: About Me

To appreciate the importance of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor in shaping the events of World War II, one must first understand the legacy of American anti-war and isolationist sentiment created by the first Great War and the Treaty of Versailles. The surprise assault galvanized a reluctant citizenry to support involvement in a total war and alarmed the Roosevelt Administration, pushing it to take unprecedented steps to both protect the American people and end the war. No such direct threat existed in 1917 when the United States declared war on Germany and entered World War I. President Wo...