On the morning of December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes appeared in the sky over the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. It was a surprise attack: there had been no declaration of war. The bombs and torpedoes struck before most American sailors had finished breakfast.
In about two hours, the attack damaged or destroyed 19 U.S. ships and more than 300 aircraft. Around 2,400 Americans were killed. The next day, the United States officially entered World War II by declaring war on Japan. Within days, Germany and Italy declared war on the U.S. too, and the global conflict was complete.
The wreck of the battleship USS Arizona, which sank in less than 10 minutes, was never raised. It now lies at the bottom of Pearl Harbor as a memorial. Visitors can see oil still leaking from the ship - the “tears of the Arizona” - over 80 years after the attack.
