![]() He avoided a probable court-martial when he requested early retirement. Although he had no more reason than anyone else to believe Pearl Harbor was a possible Japanese target, a scapegoat had to be found to appease public outrage. As a result, Kimmel was held accountable, to a certain degree, for the absolute devastation wrought on December 7. Kimmel’s predictability was extremely easy to read by Japanese military observers and made his fleet highly vulnerable. In fact, he believed that a sneak attack was more likely at Wake Island or Midway Island, and requested from Lieutenant General Walter Short, Commander of the Army at Pearl Harbor, extra antiaircraft artillery for support there (none could be spared). So, even as word was out that Japan was likely to make a first strike against the United States as the negotiations in Washington floundered, Kimmel took no extraordinary actions at Pearl Harbor. He knew only what had been done before, and lacked imagination-and therefore insight-regarding the unprecedented. If Kimmel had a weakness, it was that he was a creature of habit, of routine. READ MORE: Pearl Harbor Attack: Photos and Facts In January 1941, he was promoted to commander of the Pacific Fleet, replacing James Richardson, who FDR relieved of duty after Richardson objected to basing the fleet at Pearl Harbor. At the outbreak of World War II, Kimmel had already attained the rank of rear admiral and was commanding the cruiser forces at Pearl Harbor. ![]() ![]() He served admirably on battleships in World War I, winning command of several in the interwar period. Pacific Fleet as part of a shake-up of officers in the wake of the Pearl Harbor disaster.Īdmiral Kimmel had enjoyed a successful military career, beginning in 1915 as an aide to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Kimmel was relieved of his command of the U.S. ![]()
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