The Weight of History

1941-1945 Pacific War

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1600-1997 Japan

1941-1945 Pacific War

Summar

The Pacific War, a.k.a. the Asia-Pacific War or Pacific Theater, was Japan’s entrance into 1939-1945 World War II with its attacks on the 🇺🇸 United States and 🇬🇧 United Kingdom.

Contextual knowledge required

of the 1940 Tripartite Pact

1941 Decision to attack Pearl Harbour

1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour

1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour

Context: Japanese-American relations

  • relatively friendly since the early 20th century
    • marked by agreements like the 1908 Root-Takahira Agreement
  • tensions escalated with Japanese expansionism, especially 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria
  • Japan’s imperial ambitions sought SE Asia's rich resources → clashed with U.S. strategic interest in the region
    • ref. 📜 Southern Expansion Doctrine

Timeline

  • 1940: U.S. places an embargo on Japan
  • 1941 July: Japan expanded territories and occupied French Indochina → U.S. froze all Japanese assets, imposed crippling oil embargo
    • Japan was reliant on U.S. oil → this placed Japan under huge pressure
  • 1941 September-November: Japan and the U.S. try to negotiate diplomatically
    • significant differences in stances resulted in little headway
  • 1941 December 7: Japan attacks Pearl Harbour

Factors leading to Pearl Harbour

Impact of War: 1937-1945 Second Sino-Japanese War > 1940-1941 Japanese invasion of French Indochina

1940-1941 Japanese invasion of French Indochina

1940-1941 Japanese invasion of French Indochina

Importan

Resulted in the 1940-1941 U.S. embargo on Japan

  • Japan occupied China’s ports, but supplies continued to reach the Chinese government through Chongqing
    • some were sent by the Soviets, U.S., and Britain through Burma and China's far western provinces
    • majority came through French Indochina, Laos and Cambodia
  • Germany’s 1940 defeat of France → its colonies were vulnerable
    • Japan requested the French governor of Indochina to occupy its northern regions to cut supply lines to China; in exchange, Japan would allow the Vichy French government to remain
      • veiled threat understood, permission granted
  • 1940 September: Japan landed troops at Haiphong in French Indochina and soon built airbases
  • 1940 September: 3 days after Japan took over, U.S. responds
    • prohibited sale of scrap iron and steel Japan; beginning of 1940-1941 U.S. embargo on Japan
      • the U.S. was one of Japan’s main suppliers for industry
    • increased financial aid to China’s government
  • 1941 July: Japan occupied the rest of French Indochina
    • page 88 of move to global war andy dailey

Success or fail?

  • ultimately, a success – supply lines to China were difficult to maintain because of increasing Japanese pressure
Link to original

Strategic/Military

  • neutralise U.S. threat – a significant threat to Japan’s expansionism
    • a surprise attack would weaken the U.S. and give it a free hand in Asia, even if only temporarily
  • gaining time – consolidating Asian territories and forming a defensive perimeter before the U.S. could mount a counter-offensive

Political

  • show of strength – Japan sought to highlight its miltary prowess &

​Impact of Pearl Harbour

  • Germany and Italy declared war on the U.S. → U.S. entrance into the war
  • Japan won the battle, but lost their objective to destroy all three U.S. aircraft carriers which were Not Present
    • oil- and torpedo-storage facilities also survived the attack

Casualties

  • American
    • damaged 4 battleships, sank 4 battleships
    • severely damaged/sank 3 cruisers, 3 destroyers, 2 other naval vessels
    • destroyed 188 aircraft
    • killed over 2400 people, injured 1200 others
  • Japanese minimal losses
    • 20 aircraft destroyed
    • 5 small submarines sunk
    • 65 men killed

​Sources

Link to original

Reasons for initial victory

Military

  • first strike advantage → element of surprise
    • identification of key military infrastructure for attack/destruction in a dual-pronged attack
      • Pearl Harbor
        • U.S. 7th Fleet stationed there → in charge of Pacific area
        • destruction of 7th Fleet would delay U.S. entry → hoped to prevent U.S. entry
        • Subic in the Philippines – the 7th Fleet sails there, U.S. base/presence, rich in natural resources
          • Japan wasn’t aiming for a prolonged military engagement
      • British in South-East Asia
        • significance of targetting HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales

Political

  • Japanese adopted a policy of diplomacy and military aggression (use of) in SEA
  • co-optation: of Thailand via treaty diplomacy → saved resources + sped up progress

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