The Attack on Pearl Harbor

By Mish Al-Roubaie, History Graduate

On this day 81 years ago, the Empire of Japan launched arguably the most consequential military operation in modern history. American president Franklin D. Roosevelt famously described the Japanese attack on the American naval base Pearl Harbor as 'a date which will live in infamy'.

It is unfortunately not uncommon for the attack on Pearl Harbor to be portrayed as nothing more than an arbitrary military blunder fuelled by Japanese fanaticism. However, this attack was preceded by a long period of deteriorating relations between Japan and the United States. The Japanese Empire had begun expanding its territory throughout East and South-East Asia with unprecedented speed and aggression. This provoked the US government to place economic embargoes on the Japanese in 1941 and generally acted as a barrier to further expansion of the Japanese sphere. The surprise attack on Pearl Harbor was motivated by the belief that war with the US was inevitable if the Japanese wanted to protect their foreign interests.

The US response to this situation is emblematic of the role that they would eventually take in maintaining global order. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt urged a declaration of war against Japan with the following words:

'I believe that I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost but will make it very certain that this form of treachery shall never again endanger us'

Indeed, these promises did not go unfulfilled. The Japanese surprise attack on the United States compelled the Americans to break their official neutrality and join the allies in World War II. Over the next four years, the Americans would play a pivotal role in leading their European allies to victory against Nazi Germany and crushing the Japanese imperial system with nuclear weapons, the power of which had never been seen in war before or since.

The attack on Pearl Harbor had a significant effect on the United States' growing place on the world stage. Prior to this event, almost 90% of Americans reportedly opposed intervention in any European wars and preferred that the US stay away from any Asian or European conflicts. The attack on Pearl Harbor revealed the failure of this doctrine and recontextualised American power as something to be extended across the world rather than kept isolated on the homefront. In the words of American historian Samuel Eliot Morison, the attack on Pearl Harbour awoke the 'sleeping giant'.

The repercussions of the attack on Pearl Harbor extend well beyond World War II, and indeed, we continue to live with the consequences. Since 1945 the United States has asserted itself as a global power, carved out a wide sphere of influence across all continents and demonstrated its willingness to use power to protect this global order. In a world where this order has become increasingly volatile, we can only guess as to how long it will last or what role the United States will play in the future.

While we can say that December 7th 1941, will indeed live as a day of infamy, perhaps it is for more than just one reason.