What major event took place in the United States on December 7, 1941?

The major event that took place in the United States on December 7, 1941, was the Pearl Harbor bombing, also known as the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Japan launched a surprise military strike against the U.S. Pacific Fleet at its naval base on Oahu, Hawaii.

The attack began shortly before 8 a.m. Hawaiian time. Japanese aircraft, launched from six aircraft carriers, attacked in two waves, targeting battleships, airfields, and other military facilities. The battleship USS Arizona exploded after its forward ammunition magazine was hit, becoming one of the most recognizable symbols of the attack.

The raid killed 2,403 Americans and wounded 1,178 others. Eighteen American ships were sunk or run aground, while 188 aircraft were destroyed. Japan lost 29 aircraft and five midget submarines. The three U.S. aircraft carriers assigned to Pearl Harbor were away at sea, a fact that later proved strategically important.

The bombing immediately changed American history. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called December 7 “a date which will live in infamy,” and Congress declared war on Japan the next day. Germany and Italy then declared war on the United States on December 11, bringing America fully into World War II.