There are few US military disasters that could rival what took place on December 7, 1941. The United States saw over 2,400 killed, hundreds of aircraft destroyed or damaged, and the near entirety of the US Pacific Fleet totally ravaged.
If you were the Japanese military commander in charge, it was the type of action that made you legend. However, if you were the American in command, it turned you into the scapegoat of the century. Then-Adm. Husband E. Kimmel was the commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet at the time, and he bore the brunt of the blame for the military’s lack of preparedness.
During the attack, a bullet crashed through Kimmel’s window and hit his uniform in the chest. It’s reported he said to his communications officer, “It would have been more merciful had it killed me,” as he watched the event unfolded.
Husband E. Kimmel was a confident officer and leader
Husband E. Kimmel was born in Kentucky in 1882, and graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1904. For close to four decades, he served his country with competence and distinction. After all, there’s a reason he was chosen to command the US Pacific Fleet at a time when tensions with Japan were high.
In February 1941, Kimmel took over from Adm. James Richardson as the fleet’s commander-in-chief. Just a year prior, the ships’ base had been moved from San Diego, California, to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to be more responsive to any aggressive action by the Japanese. Given his experience, he looked capable and apt for the job – and he was.
However, when the ending bookmark on your career is the disaster at Pearl Harbor, people tend to forget about the rest.
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
Husband E. Kimmel had written in early 1941 that he believed a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor was a possibility, and he was taking all the necessary steps to minimize damage and ensure such an assault would be costly for the Japanese. However, the defense of Hawaii wasn’t his alone; Lt. Gen. Walter Short was the commander charged with the defense of installations on the future American state.
While both men would pay a heavy price for what took place at Pearl Harbor, the images of sinking and burning ships are the iconic ones that people remember. As such, Kimmel would mainly shoulder the blame for the attack.
However, blaming him and/or Short isn’t as simple as it seems. Without a doubt, as the senior leaders in charge, they should’ve been held accountable for what took place, but historians have long debated whether or not any of the famed military admirals and generals of the Second World War could’ve produced a different result, given the scenario.
Scapegoat for a significant loss
Ten days after the attack of Pearl Harbor, Husband E. Kimmel was hard at work planning retaliatory actions against the Japanese when he was relieved of his command. The Roberts Commission, appointed by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt to investigate what happened, had concluded that both he and Walter Short were guilty of poor judgment and dereliction of duty.
Kimmel was reduced in rank to rear admiral, and just as the greatest conflict the world had ever seen was ramping up, the career sailor retired.
Husband E. Kimmel defended his reputation
Husband E. Kimmel would defend his reputation, placing the blame for the failure squarely on Washington. Intercepted Japanese cables that suggested an attack was imminent were in the hands of officials in the Capitol and hadn’t been shared with either him or Walter Short.
Kimmel claims that, if he’d had the information that was irrefutably present, he wouldn’t have been taken by surprise – his forces would have been on alert, rather than waking up on a sleepy Sunday morning.
The revelation of the intercepted Japanese cables led some to believe Franklin D. Roosevelt and others in Washington were willing to invite the attack, in order to facilitate America’s entry into the Second World War; if Kimmel had gotten advanced warning, the US Pacific Fleet wouldn’t have been present, leading the Japanese to call off the assault.
While Kimmel himself wouldn’t make such a claim, he believed he was the scapegoat for incompetence within the higher military command.
Critics points to numerous failures
Critics of Husband E. Kimmel would point to tactical failures on his behalf that ensured the attack was a such a decisive victory for the Japanese, meaning it had very little to do with whether or not he knew it was coming.
Kimmel believed the greatest threat to the US Pacific Fleet was sabotage, which led to the battleships being moored together in port, and he’d failed to order long-range air patrols when intelligence lost track of the Japanese carriers. As well, he had a poor working relationship with Walter Short, which led to miscommunication over the island’s readiness for an attack.
Essentially, whether or not there was intelligence available, it shouldn’t have prevented Kimmel from taking action well within his power for a proper defensive footing.
What did Chester Nimitz have to say about the situation?
As much as we might like there to be, there’s simply no definitive answer as to whether different leadership could have produced a different result on December 7, 1941.
Adm. Chester Nimitz stated in a 1964 interview that it was actually a blessing that Husband E. Kimmel had no advance warning. Nimitz believed that, if he’d been aware of the impending attack, he would have taken the US Pacific Fleet to sea, to intercept the Japanese ships, which would have ended in an even worse disaster for the Americans.
The fleet would have fared poorly against the Japanese carriers, and Nimitz believed they would’ve never gotten within shooting range, leading to the ships’ sinking in deep water and a cost of thousands of more lives. As it stood, six battleships were able to be returned to service after being raised from the waters surrounding Pearl Harbor, leading to a quicker turnaround for the fleet.
Attempts to clear Husband E. Kimmel’s name
While historians may not be able to make up their minds about Husband E. Kimmel, his family never gave up the cause to clear his name. Investigations spirited by his kin concluded that other high-ranking officers were also responsible, leading the US Senate to pass a non-binding resolution in 1999 that exonerated both him and Walter Short. It also called for both of their ranks to be restored, but this has yet to be done by a sitting president.
More from us: Shizuya Hayashi: The Japanese-American Soldier Who Showed Astounding Bravery on His First Day of Combat
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The vote for the resolution was 52-47, indicative of the equal divide in the greater historical community on exactly how much blame should be placed upon Kimmel. Perhaps he’s the man responsible for one of the worst events in US military history, or maybe he was just the one to get the unluckiest promotion of all time.