History Extra logo
The official website for BBC History Magazine
  1. Home
  2. Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

On 7 December 1941, a deadly surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor by Japanese planes sank or damaged 21 warships and destroyed more than 150 planes on nearby airfields. The attack, which was launched without a declaration of war, killed more than 2,000 Americans

The neutral USA entered World War II only when a Japanese fleet launched a big surprise air raid against its Pacific naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)
Second World War

When and why did the US get involved in WW2?

Premium
Conspiracy 2 WL Pearl Harbor
Membership

Video podcast Conspiracy: was Pearl Harbor an inside job? . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Premium
Pod Pearl Harbor WL
Membership

Pearl Harbor Episode 5 . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Advertisement MPU index
Premium
Pod Pearl Harbor WL
Membership

Pearl Harbor Episode 4 . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Pearl Harbor sparked an aircraft-manufacturing drive – and, for the first time, allowed US women to perform jobs previously held only by men. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Membership

Pearl Harbor aftermath: the fallout from the attack

Premium
The USS West Virginia burns at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941
Membership

What if… Japan hadn't attacked Pearl Harbor . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The destroyer USS Shaw explodes in a massive fireball at Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941. The attack led almost immediately to Germany declaring war on America, and so brought Stalin an unexpected ally of colossal potential power, says Laurence Rees. (Bettmann/Getty Images)
Membership

Opinion Why December 1941 was the most important month of WW2

Premium
Pod Pearl Harbor WL
Membership

Pearl Harbor Episode 3 . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Premium
Pod Pearl Harbor WL
Membership

Pearl Harbor Episode 2 . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Advertisement MPU index
The battleship USS California following the attack at Pearl Harbor
Second World War

Pearl Harbor: 12 facts about the surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet

Crossing the line: Japanese soldiers seize a railway during the invasion of Manchuria in 1931 – prompted by a staged bombing near the city of Mukden. (Photo by adoc-photos/Corbis via Getty Images)
Membership

A gathering storm: why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor in 1941?

Premium
Pod Pearl Harbor WL
Membership

Pearl Harbor Episode 1 . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Mixed signals: A shortwave radio listening post in California, set up to report and translate broadcasts from Asia. (Photo by AP/Shutterstock)
Second World War

Caught off guard: why didn’t America see Pearl Harbor coming?

Lauren Bruner and Iyozo Fujita
Membership

Pearl Harbor: 5 frontline stories from people who were there

John Buckley and James Holland next to a fighter plane at the Imperial Museum, London
Second World War

The War in the West: James Holland in conversation