The Battle of Pearl Harbour History Essay Example

The Battle of Pearl Harbour was a surprise aerial attack on a US naval base on the 7th of December 1941 by the Japanese, which was the trigger to the United States entering into WW2. Pearl Harbour is a lagoon on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, slightly left of Honolulu. The benefits of invading Pearl Harbour were destroying the US carrier fleet. The carrier fleet was an offensive powerhouse, which is the reason that the Japanese wanted it gone. Pearl Harbour was also one of the world's largest nuclear development sites, and the Japanese wanted it destroyed, as it portrayed a threat to them and the Axis.

Leading up to the attack of Pearl Harbour, there was a previous ‘sour’ relationship between the United States and Japan. Despite this, the United States still were the main supplier of oil, steel, iron, and other resources that were used in the attack on Pearl Harbour, as China didn’t want to supply Japan due to them being on the Axis’s side, and they became bogged down by Chinese resistance. 

7 December, 1941

The infamous day of the attack started in the early hours of the day. At 6:10 AM, the first wave of planes took off from Japanese aircraft carriers, approximately 200 miles north of Oahu. At 6:55 AM, The United States shot at a Japanese submarine, their first shots in the war. 7:02 AM, A radar station on Oahu spots unidentified aircraft heading toward Hawaii. 7:20 AM, US Army lieutenant disregards this radar report because he believes it is a flight of U.S. B-17 bombers coming from California. 7:40 AM, the first wave of Japanese aircraft reached Oahu. 7:49 AM, the Japanese aerial commander ordered the attack on Pearl Harbour.  7:55 AM, the Coordinated attack on Pearl Harbour began. 8:10 AM, the USS Arizona explodes. 8:17 AM, the Destroyer USS Helm fires at and sinks a Japanese submarine at the entrance to harbour. 8:54 AM, the second wave of attack begins. 9:30 AM, the USS Shaw explodes in dry dock. At 10:00 AM, Japanese planes head back to carriers and ultimately back to Japan.

The Military

The attack on Pearl Harbour consisted of two heavy cruisers, 35 submarines, two light cruisers, nine oilers, two battleships, and 11 destroyers. The attack killed 2,403 U.S. personnel, including 68 civilians, and destroyed and/or damaged 19 U.S. Navy ships, including 8 battleships. The purpose of the attack was to prevent action. Its aim was to prevent the United States Pacific Fleet from interfering with its planned military actions in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and those of the United States. 

The Commanders of the battle

Throughout the battle of Pearl Harbour, there were 6 commanders.

Isoroku Yamamoto (4th April 1884- 18th April 1943)

Was a Japanese naval officer who conceived of the surprise attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbour on Dec. 7, 1941.

 Chūichi Nagumo (25th March 1887- 6th July 1944)

Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Nagumo led Japan's main carrier battle group, the Kido Butai, in the attack on Pearl Harbour. He committed suicide during the Battle of Saipan.

Husband E. Kimmel (26th February 1882-14th May 1968)

Husband Edward Kimmel was a United States Navy admiral who was the commander in chief of the United States Pacific Fleet during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour

Walter Short (30th March 1880- 3rd September 1949)

Walter Short was a lieutenant general and major general of the United States Army and the U.S. military commander responsible for the defence of U.S. military installations in Hawaii at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour.

Isaac C. Kidd (26th March 1884- 7th December 1941)

Isaac C. Kidd was an American Admiral in the United States Navy. He died on the bridge of USS during the pearl harbour attack.

Robert Theobald (25th January 1884- 13th May 1957)

Robert Theobald was a United States Navy officer who served in World War I and World War II, and achieved the rank of admiral.

Why?

There is no clear cut reason that the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour but many theories believe it was driven by Japans political self-interests, its scarcity of economic resources and America's embargo policy. The offensive powerhouse that was the carrier fleet at Pearl Harbour was also a factor in invading and attempting to destroy it would bring huge advantages to the Axis.

What made the attack on Pearl Harbour so signicfiact in WW2?

There were a few reasons this was such a turning point in the war, one of these being that it was an attack that wasn’t expected, and an attack that awoke the beast that was the US military, and that is when the US joined in World War 2. The joining of the US was a huge win fior the allies, as the US had arguably the best military in the world at the time, with plenty of resources and forces to bring to the table for the allies.