Does anyone know why the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour ?

Answer 1

The Japanese were engaged in an aggressive expansion throughout the Pacific, which they regarded as their natural domain. The US and others responded with increasingly severe economic sanctions. Japan felt that this would inevitably lead to open warfare, and were determined to strike the first blow. They were convinced that the attack would so cripple the American navy the the US would stay out of the war permanently.

Answer 2

The Japanese were looking to expand their empire in the Pacific. They knew they would eventually end up at war with the United States. So they attacked Pearl Harbour in an attempt to take the US out of the war before it even started. Unfortunately for the Japanese, due to some poor timing and a lack of determination to finish the attack they did not finish the job and the US recovered relatively quickly.

Answer 3

Put simply, the Japanese believed the American carrier fleet to be in port. Had the American Carriers been in port then Japan would have effectively gained permanent control of the Pacific in one foul swoop. Without Pearl Harbour, America was simply too far away from the action with the technology available at the time.

Unlike the Japanese the Americans had ignored the British demonstration of carrier power in the Mediterranian Sea, and so left themselves vulnerable to a surprise attack from the air.

Answer 4

The attack on pearl harbour was a pre-emptive strike to take out the US navy (and the only other real opposition to Japans navy) as the Japanese probably realised that as they continued to spread across the pacific the chances of them having to fight the US sooner or later were high. Especially since the Japanese had or were about to invade various US territories and allies (such as the Phillipines) in order to gain valuable resources that Japan itself lacked.

Answer 5

They wanted all islands in the Pacific, including Hawaii, which was not a state until 1960. It was a US territory. The majority of the U.S. battleships were at Pearl Harbor, and by destroying the battleships they thought to assure their victories in the Pacific.

Answer 6

Japan has no natural resources. i.e. coal,oil, so they decided to expand by force to gain mineral wealth. The U.S had got knowledge of this and stopped exports/trade there. So followed the bombing of Pearl Harbour.
'dreamscometrue' is more right re. the blockading.

Answer 7

The history of this attack is well documented, and needs no expansion from me , Whatever the reason one is given, in the history.
It was without doubt, the biggest mistake japan could ever have made.

Answer 8

America had stopped blocked the trade routes, which was damaging japans economy and its war effort, japan thought if it showed america it wasn't a pushover by having an all out attack on their fleet, they would pull out of the war... which America obviously didn't do

Answer 9

They were about to dominate the Pacific and they knew the Americans had the facilities to counter the attack.

Answer 10

Because the USA were blocking Its trade routes, as a bonus they were looking on spreading Its territory- Hence invading China, obviously the rail explosion was a basic yet coincidental reason for invading!