In “FDR’s ‘Day of Infamy’ Speech: Crafting a Call to Arms,” Prologue shows you pages from all the drafts, as well as the transcribed version of his actual delivery to Congress on December 8, 1941.Īnd for the record, Roosevelt never used the term “Day of Infamy ” he said “a date which will live in infamy. The six-minute speech ended with a request for a declaration of war, which Congress approved within hours. And there’s even a “deity” paragraph inserted by top Presidential assistant Harry Hopkins. Prologue, the Quarterly of the National Archives, takes you through the various drafts of FDR’s so-called “Day of Infamy” speech, with images of pages with his hand-written changes in wording and updates on Japanese attacks on other U.S. We know, of course, that when FDR finished his wordsmithing of the speech that the first line, the one best remembered, turned out a little different: “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” Slowly and carefully, he dictated the rest of the speech, and Tully typed up the first draft for his review. 1.” In the opening sentence, he changed “world history” to “infamy” and “simultaneously” to “suddenly.” At one point, he considered putting the words “without warning” at the end of the sentence but later crossed them out. A Day of World History Infamy Analyzing FDR’s Pearl Harbor Address A Primary Source Lesson Plan The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, shocked the nation and led to a declaration of war by the United States against Japan the following day. “Yesterday, December seventh, 1941, a date which will live in world history,” he began, “the United States was simultaneously and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the empire of Japan.” Franklin Roosevelt’s changes to the first draft of his speech are clearly visible on “Draft No. Two of Roosevelt’s speechwriters were out of town, so the President summoned his secretary, Grace Tully, to take down dictation as he “drafted” one of the most famous speeches of the 20th century to deliver to Congress the next day. Hawaii was the home of the Pacific fleet, along with thousands of soldiers and sailors to man them. It was still unclear what the loss was in lives and ships and planes, but it would be high. Roosevelt learned that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, just before 8 a.m.
The telephone rang, and the White House operator put through the call. Speaker, and Members of the Senate and House of Representatives: Yesterday, December 7, 1941a date which will live in infamythe United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. It was a favorite activity and one that allowed him to shut out the troubles of the world, if only for a little while. Day Of Infamy Speech Franklin Roosevelt DecemMr. Early on a quiet Sunday afternoon in December 1941, the President of the United States was in his study at the White House working on his stamp album.