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US and Japan
Japan Builds an Empire
Hitler and Mussolini were not the only ones expanding their territory in the 1930s. Japan was building an empire in Asia. By 1942, Japan's Empire spread throughout Asia and the Pacific.
Reasons for Empire
In the 1930s, Hirohito, the emperor of Japan, invaded lands in China and throughout Eastern Asia to build a Japanese empire.
Japan's raw materials were limited. Imperialism seemed to be a successful way for Japan to acquire mineral rich lands and develop markets to build industry. In addition, Japan needed land for a growing population.
Path to Empire
Japan aggressively took steps throughout the 1930s to build an empire.
- In 1931 Japan invaded mineral rich Manchuria, a region in northern China.
- Over the next five years, the depression gave Japan's military more control in the government.
- In 1937 Japan launched a full scale invasion of China.
Invasion of China
The Chinese army under General Jiang Jieshi, formally known as Chiang Kai-shek, was no match for the invaders from Japan.
- In 1937, Japan violently took Chinas capital city of Nanjing. During the Raping of Nanjing, Japanese troops sacked the city, massacred 300,000 Chinese, and raped thousands of women.
- In 1940, General Hideki Tojo became war minister of Japan and dispatched troops to occupy the northern section of the French colony of Indochina which is present-day Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.
Tripartite Pact
In September 1940, Japan signed the Tripartite Pact officially aligning with Germany and Italy.
In 1941, Japan signed a Neutrality Pact with the Soviet Union to prevent involvement in future fighting and occupied the rest of Indochina.
America's Response
While Hitler and Mussolini aggressively expanded throughout Europe and Northern Africa, and Hirohito expanded Japan's empire throughout Asia, America remained neutral.
Disillusioned by World War I and struggling with problems at home caused by the Great Depression, America chose to remain neutral and isolate herself from growing problem in the rest of the world.
American Neutrality
America learned from mistakes that pulled us into WWI and took steps to maintain neutrality in WWII. The United States enacted a policy of isolationism, which calls for minimal involvement in foreign affairs, to stay out of the war in Europe. The America First Committee was started in 1940 by isolationists and gained 800,000 members.
As early as the mid-1930s, congress passed several Neutrality Acts to keep the U.S. out of the tensions caused by aggressive dictators overseas. These acts included provisions that the U.S. would not sell weapons nor loan any money to nations at war, since those actions provoked Germany and caused the U.S. to enter WWI.
Delivering goods to countries at war could put the U.S. ships in danger, so the U.S.we enacted a Cash and Carry policy in which only non-military goods would be sold to countries at war and only if the country picked up the goods themselves.
After WWII started, the U.S. eased its restrictions slowly to help our overseas friends. The Neutrality Act of 1939 called for the sale of weapons to France and Great Britain, but continued to maintain a cash and carry basis only.
During the 1930s, most Americans were against the country becoming involved with the turmoil brewing overseas. President Roosevelt, however, wanted to aid countries, such as China, that were being invaded.
American Involvement Grows
Despite the desire to remain neutral through the passage of Neutrality Acts, U.S. involvement slowly increased in the war efforts in Europe and in Japanese aggression in Asia. There was an obvious need to be prepared in case of war.
In September 1940, the U.S. prepared several naval bases for the possibility of war by strategically moving destroyers throughout the Pacific.
The U.S. had its first peacetime draft when it enacted the Selective Service Act in which all males, age 21 to 36, were to register for the draft.
In the 1940 election, FDR won a third unprecedented term as President. He pushed for more U.S. assistance to help Great Britain, which was at this point standing alone against the Axis Powers.
In March 1941, FDR pushed for the Lend-Lease Act allowing help to any nation whose defense was important to the United States. The U.S. became the great "arsenal of democracy" providing weapons needed to protect democracies from aggressive totalitarian dictators.
In August 1941, FDR met with Churchill to set up war goals in what is known as the Atlantic Charter.
Involvement Cartoon
Public opinion on involvement also grew, as seen in political cartoons from the time
Tensions Rise
The U.S. protested Japanese aggression throughout the 1930s but did not get involved. However, once Japan took over the rest of Indochina, getting close to U.S. territory in the Philippines, America became increasingly alarmed and sent direct warnings to Japan.
When U.S. warnings did nothing to deter the Japanese aggression, FDR froze Japanese assets in the United States and cut off all trade, including oil to Japan. Since most of their oil came from the United States, this was a big blow to Japan.
Japan Joins the Axis Powers
Even though most Americans paid little attention to problems with Japan and focused most of their efforts on staying out of the war with Hitler, tensions between the U.S. and Japan increased and war loomed.
War Looms
On November 25, 1941, FDR learned that a Japanese fleet was headed toward U.S. territory in Southeast Asia.
Unknown to FDR, another Japanese fleet with six carriers and twenty other ships were headed to Pearl Harbor even as the Japanese "peace negotiators" worked in Washington.
US enters WWII
Japan Attacks Pearl Harbor
On Sunday, December 7, 1941 at 7:00 A.M., Hideki Tojo ordered Japan to launch a surprise attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. In this attack:
- 2,400 Americans were killed
- 300 planes were damaged
- 18 warships were lost
- 8 of 9 battleships were sunk
Thankfully, all U.S. aircraft carriers and heavy cruisers were at sea on training missions and were not destroyed in the attack.
Surprise Attacks
Including the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Pearl Harbor is one of two attacks on U.S. soil by a foreign entity during the 20th century. Both of these surprise attacks rallied American support for retaliation.
U.S.S. Arizona
This section and the following display photographs of the destroyed battleships
U.S.S. Utah
U.S. Declares War
On December 8, 1941, the day after Pearl Harbor was attacked, FDR asked Congress to declare war on Japan. He famously referred to December 7, 1941 as "A day which will live in infamy."
Three days later Germany and Italy declared war on the United States and Great Britain and Australia declared war on Japan.
America Mobilizes for War
Immediately after the attack, Americans began to mobilize for war.
GIs, "Government Issue," the nickname for American soldiers during WWII, were called to war.
275,000 women volunteered for military service including 1,200 WASPs (Women Air Force Service Pilots) used to ferry planes.
The United States would now fight Hitler and Mussolini in North Africa and Europe while fighting the Japanese in the Pacific.
Armed Forces Volunteers
Five million men volunteered for the armed forces in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Women and African-Americans also played large roles in WWII armed forces.
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