Pearl Harbor

Timeline of Events

• Oct. 16 - Stimson diary notes this was a time of "diplomatic fencing" and "make sure that Japan was put into the wrong and made the first bad move"

• Oct. 17 - Kimmel improves naval reconnaissance, but not 360-degree nor 24-hour patrols

• Nov. 5 - Magic intercepts 6 "deadline" messages to complete negotiations by Nov. 25

• Nov. 10 - Nomura presents "A" proposal to Hull

• Japan will not withdraw from Tripartite Pact

• Nov. 16 - U.S. Navy loses track of Japanese carriers

• Nov. 20 - Nomura & Kurusu present "B" proposal to Hull

• Japan will withdraw from Indochina if oil trade restored

• Nov. 21 - Japan postpones deadline until Nov. 29

• Nov. 25 - Stimson diary notes "the question was how we should maneuver them into the position of firing the first shot without too much danger to ourselves."

• Nov. 25 - FDR "blew up" at news of Japanese fleet of 50 ships leaving Shanghai moving south toward Philippines and 5 Japanese divisions seaborne south of Formosa

• Nov. 26 - "most fateful document" was Hull's counterproposal to "B"

• must withdraw first from Indochina and China

• Hull knew this meant the end of diplomacy

• Nov. 27 - Stimson sends "hostile action possible" warning to Pacific bases

• Gen. Short issues only sabotage alert at Pearl; no anti-torpedo nets, ammo for AA guns

• Nov. 28 - Magic translates "winds" code sent Nov. 19

• "East Wind Rain" meant break diplomatic relations

• Navy issues another war warning

• Dec. 1 - FDR reads Togo's warning to Germany of "extreme danger between Japan & Anglo-Saxon nations"Dec. 1 - Togo tells Nomura to continue negotiations "to prevent the U.S. from becoming unduly suspicious"Dec. 1 - Japanese fleet code changed second time in one month - unprecedented

• Dec. 2 - Yamamoto signals Nagumo's fleet "Climb Mount Nitaka" code to proceed with attack; fleet is refueled by Dec. 3 halfway to Hawaii - map

• Dec. 2 - Magic translates Togo's "boomerang" message to destroy all codes

• Army G2's Rufus Bratton wants another war warning but Marshall says no

• Dec. 6 - Dorothy Edgers translates deferred Magic intercepts, but Comm. Alvin Kramer says "go home"Dec. 6 - FDR agrees to ABDUCAN plan to help defend British empire if attackedDec. 6 - FDR sends last-resort letter to Hirohito9:30pm, Dec. 6 - FDR reads 13-part 900-series intercept: "this means war"

• 10am, Dec. 7 - FDR reads 14th message that does not declare war nor sever relations, but concludes "it is impossible to reach an agreement through further negotiations." - 1 11am, Dec. 7 - FDR reads 15th message setting 1pm delivery time for 14-part message to Hull - but still no indication of where Japanese attack would take place

• 11:30am, Dec. 7 - Marshall orders "be on the alert" warning sent to all Pacific bases

• but does not use scrambler telephone or define nature of the alert

• 6:30am (PHT)= 11:30am (EST) - Catalina spots sub trying to enter Pearl

• tells destroyer USS Ward, 1st gun fired 6:45, 2nd sub believed sunk by 7:00am

• naval duty officers slow to inform Kimmel

• 7:02am - Opana Radar Station privates Joseph Lockhard & George Elliott sight Japanese planes 132 mi. northeast (1st wave had taken off from carriers at 6:00am 230 miles away)7:20am - Lt. kermit Tyler dismisses radar sightings as B-17s due from California - article

• 7:25am - Kimmel informed of Ward's attack on sub, but no action taken

• 7:33am - Marshall's warning received at Western Union office in Honolulu

• 7:49am - Fuchida radios his planes to attack with "To To To" code for "charge"7:53am - Fuchida prematurely radios "Tora Tora Tora" code ("tiger") that the surprise attack on Pearl was successful

• 7:55am - 1st wave of 183 Japanese planes led by Fuchida attack Pearl from NW9:00am - 2nd wave of 167 Japanese planes led by Shimazaki attack Pearl from NE

• 9:45am - of 96 ships in harbor, 18 sunk (Arizona, Oklahoma) or seriously damaged

• of 394 aircraft at Hickam, Wheeler, Bellows airfields, 188 destroyed & 159 damaged

• 2403 U.S. military killed (1102 in Arizona) & 1178 wounded

• News of the attack was heavily censored. No accurate casualty figures or number of ships sunk were released to the press

• General Walter C. Short and Admiral Husband E. Kimmel were found guilty of dereliction of duty and forced to resign. Congress upheld the Army and Navy findings in 1946 and 1995.

• The U.S. and Britain declared war on Japan Dec. 8, and Japan promptly declared war on the U.S. and Britain; Germany and Italy declared war on the U.S. Dec. 11,