The U.S. Enters the War: The Attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

I. Reasons for the Attack A. Hawaii is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, so traveling to Hawaii was shorter than traveling to the mainland. B. The Japanese wanted to build their own powerful empire. C. The US had an incredibly powerful Navy and Pearl Harbor had the largest naval base, taking out Pearl Harbor would be a huge blow to the U.S. and would leave other Pacific islands without the protection of the U.S.

II. Specifics of the Attack A. Occurred on December 7, B. 180 Japanese warplanes were launched by six aircraft carriers. C. Only 29 Japanese planes were damaged in the attack. D. The surprise attack sunk 18 American ships.

A map depicting the flight route that the Japanese took in the days following and leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor.

III. American losses suffered during the attack. A. 350 planes were destroyed or severely damaged. B. 2,400 Americans were killed. C. 1,178 Americans were wounded.

Battleship row just shortly after the attack started.

The U.S.S. Nevada escapes attack.

The sinking of the U.S.S. Arizona

IV. Day of Infamy Speech A. Delivered by the American President Franklin D. Roosevelt on December 8, B. Roosevelt requested a declaration of war against Japan.