Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

Significance of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day 

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day - also referred to as Pearl Harbor Day  - is a holiday observed, annually, on December 7th in the United States of America. It is a day dedicated to honouring and remembering the 2,403 victims who were killed in the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, in Hawaii, during World War II on December 7, 1941. Although, Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day  is not a federal holiday it is still a significant day in American and World War II history.
 

History of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

On the morning of December 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service attacked the Naval Station Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii. Without caution and without a declaration of war, the Japanese Navy killed 2,403 American non-combatants and injured 1,178 others. The Americans also lost nearly 200 aircrafts and a large proportion of their battle ships. More than 60 Japanese servicemen were killed, injured or captured.

It is believed that the Japanese military had hoped that this attack on Pearl Harbor would prevent the United States of America from increasing its influence in the Pacific. However, this attack on Pearl Harbor actually led to the escalation of World War II. On December 8, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan; Congress approved his declaration. The United States declared war on Japan and so entered World War II. In a speech to Congress, President Franklin D. Roosevelt called the bombing of Pearl Harbor "a date which will live in infamy.". Shortly afterwards, Germany also declared war on the United States.