", I would like to tell you about another myth, namely that the United States suddenly stopped supplying petroleum products to Japan in order to provoke the Japanese, and that it was for this reason that Japan decided to attack Pearl Harbor.
This article is written primarily based on the Wikipedia article, as well as other articles that I link to in the text.
Long before the attack on Pearl Harbor, back in November - December 1937, during the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese army launched an attack on Nanjing along the Yangtze River, and on December 12, 1937, Japanese aircraft carried out an unprovoked raid on American ships stationed near Nanjing, which were part of the so-called “Yangtze Patrol” (Yangtze Patrol or YangPat for short).
YangPat was originally part of the United States Navy's East India Asiatic Squadron, which existed under various names from 1854 to 1945. In 1922, YangPat was created as a formal component of the Asiatic Fleet. Under treaties signed by the United States, Japan, and various European powers, YangPat was allowed to sail the rivers of China and engage in "gunboat diplomacy." They also patrolled the coastal waters, protecting their citizens, their property, and their religious missions.
So, Japanese aircraft carried out an unprovoked raid on YangPat, as a result of which the American gunboat Panay was sunk, but despite this, the United States not only did not declare war on Japan, but even the supply of petroleum products to Japan was not stopped. Moreover, after this YangPat ceased its mission and was withdrawn from China, which proves that the United States did not really want to fight.
Japan then invaded what was then French Indochina in 1940, cutting off the Sino-Vietnamese border. railway, under which China imported weapons, fuel, and 10,000 tons of materials from Western allies every month. But even after this, the United States did not stop oil supplies, but only banned the export of aircraft, spare parts, machine tools and aviation fuel to Japan.
It was only after the Japanese completely occupied Indochina in July 1941 that the United States froze Japanese financial assets and imposed a comprehensive trade embargo on August 1.
After the embargo was imposed, the Japanese Ambassador in Washington and Secretary of State Cordell Hull held numerous meetings to discuss a solution to the Japanese-American problems, but no solution could be agreed upon for three main reasons:
- Japan's alliance with Hitler's Germany and Italy
- Japan wanted to establish economic control over all of Southeast Asia.
- Japan refused to leave mainland China.
And this is called a sudden embargo? It turns out that the Japanese decided to attack Pearl Harbor only in August 1941, after the Americans imposed an embargo, and it took about 4 months to prepare the entire operation?
In fact, preliminary planning for the attack on Pearl Harbor began early in 1941 under the auspices of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, then in command of the Japanese Combined Fleet. Full-scale planning for the operation has begun in early spring 1941. Over the next few months, pilot training took place, equipment adaptation and reconnaissance were carried out. Despite these preparations, the attack plan was approved by Emperor Hirohito on November 5, after the third of four Imperial Conferences convened to consider the matter. The final decision was made by the emperor only on December 1.
Although by late 1941 many observers believed that hostilities between the United States and Japan were imminent, and U.S. Pacific bases and installations were placed on alert several times, American officials doubted that Pearl Harbor would be the first target. They expected that the bases in the Philippines would be attacked, since it was through them that supplies went to the south, which were the main goal of Japan. The most likely target of the Japanese, according to the Americans, was to be the US naval base in Manila. The Americans also mistakenly believed that Japan was incapable of conducting more than one major naval operation at a time.
So, the Americans expected the Japanese to attack the Philippines, and the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Why Pearl Harbor? There were 3 main reasons for this:
- By defeating the American Pacific Fleet, the Japanese hoped to prevent it from interfering with the conquest of the Dutch East Indies and Malaya.
- The Japanese hoped to buy time so that Japan could strengthen its position and increase its naval forces before the Vinson-Walsh Act of 1940 took effect (the Act provided for a 70% increase in US naval forces). since the Japanese's chances of winning after this were greatly reduced.
- Finally, this attack was supposed to deal a heavy blow to morale Americans, which was supposed to keep Americans from participating in the war in the Western Pacific and the Dutch East Indies. To achieve maximum effect Battleships were chosen as the main targets, as they were the most prestigious ships in any navy in the world at the time.
In addition, back in November 1940, the British carried out a successful attack on the Italian fleet in the Italian port of Taranto. The Japanese command carefully studied the experience of the British, which is not last resort influenced the decision to attack Pearl Harbor.
Here's a brief background to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
In Hawaii on December 7, 1941, as a result of a well-played provocation by American politicians, Kazuhiko Togo, a famous Japanese political scientist, a high-ranking diplomat in the third generation, director of the Research Institute of World Problems at the Institute of Industry in Kyoto, author of more than a dozen books on the history of diplomacy and international relations.
His grandfather Shigenori Togo headed the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the most critical moments military history countries - from October 1941 to September 1942 and from April to August 1945. During Shigenori Togo's tenure in this post, two things happened most important events V modern history Japan - the attack on Pearl Harbor, which became a triumphant entry into a large-scale war, and a crushing defeat in it.
Kazuhiko Togo carefully studied historical evidence and documents of that era. From his mother’s stories, he knows that his grandfather was against the war and did everything in his power to avoid it. Later, in the spring of 1945, he tried to bring Japan out of the war and tested the ground for peace through the mediation of Stalin. However, this was never destined to come true. Togo was convicted as a war criminal at the Tokyo Trial, although he received it largely due to his position Soviet Union, one of the most lenient sentences - no death penalty or life imprisonment, or 20 years in prison.
Brilliant provocation
“There is a theory according to which America wanted to arrange everything so that Japan would start the war. Roosevelt understood that Hitler was dangerous for the world and for America. And he understood that there was no other way to destroy him except military. To do this, it was necessary to unite with Stalin and hit Hitler together,” says Kazuhiko Togo.
However, according to the political scientist, a completely different position dominated in American society. “There has been a war in Europe for two years, Hitler attacked the USSR, and still the USA cannot enter the war, because public opinion is against it. This means it needs to be changed. And the best remedy this could be a Japanese attack on the United States. Then American public opinion will have no other choice," Togo explains.
The clash of interests of two new players with imperial ambitions began long before December 7, 1941. But the spark that ignited kickford cord war in the Pacific, became the so-called “Hall Note”, transmitted to Japan by the US Secretary of State on November 26. Until now, historians of the USA and Japan do not have consensus about this document. Japanese scientists consider the note an ultimatum, while American scientists take exactly the opposite position. According to Japanese scientists, the “Hall Note” demanded from Japan the obviously impossible: the withdrawal of troops from China, withdrawal from the Tripartite Pact concluded by Japan, Germany and Italy in September 1940. The Japanese side perceived the note as a demonstration of the US reluctance to continue negotiations.
“The calculation worked here: the “Hall note” was supposed to force Japan to start a war, which happened. It was, in fact, a provocation. The most annoying thing is that Japanese politicians, including my grandfather, allowed themselves to be carried away by the situation. And here they cannot be justified, although "They had no other choice. As a result of the attack on Pearl Harbor, American public opinion changed overnight," says Kazuhiko Togo.
Mysteries of Pearl Harbor
Seven decades have passed since the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and yet many mysteries remain in the events of those years. Scientists have been arguing for years about how it could have happened that the attack came as a surprise to American politicians, although the year before, from the end of 1940, they knew the diplomatic codes of Japan, and all diplomatic correspondence was no secret.
Many scientists note that strange and extremely favorable coincidence of circumstances when, despite the terrible losses suffered by the American fleet, the main goal of the Japanese - the aircraft carriers - happily escaped destruction: on December 7 they simply were not at the base.
“There is an opinion that the United States knew about the attack in advance, hid it and allowed itself to be attacked. But I do not have enough information on this matter. We do not know to what extent the Americans knew about the Japanese plans. At the same time, there are things that are not clear. For example, shortly before the Japanese attack, all three American aircraft carriers were withdrawn from Pearl Harbor,” Kazuhiko Togo shared his doubts.
No less mysterious is the fact that the British leadership, having access to secret information of the Japanese naval forces, did not share it with the United States. Subsequently, these facts became the reason for accusing Roosevelt and Churchill that, by allowing the attack on Pearl Harbor, each in his own way sought to push America to enter the war.
Gift to Roosevelt
The attack on Pearl Harbor turned American public opinion around and accelerated its entry into the war. But the Japanese bureaucratic machine gave Roosevelt another gift.
“Tokyo should have been notified of the attack half an hour before the attack. However, due to bureaucratic delays in printing the document at the Japanese embassy in Washington, notification of the attack was transmitted only half an hour after it began,” notes Togo. This changed the very nature of the attack: an insidious and unexpected crime gave Roosevelt a free hand.
“This was God’s gift to Roosevelt. And a critically stupid mistake by Japan,” the political scientist clarifies.
War is a defeat for diplomacy
Shigenori Togo hoped that negotiations would help avoid war. Japan understood that the forces were too unequal. The country's Foreign Ministry has prepared two plans for normalizing relations with the United States. One of them - short-term - according to Japanese diplomats, could be accepted by America. But in response to Japan's proposals, the United States conveyed the "Hall Note."
"I have personal story about it. My mother, the daughter of Shigenori Togo, lived with him in the residence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. She said that before the “Hella note,” my grandfather literally glowed with happiness,” Kazuhiko Togo shares her memories. - My grandfather headed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and for him, as a diplomat, the opportunity to protect his country from war at a time when it was about to begin was the greatest happiness and meaning of his career. He worked as hard as he could. But when he came home at night after receiving the "Hall Note", he was in despair. He understood that this was war,” explains the historian.
During two attacks by Japanese carrier-based aircraft on the US Navy base at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, four American battleships, one cruiser, two destroyers and 188 aircraft were destroyed. Four battleships, three light cruisers, one destroyer, two auxiliary vessels and over 100 aircraft were damaged. On the American side, 2.4 thousand people died. Japanese losses amounted to 29 aircraft, 5 submarines, and 55 people were killed. The raid on the base lasted 2 hours 5 minutes.
A row of battleships (“Battleship Row” are concrete piles to which heavy ships were moored side to side) at Pearl Harbor. From left to right: USS West Virginia, USS Tennessee (damaged) and USS Arizona (sunk).
The attack of Pearl Harbor (Pearl Bay) or, according to Japanese sources, the Hawaiian operation is a sudden combined attack by Japanese carrier-based aircraft of the carrier formation of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo and Japanese midget submarines delivered to the site of the attack by Japanese submarines imperial fleet, at American naval and air bases located in the vicinity of Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, on Sunday morning, December 7, 1941. As a result of the attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base, the United States was forced to declare war on Japan and enter the Second World War. world war. The attack was a preventive measure against the United States, aimed at eliminating the American navy, gaining air supremacy in the Pacific region and subsequent military operations against Burma, Thailand, and the US's western possessions in the Pacific Ocean. The attack consisted of two air raids involving 353 aircraft from 6 Japanese aircraft carriers. The attack on Pearl Harbor was the main reason the United States entered World War II. Because of the attack, especially its nature, public opinion in America changed dramatically from an isolationist position in the mid-1930s to direct participation in the war effort. On December 8, 1941, US President Franklin Roosevelt spoke at a joint meeting of both houses of Congress. The President demanded that from December 7, from “a day that will go down in history as a symbol of shame,” to declare war on Japan. Congress adopted a corresponding resolution.
A model of the US Navy base at Pearl Harbor, built in Japan in 1941 during the planning of the attack on the base. The arrangement of the ship models extremely accurately reproduces their real place in the “line of battleships.”
Background
After the First World War, the Pacific Ocean became an arena of contradictions between two strong maritime states - the USA and Japan. The United States, rapidly rising to the position of the leading world power, sought to establish control over this strategically important region. Japan, which was experiencing serious difficulties in providing strategic materials and considered itself deprived of colonies in Southeast Asia, was striving for the same goal. The contradictions inevitably had to result in a military conflict, but this was prevented by the isolationist and anti-war sentiments that dominated American public opinion. These moods could only be destroyed by a strong psychological shock, which did not take long to arrive. Introduction by the United States economic sanctions against Japan, which included an embargo on the supply of petroleum products, made war inevitable. Japan was faced with a choice - to suffocate under the economic blockade or die with honor, trying to obtain the resources it needed in battle. The top Japanese generals understood that for an unconditional victory over the United States it was necessary to defeat the American Pacific Fleet, land troops on the west coast of the United States and fight to Washington, which, given the ratio of the economic and military potentials of the two countries, was completely unrealistic. Forced to enter the war under pressure from the political elite, they relied on the only chance they had - with one powerful blow, inflicting unacceptable damage on the United States and forcing them to sign peace on terms favorable to Japan.
Pearl Harbor before the attack
The main events of December 7, 1941 unfolded around Fr. Ford Island, a small island in the center of the East Loch of Pearl Harbor. There was a naval airfield on the island, and there were ship moorings around it. Off the southeastern shore of the island. Ford is located so-called “Battleship Row” - 6 pairs of massive concrete piles designed for mooring heavy ships. The battleship is moored simultaneously to two piles. A second ship can moor alongside it.
View of Pearl Harbor and a row of battleships during the Japanese attack
By December 7, there were 93 ships and support vessels in Pearl Harbor. Among them are 8 battleships, 8 cruisers, 29 destroyers, 5 submarines, 9 minelayers and 10 minesweepers of the US Navy. Air Force consisted of 394 aircraft, air defense was provided by 294 anti-aircraft guns. The base garrison numbered 42,959 people. Ships in the harbor and planes at the airfield were crowded together, making them a convenient target for attack. The base's air defense was not ready to repel attacks. Most of the anti-aircraft guns were not manned, and their ammunition was kept under lock and key.
Japanese aircraft carriers are heading for Pearl Harbor. The photo shows the flight deck of the Zuikaku aircraft carrier in its bow, twin installations of universal 127-mm type 89 guns. The Kaga aircraft carrier (closer) and the Akagi aircraft carrier (further) are visible ahead. The differences between the aircraft carriers of the 1st Division are clearly visible; the Akagi has a superstructure located on the port side.
Story
To attack Pearl Harbor, the Japanese command allocated an aircraft carrier force under the command of Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, consisting of 23 ships and 8 tankers. The formation consisted of a Strike Group consisting of six aircraft carriers: Akagi, Hiryu, Kaga, Shokaku, Soryu and Zuikaku (1st, 2nd and 5th aircraft carrier divisions), Group cover (2nd detachment of the 3rd battleship division), two heavy cruisers (8th cruiser division), one light cruiser and nine destroyers (1st squadron destroyers), Advance detachment consisting of three submarines and a supply detachment of eight tankers. (Futida M., Okumiya M. The Battle of Midway Atoll. Translated from English. M., 1958. P. 52.) The aviation group of the formation consisted of a total of 353 aircraft.
The operation, which was carefully planned and prepared, was led by the commander of the combined Japanese fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Special meaning was given to achieving surprise in the attack. On November 22, 1941, the task force gathered in the strictest secrecy in Hitokappu Bay (Kuril Islands) and from here, observing radio silence, headed for Pearl Harbor on November 26. The transition took place along the longest (6300 km) route, characterized by frequent stormy weather, but least visited by ships. For camouflage purposes, a false radio exchange was made, which simulated the presence of all large Japanese ships in the Inland Sea of Japan. (Soviet military encyclopedia. T.6. P. 295.)
Briefing on the deck of the aircraft carrier Kaga before the attack on Pearl Harbor
However, for the American government, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was not so unexpected. The Americans deciphered the Japanese codes and read all Japanese messages for several months. The warning about the inevitability of war was sent on time - November 27, 1941. The Americans received a clear warning about Pearl Harbor at the last moment, on the morning of December 7, but the instruction about the need to increase vigilance, sent via commercial lines, reached Pearl Harbor only 22 minutes before the Japanese attack began, and was transmitted to the messengers only at 10:45 minutes when it was all over. (See: History of the War in the Pacific. T.Z.M., 1958. P. 264; The Second World War: Two Views. P. 465.)
In the predawn darkness of December 7, Vice Admiral Nagumo's aircraft carriers reached the aircraft lifting point and were 200 miles from Pearl Harbor. On the night of December 7, 2 Japanese destroyers fired on the island. Midway, and 5 Japanese midget submarines launched at Pearl Harbor began operating. Two of them were destroyed by American patrol forces.
At 6.00 on December 7, 183 aircraft of the first wave took off from aircraft carriers and headed for the target. There were 49 attack aircraft - type "97" bombers, each of which carried an 800-kilogram armor-piercing bomb, 40 attack aircraft-torpedo bombers with a torpedo suspended under the fuselage, 51 dive bombers of the "99" type, each carrying a 250-kilogram bomb. The covering force consisted of three groups of fighters, numbering a total of 43 aircraft. (Futida M., Okumiya M., op. cit. p. 54.)
The first aircraft is ready to take off from the aircraft carrier Shokaku at Pearl Harbor
The skies over Pearl Harbor were clear. At 7:55 am, Japanese planes attacked all large ships and aircraft at the airfield. There was not a single American fighter in the air, and not a single gun flash on the ground. As a result of the Japanese attack, which lasted about an hour, 3 battleships were sunk and destroyed big number airplanes. Having finished bombing, the bombers headed for their aircraft carriers. The Japanese lost 9 aircraft.
Destroyed Naval Air Station at Pearl Harbor
The second wave of aircraft (167 aircraft) took off from the aircraft carriers at 7:15 am. In the second wave there were 54 attack bombers of the 97 type, 78 dive bombers of the 99 type and 35 fighter jets, which covered the actions of the bombers. The second strike by Japanese planes met stronger American resistance. By 8.00 the planes returned to the aircraft carriers. Of all the aircraft that took part in the air raid, the Japanese lost 29 (9 fighters, 15 dive bombers and 5 torpedo bombers). Manpower losses amounted to a total of 55 officers and men. In addition, the Americans sank one submarine and 5 midget submarines, whose actions turned out to be ineffective.
The abandonment of the battleship Nevada inside the harbor during the attack on Pearl Harbor. On this day, she became the only American battleship that managed to get underway and tried to leave the bay. However, due to the threat of sinking by the Japanese in the fairway, the Nevada was ordered to beach. In total, during the attack on Pearl Harbor, the battleship Nevada was hit by 1 aerial torpedo and 2-3 aerial bombs, after which it ran aground.
Japanese aviation
In total, three types of aircraft were based on the Japanese aircraft carriers that participated in the attack on Pearl Harbor, widely known by the code names given to them in the American Navy: Zero fighters, Kate torpedo bombers and Val dive bombers. Brief characteristics these aircraft are listed in the table: 
Japanese A6M Zero fighters before taking off to attack the American base at Pearl Harbor on the deck of the aircraft carrier Akagi. The photo was taken a few minutes before departure.
Aircraft of the first wave
Group numbers are conditional for designation on diagrams.
Aircraft of the second wave 
Group numbers are conditional for designation on diagrams.
Results
As a result of the Japanese airborne attack on Pearl Harbor, the strategic goal of preventing the US Pacific Fleet from interfering with Japanese operations in the south was largely achieved. 4 American battleships were sunk and 4 more were badly damaged. 10 other warships were sunk or disabled; 349 American aircraft destroyed or damaged; among the killed or wounded Americans - 3,581 military, 103 civilian. (World War II: Two Views. P. 466.)
The Japanese victory could have been even more significant. They failed to cause the slightest harm to the enemy aircraft carriers. All 4 American aircraft carriers were absent from Pearl Harbor: 3 of them went to sea, one was being repaired in California. The Japanese made no attempt to destroy the huge American oil reserves in Hawaii, which in fact were almost equal to the entire Japanese reserves. The Japanese formation, with the exception of the ships that were part of a specially organized formation, which consisted of the 2nd division of aircraft carriers, the 8th division of cruisers and 2 destroyers, headed for the inland Sea of Japan. On December 23, it arrived at the anchorage near the island. Hasira.
Thus, by 10 a.m. on December 7, the American fleet in the Pacific actually ceased to exist. If at the beginning of the war the ratio of the combat power of the American and Japanese fleets was equal to 10: 7.5 (History of the War in the Pacific. T.Z. P. 266), now the ratio in large ships has changed in favor of the Japanese naval forces. On the very first day of hostilities, the Japanese gained supremacy at sea and gained the opportunity to carry out wide offensive operations in the Philippines, Malaya and the Dutch Indies.
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On Sunday morning, December 7, 1941, Japanese aircraft delivered a crushing blow to the American base in Hawaii. In two hours, the US Pacific Fleet was destroyed, more than 2,400 people were killed.
The next day, President Roosevelt, speaking to Congress, said that this day “will go down in history as a symbol of shame.” Another day later, the United States entered World War II. What took place on December 7 at Pearl Harbor: a surprise attack or a carefully planned government conspiracy?
The two-hour attack on Pearl Harbor (“Pearl Bay”) not only influenced the course of the war, but also changed world history. Volumes of military, historical and popular literature have been written about this episode (it cannot be called a battle or engagement), documentaries and feature films have been made. However, historians and conspiracy theorists are still looking for answers to the questions: how did it happen that the Americans were not prepared for the Japanese attack? Why were the losses so great? Who is to blame for what happened? Did the President know about the coming invasion? Did he do nothing specifically to drag the country into hostilities?
"PURPLE" CODE: the secret becomes clear
The existence of a conspiracy is supported by the fact that by the summer of 1940, the Americans “cracked” the Japanese secret diplomatic code, called “Purple.” This allowed American intelligence to monitor all communications from the Japanese General Staff. Thus, all secret correspondence was for the Americans open book. What did they learn from the encryption?
An aerial view of the battleships in the first minutes after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. (U.S. Navy photo)
Messages intercepted in the fall of 1941 indicate that the Japanese were indeed up to something. On September 24, 1941, Washington read a coded message from the Office of Naval Intelligence of Japan sent to the consul in Honolulu, which requested squares for the exact location of US warships at Pearl Harbor.
At that time, the Japanese were negotiating with the United States, trying to prevent or at least delay the outbreak of war between the two countries. In one of the secret messages, the Japanese Foreign Minister urged the negotiators to resolve problems with the United States by November 29, otherwise, the code said, “events will happen automatically.” And already on December 1, 1941, after the negotiations failed, the military intercepted a report in which the Japanese ambassador in Berlin informed Hitler about the extreme danger of war, “approaching faster than one might think.”
By the way, it is interesting that some headquarters of military units received machines for deciphering the “Purple” code, but for some reason Pearl Harbor did not receive such a machine...
"FLYING TIGERS": THE PATH TO WARRIOR
One of the most important questions concerns the role of the government and President Roosevelt. Was he trying to provoke the Japanese into attacking the United States in order to gain the support of the American population for his war plans?
As you know, relations with the Japanese began to deteriorate long before Pearl Harbor. In 1937, Japan sank an American warship in China on the Yangtze River. Both countries made public attempts at negotiations, but Roosevelt issued several unacceptable ultimatums to Japanese negotiators and openly lent money to the Chinese Nationalists, whom the Japanese were fighting at the time.
On June 23, 1941, the day after Germany attacked the USSR, Secretary of the Interior and Assistant to the President Harold Ickes presented a memo to the President in which he indicated that “imposing an embargo on oil exports to Japan could be an effective way to start a conflict. And if, thanks to this step, we indirectly get involved in a world war, then we will avoid criticism of complicity with communist Russia.” Which is what was done. And a month later, Roosevelt froze the financial assets of the “Asian Tiger” in the United States.
However, President Roosevelt was against imposing a complete embargo. He wanted to tighten the screws, but not for good, but only, as he himself put it, “for a day or two.” His goal was to keep Japan in a state of maximum uncertainty without pushing it over the edge. The President believed that he could use oil as a tool of diplomacy, and not as a trigger that could be pulled to unleash a massacre.
Meanwhile, the Americans began to actively help China. In the summer, the Flying Tigers aviation group was sent to the Celestial Empire, which operated against the Japanese as part of the army of President Chiang Kai-shek. Although these pilots were officially considered volunteers, they were hired by US military bases.
The income of these strange aviators was five times higher than the salary of ordinary American pilots. Politician and publicist Patrick Buchanan believes that "they were sent to fight Japan in the months before Pearl Harbor as part of a secret operation emanating from the White House and from President Roosevelt personally."
KNEW OR DIDN'T KNOW?
By provoking the Japanese by reading all the intelligence reports, President Roosevelt could not remain completely unaware of the impending attack on Pearl Harbor. Here are just a few facts that prove the awareness of the top person.
On November 25, 1941, Secretary of War Stimson wrote in his diary that Roosevelt spoke of a possible attack within the next few days and asked “how should we get them into a first-strike position without the damage being too damaging to us?” Despite the risk, we will allow the Japanese to carry out the first strike. The government understands that the full support of the American people is necessary to ensure that no one is left in any doubt about Japan's aggressive intentions."
On November 26, US Secretary of State K. Hull presented the Japanese representative with a note proposing the withdrawal of troops from all countries of Southeast Asia. In Tokyo, this proposal was considered an American ultimatum. Soon, a powerful aircraft carrier squadron located in the Kuril Islands area received an order to weigh anchor and begin moving towards the target in radio silence. And the goal was... the Hawaiian Islands.
On December 5, Roosevelt wrote to the Australian Prime Minister: “The Japanese must always be taken into account. Perhaps the next 4-5 days will resolve this problem.”
What about Pearl Harbor? Was the command of the military base really “blissfully unaware”? A few weeks before the attack, on November 27, 1941, General Marshall sent the following coded message to Pearl Harbor: “Hostile action is likely at any moment. If military action cannot be avoided, then the United States wants Japan to be the first to use force.”
The airfield at the US Navy base on Ford Island. In the background you can see flames from burning ships after the Japanese attack, December 7, 1941. (U.S. Navy photo):
DAY OF SHAME
It turns out that the army, navy and ruling circles knew everything perfectly and prepared for the attack in advance. However, what happened on December 7, 1941 in Pearl Bay can be called, in the words of Marshal Zhukov, “ignoring the obvious threat of attack.”
The day before the attack, another Japanese encryption was read, from which it became known that war was inevitable. How did “important and interested persons” react?
Roosevelt called the fleet commander, Admiral Stark, but he was in the theater and was not disturbed. The next morning, Washington learned the exact time of the attack - 07:30 on December 7, Hawaiian time. 6 hours left. Admiral Stark wanted to call the commander of the Pacific Fleet, but decided to report to the President first. Roosevelt received Stark after 10:00, the meeting began, but the president’s personal physician came and took him away for procedures. We conferred without the president and left for lunch at 12:00.
The Chief of Staff of the US Army, General Marshall, did not want to interrupt his morning horseback ride and showed up for duty only at 11:25. He also decided not to call Hawaii, but sent an encrypted telegram, ordering it to be transmitted through the army radio station. There was radio interference in Hawaii, so the telegram was taken to a commercial telegraph office, forgetting to mark it as “urgent.” At the Hawaiian post office, the telegram was thrown into a box, where it waited for the messenger (by the way, Japanese), who regularly picked up all the mail for the American fleet. A messenger carefully delivered it to headquarters three hours after the Japanese sank the American fleet.
At Pearl Harbor, on December 7, 1941, at 07:02, two soldiers on radar duty spotted Japanese planes 250 km from the island. They tried to report this to headquarters by direct telephone, but no one answered there. Then they contacted the lieutenant on duty by telephone, who was in a hurry for breakfast and did not talk to them for long.
The soldiers turned off the radar and also left for breakfast. And two waves of aircraft that took off from Japanese aircraft carriers (40 torpedo bombers, 129 dive bombers and 79 fighters) were already approaching Pearl Harbor, where all the armored forces of the US Pacific Fleet were located - 8 battleships (for comparison: the USSR had only three of them, with during the First World War). At 07:55 Japanese planes began to dive.
The commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Kimmel, began directing the battle in his pajamas from the courtyard of his villa, located on the mountain. He received the first report from his wife, who was standing nearby in a nightgown: “It looks like they covered the battleship Oklahoma!” - “I see it myself!” - the naval commander confirmed.
On American ships, the sailors had just had breakfast, but the officers were still eating. Half of the crew was on leave on shore; random sailors stood at the anti-aircraft guns. Five of the eight battleship commanders also had fun on the shore. The guns had no shells, and the keys to the shell stores could not be found. Finally, the armored doors of the storerooms were broken down, and in the confusion they began to fire training shells at the Japanese planes. When Kimmel was brought to headquarters, according to an eyewitness, there was no panic there. “Ordered horror” reigned there.
Japanese bomber over Pearl Harbor
At 09:45 the Japanese took off. We summed up the results. All 8 battleships were disabled. The Japanese hoped to find aircraft carriers in the bay, but they were absent, so in a rage they bombed anything. Almost all of Pearl Harbor's aircraft were destroyed: 188 aircraft burned and 128 were damaged. 2,403 US military personnel were killed and 117 were wounded. There were 40 explosions in the city, killing 68 civilians and injuring 35. Of these explosions, only one was a Japanese bomb, the other 39 were American anti-aircraft shells.
The Japanese lost 29 aircraft and 55 people...
CONSEQUENCES
Yet, despite all the evidence, explicit and implicit, it is impossible to prove that there was a conspiracy, because Washington did not order a reduction in the level of combat readiness on the eve of the attack. And that's a fact.
The consequences of the attack on Pearl Harbor were more than important for both American and world history.
The attack served as the impetus for Hitler to declare war on the United States, and consequently to the unconditional inclusion of all American economic, industrial, financial, organizational, scientific, technical and military power in the cause of war. The attack on Pearl Harbor was one of the reasons (it is difficult to say how important) the use of atomic weapons against Japan.
We can add one more, probably the most important consequence of this attack - it opened a new chapter in everything related to US participation and intervention in all conflicts in the world.
Anastasia GROSS
75 years ago Japan attacked Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, Japanese aircraft and submarine fleet attacked the American military base at Pearl Harbor Hawaiian island Oahu. TASS recalls how defeat became the foundation for victory.
Treacherous and without a declaration of war
The attack on Pearl Harbor began at 7:55 a.m. Hawaiian time. After receiving the order from Tokyo, more than 300 aircraft took off from the aircraft carriers Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu, Soryu, Zuikaku and Shokaku. In addition, mini-submarines took part in the attack. The Japanese took the American military by surprise: a third of the personnel were resting on the shore. For two hours, imperial naval aviation methodically destroyed the ships and planes in the harbor that did not even have time to take off from the airfields.
The degree of confusion of the Americans is evidenced by a panicked radiogram from the commander of the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Husband Kimmel, which was transmitted to “all forces on the high seas.” The message read: "The air raid on Pearl Harbor is not a training exercise. I repeat, this is not a training exercise."
The death of the battleship Arizona became a symbol of terrible carnage and chaos. The dropped bomb pierced the deck and hit the bow powder magazine. The ship's ammunition was stored here, which was instantly detonated. Of the approximately 1,400 crew, 1,177 sailors were killed. In total, the Americans lost 2,395 people killed. Four battleships, a cruiser, two destroyers, several auxiliary ships and 188 aircraft were destroyed. Another 10 ships and over 150 aircraft were damaged. Japanese losses were incomparably smaller: 64 people died and 29 aircraft were shot down.
The very next day after the attack, US President Franklin Roosevelt delivered a “war message to the nation” in Congress. War was declared on Japan.
Yesterday, on a day forever marked by infamy, the United States of America was unexpectedly and deliberately attacked by Navy Japan, Roosevelt said. — An hour after Japanese air squadrons began to bombard Oahu, the Japanese Ambassador to the United States and his colleagues conveyed to the Secretary of State a formal response to a recent American message. And although this response contained a statement that the continuation of ongoing diplomatic negotiations seemed futile, there was no threat or hint of war or armed attack!
"A Very American Story"
The word “Pearl Harbor” has since become a household word for Americans; it means a heavy, cruel and at the same time completely unexpected defeat, followed by a feeling of deepest confusion and helplessness. The defeat of a favorite baseball team is a “sports Pearl Harbor,” while the bankruptcy of a company is a “financial Pearl Harbor.” The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 were first called by the French philosopher Paul Virilio “the new Pearl Harbor,” and then it became commonplace in the American press and journalism.
But the philosophy and mythology of Pearl Harbor necessarily has a second part: after defeat, the hero gathers his strength and begins to restore justice - takes revenge on his offenders.
This is a very American story, we really believe in it, I believe in it too,” said Oscar-winning documentary director Michael Moore during one of his public lectures. - What " bad person“He won, but this is temporary, while we feel bad, but then we will definitely give him a kick... This happened before, and Pearl Harbor is just about this.
[Hover over the dots to see targets hit by Japanese pilots on the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor]
After the attack on Hawaii, the Americans acted extremely harshly. And perhaps they acted most harshly within the country. In 1941–1942, 120 thousand Japanese living on the west coast of the United States were placed in special camps. The authorities doubted their loyalty. In official documents, the camps were called “relocation centers,” but they were often also called “concentration centers.” General John Lesesny DeWitt, who led the “movements,” was not particularly shy in his expressions. At congressional hearings, he said that "a Jap is always a Jap" and that "American citizenship does not mean loyalty; we must always show concern for the Japanese until they are wiped off the face of the earth."
Operation Revenge
In April 1942, the American Air Force, in retaliation for Pearl Harbor, organized a special raid: 16 tactical bombers, taking off from American aircraft carrier Hornet, under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle, bombs Tokyo. The Dolittle Raid marked the first time in military aviation history that land-based bombers took off from the short deck of an aircraft carrier. From a purely military point of view, the raid is dubious and ineffective, but it has a tremendous political and propaganda effect. For the first time, bombs fell on the capital of the Japanese Empire, which had previously been considered completely inaccessible to enemy aircraft. Just two years later, the MGM film company made a feature film about the raid, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, which was a huge success.
In early 1943, American naval intelligence carried out an operation codenamed "Revenge". The goal is to eliminate the commander-in-chief of the Japanese fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, who planned and carried out the attack on Pearl Harbor. The plot is like an adventure film. They are trying to follow Yamamoto, trying to intercept his radio communications. The Americans have access to the admiral's flight schedule. A real hunt begins for him. Eventually, US Air Force pilot Lieutenant Rex Barber shoots down the admiral's plane.
The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are sometimes also called unjustifiably cruel revenge for Pearl Harbor. When Barack Obama took part in laying flowers at the memorial to the victims of the bombing in Hiroshima in May of this year, then-presidential hopeful Donald Trump did not approve of this and wrote on his Twitter microblog: “Has President Obama ever discussed a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor?” during a visit to Japan? Thousands of Americans died then."
Tears of the Battleship Arizona
Today, December 7, is no longer a “day of shame,” as Roosevelt said, but National Day of Remembrance. It was celebrated before, but Barack Obama, who was criticized by Trump for insufficient patriotism, assigned a special official status to it by decree. ex military base turned into a memorial: veterans and active military come here every year. Tourists from Japan also come. The battleship Arizona, which was sunk during the attack in 1941, was not raised. Erected above the ship's hull concrete structure, the deck lies literally a few meters below it and is clearly visible. To this day, oil is seeping out of the Arizona's engine room, drop by drop, spreading across the water as a lilac-scarlet spot. The Americans say that this is “a battleship crying for its crew.”
According to established tradition, every US president must at least once honor the memory of sailors at the site where the Arizona sank. The memorial was also visited by both the current Emperor of Japan, Akihito, and the previous Emperor, Hirohito, the same one under whom the empire attacked Pearl Harbor. Next to the sunken Arizona stands the battleship Missouri, on board of which the unconditional surrender of Japan was signed on September 2, 1945. Thus, Washington turned perhaps its greatest defeat into victory.
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Photo: Fox Photos/Getty Images, AP Photo, U.S. Navy Art Center/Official U.S. Navy Photograph, U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph, Kevin Winter/Touchstone Pictures/Getty Images, Kent Nishimura/Getty Images, Keystone/Getty Images