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Attack on Pearl Harbor
Date Range
December 7, 1941
Location
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, United States
Combatants
Imperial Japan vs. United States Pacific Fleet
Outcome
Japanese tactical success — but strategic miscalculation that awakened the United States
Casualties
2,403 Americans killed; 4 battleships sunk, 188 aircraft destroyed; 64 Japanese killed
Strategic Significance
Directly brought the United States into WWII. The following day Congress declared war on Japan; three days later Germany and Italy declared war on America, transforming the conflict into a truly global total war.