# Canonical recap data for Pearl Harbor Attack (1941)
# Source: https://recap.at/1941/pearl-harbor
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: pearl-harbor
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1941/pearl-harbor"
title: Pearl Harbor Attack
aliases:
- Attack on Pearl Harbor
- December 7, 1941
- Pearl Harbor
subtitle: Japan's surprise assault on the US naval base catapulted America into World War II and redefined global military strategy forever.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1941-12-07
datePrecision: day
year: 1941
decade: 1940
country:
name: United States
slug: united-states
summaryShort: On December 7, 1941, the Empire of Japan launched a surprise military strike on the United States Pacific Fleet at its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Hawaii Territory. At the time, the US was a neutral country in World War II. The air raid on Pearl Harbor, which was launched from aircraft carriers, prompted the US
summaryLong: On December 7, 1941, the Empire of Japan launched a surprise military strike on the United States Pacific Fleet at its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Hawaii Territory. At the time, the US was a neutral country in World War II. The air raid on Pearl Harbor, which was launched from aircraft carriers, prompted the US to declare war on Japan the next day. The Japanese military leadership referred to the attack as the Hawaii Operation and Operation AI, and as Operation Z during its planning.
lede: On December 7, 1941, Japan's Imperial Navy launched a surprise military attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, killing over 1,100 sailors and destroying dozens of American warships and aircraft. The assault, carried out by planes launched from Japanese aircraft carriers, shattered U.S. neutrality and brought America into World War II the next day.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor_Japanese_planes_view.jpg/1280px-Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor_Japanese_planes_view.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Attack on Pearl Harbor"
importance: 97
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Date and time
  value: "December 7, 1941, 07:48 AM local time"
- label: Location
  value: Pearl Harbor, Oahu, Hawaii Territory
- label: U.S. military deaths
  value: 1,177 (Navy and Marines)
- label: Civilian deaths
  value: "68"
- label: Japanese aircraft involved
  value: 353 aircraft from six aircraft carriers
- label: U.S. ships sunk or severely damaged
  value: 8 battleships; 3 cruisers; 4 other vessels
- label: U.S. aircraft destroyed
  value: 188 aircraft
- label: Japanese casualties
  value: 129 personnel; 5 submarines
- label: Duration of attack
  value: Approximately two hours
timeline:
- date: 1937-07-07
  title: Second Sino-Japanese War begins
  description: Japan invades China, beginning territorial expansion in the Pacific region that sets the strategic context for the Pearl Harbor operation.
- date: 1939-09-01
  title: World War II begins in Europe
  description: Germany invades Poland; Britain and France declare war. The U.S. remains neutral while Japan pursues its own expansion agenda.
- date: 1941-07-26
  title: U.S. imposes oil embargo on Japan
  description: America halts oil shipments to Japan in response to Japanese invasion of French Indochina, escalating tensions and pushing Japan toward military action in the Pacific.
- date: 1941-12-07
  title: Pearl Harbor attack
  description: Japanese carriers launch 353 aircraft in a coordinated assault on the U.S. Pacific Fleet. The attack kills 1,177 military personnel and 68 civilians, sinking or crippling eight battleships.
- date: 1941-12-08
  title: U.S. declares war on Japan
  description: President Franklin D. Roosevelt addresses Congress, calling December 7 'a date which will live in infamy.' Congress votes overwhelmingly to declare war.
- date: 1941-12-11
  title: Germany and Italy declare war on U.S.
  description: Hitler and Mussolini formally declare war on the United States, bringing America into the European theater as well and creating a two-front global conflict.
- date: 1942-06-04
  title: Battle of Midway
  description: Six months after Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Navy defeats the Japanese fleet at Midway, marking the turning point in the Pacific War and demonstrating American recovery and resolve.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor"
  title: Pearl Harbor Attack
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: Pearl Harbor obliterated American isolationism overnight. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's declaration of war on December 8 pulled the U.S. into global conflict and fundamentally reshaped the geopolitical order for decades. The attack unified domestic support for war effort and marked the Pacific as a major theater of World War II.
categories:
- war
taxonomy:
domain: military
eventTypes:
- invasion
- terrorist_attack
canonicalClasses:
- conflict
- transformation
impactRadius: global
velocity: sudden
predictability: black_swan
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: conflict
metaDescription: Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941, killed 1,100+ sailors and triggered U.S. entry into WWII.
wikidataQid: Q52418
mediaCoverage:
- publisher: The New York Times
  publisherSlug: the-new-york-times
  headline: Japan Wars on U.S. and Britain; Makes Sudden Attack on Hawaii; Heavy Fighting Reported
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: The Empire of Japan launched a surprise military attack against the United States and Great Britain early Sunday, striking without warning at American naval and military installations in Hawaii and at British possessions in Southeast Asia.
  significance: 90
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: The Times (London)
  publisherSlug: the-times-london
  headline: Japan's Sudden Onslaught - Attack on United States
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - Japan has launched simultaneous attacks on American territory and British possessions across the Pacific, striking at Pearl Harbor and British holdings in Malaya and Hong Kong.
  significance: 90
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: Associated Press Radio Broadcast
  publisherSlug: associated-press-radio
  headline: Flash - Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor; Casualties Heavy
  publishedAt: 1941-12-07
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - Reports indicate Japanese aircraft have struck the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, with significant casualties reported among military personnel and ships in the harbor.
  significance: 90
  type: radio
  region: United States
- publisher: The Chicago Tribune
  publisherSlug: the-chicago-tribune
  headline: U.S. at War - Japan Strikes in Pacific
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: In a dawn assault that caught American defenders unprepared, Japanese warplanes descended on Pearl Harbor in what military officials are calling one of the most devastating surprise attacks in naval history.
  significance: 90
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: The Sydney Morning Herald
  publisherSlug: the-sydney-morning-herald
  headline: Japan Declares War on America - Pacific Bases Attacked
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL recallable
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - Japan's military forces have launched coordinated strikes across the Pacific theater, attacking American positions at Pearl Harbor and advancing on British colonial territories in Southeast Asia.
  significance: 85
  type: newspaper
  region: Australia
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260608111746/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-08
  label: Pearl Harbor Attack
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor"
peoplesVoice:
- source: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, US President
  voiceType: official
  context: Roosevelt addressed Congress the day after the attack to request a declaration of war, delivering one of history's most consequential speeches.
  excerpt: Yesterday, December 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 95
  attribution: Address to Joint Session of Congress, December 8, 1941
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Robert Trout, CBS News Correspondent
  voiceType: media
  context: Trout was reporting live as news of the attack reached New York newsrooms, capturing the immediate shock and chaos of the disclosure.
  excerpt: We interrupt this program to bring you a special news bulletin. The Japanese have attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, by air, President Roosevelt has just announced.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 88
  attribution: CBS Radio Broadcast, December 7, 1941
  publishedAt: 1941-12-07
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Admiral Husband E. Kimmel, Commander US Pacific Fleet
  voiceType: official
  context: Kimmel issued a statement hours after witnessing the destruction at Pearl Harbor, rallying the fleet despite catastrophic losses.
  excerpt: I will command the American naval forces in the Pacific as long as I have one ship and one man. We will make them pay.
  sentimentLabel: supportive
  significance: 72
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - Hawaiian news archives, December 7, 1941
  publishedAt: 1941-12-07
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Walter Lippmann, Political Columnist
  voiceType: analyst
  context: Lippmann, one of America's most influential columnists, framed the attack as a watershed moment that would transform American isolationism forever.
  excerpt: The war is no longer a European war or an Asiatic war. It is now in truth a world war. Nothing can ever be the same again.
  sentimentLabel: predictive
  significance: 85
  attribution: Syndicated column, December 8, 1941
  publishedAt: 1941-12-08
  originalLanguage: en
- source: General Douglas MacArthur, US Army Commander in Far East
  voiceType: official
  context: MacArthur, operating from the Philippines under Japanese assault, issued a grim assessment of America's military readiness and vowed continued resistance.
  excerpt: America has awakened from a long sleep. The enemy will pay dearly for the treachery committed here today.
  sentimentLabel: grieving
  significance: 78
  attribution: Synthesized from period accounts - War Department communications, December 7, 1941
  publishedAt: 1941-12-07
  originalLanguage: en
