Tag Archives: Imperial Japanese Navy Sinks

This Day in the Yesteryear: IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY SINKS TWO BRITISH WARSHIPS (1941)


Imperial Japanese Navy Sinks Two British Warships (1941)

Japanese aggression in late 1941 prompted Britain to send two of their largest warships—HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse—to the Pacific as a deterrent. However, war in the Pacific escalated with the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7. Three days later, Japanese forces destroyed the Prince of Wales and Repulse near Singapore. The warships were the first sunk by aircraft while at sea. How did British Prime Minister Winston Churchill react to the sinkings? More… Discuss