack of being prepared to the attack on Pearl Harbor that made the United States become a victim, but with a bit of bad luck things could have turned out differently.
- Since the US had cracked the US diplomatic cipher in project Magic, General George Marshall, receiving word of peaceful surrender in a decoded Japanese message on the very day of assault, had ordered the US base at Pearl Harbor to be on the alert prior to the bombing; an atmospheric condition caused transmission of Marshall’s message to run late and the signal arrived after the attack.
- In addition, the fact of the Japanese attack was known by the US; the US was aware of an attack somewhere in the Philippines, but the US military and governmental personnel thought that the Philippines or some other Southern Pacific region closer to Japan were likely targets.
- A defended harbor some 3,500 miles distant from its country of origin, Pearl harbour had seemed unlikely to the US government and military as a target.
- With Pearl Harbor, the US quickly became a war machine and mobilized for World War II.
Pearl Harbor Attack | History, Motive, Cause & Impact
Pearl Harbor: On the morning of 7 December 1941, Japan bombed the US Pearl Harbor in Hawaii naval base. The attack however was a big surprise and after launching a strategic attack by some 350 Japanese aircraft, the surprise attack sunk or badly damaged eighteen US naval vessels which included eight battleships, destroyed or damaged 300 us aircraft, and killed 2,403 men. America was surprised, shocked and vexed from one end to the other. The Second World War – turning US public opinion towards warfare. Japan before December 8, 1941, was not at war. Two of Japan’s allies, Germany and Italy, started a war with the US on December 11. The U. S. reacted likewise and consequently went to World War II.
Table of Content
- Pearl Harbor Attack
- Motive for the Pearl Harbor Attack
- Forewarnings about the Pearl Harbor Attack
- Japan and the Path to War
- Pearl Harbor: Location
- Impact of the Pearl Harbor Attack
- Conclusion