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The attack on Pearl Harbor was the result of several decades of Japan and the United States disagreeing on policies with China. Japan had already declared war on China in 1937, which increased tensions between the U.S. and Japan.
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Prior to the attack the U.S. and Japan had gone through months of unsuccessful negotiations to find a peaceful solution to the sanctions the U.S. had imposed on them.
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was serving as such when the Pearl Harbor attack took place proclaimed the date of the attack as, "a date which will live in infamy."
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The attack on Pearl Harbor was later judged to be a war crime at the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, also known as the Tokyo Trials because there was no declaration of war or warning before the attack.
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The attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in 92 U.S. Navy aircraft being destroyed and 31 damaged. 77 U.S. Army Air Corps aircraft were destroyed and 128 damaged.
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The attack on Pearl Harbor resulted in two U.S. battleships being destroyed, and six damaged. There was one auxiliary ship destroyed and four damaged. In addition three cruisers and three destroyers were damaged.
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The Japanese attacked with 353 aircraft, including 79 fighters, 131 dive-bombers, 103 level bombers, and 40 torpedo planes.
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The attack on Pearl Harbor took less than two hours to complete.
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The Japanese believed that their attack would destroy the American's Pacific fleet and make it easy to spread across the Pacific Ocean.
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The Japanese failed to accomplish their mission to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet because their aircraft carriers were not at base when the attack occurred. The Japanese couldn't find them and had to give up the search.
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The U.S. Navy recovered fairly quickly after the attack in terms of military resources however the loss of life was devastating.
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When the U.S. entered World War II following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the war had already been raging for two years.
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The attack on the USS Arizona battleship was the most devastating in terms of lives lost. Half of the casualties were on the ship. The ship remains at the bottom of Pearl Harbor with its crew.
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Of the American servicemen who were present during the attack on Pearl Harbor, 15 received a Medal of Honor, 51 received a Navy Cross, 53 received a Silver Star, 4 received a Navy and Marine Corp Medal, 4 received Distinguished Crosses, 1 received a Distinguished Flying Cross, 1 received a Distinguished Service medal, and three received Bronze Star Medals.
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