World War II Database

Admiral Kimmel’s Story is an essential book for anyone with an interest in the American side of the attack on Pearl Harbor, particularly the American intelligence failures prior to the attack. Published in 1955, Husband Kimmel uses in his own words to lay out the case he was never allowed to fully present at any public commission or tribunal. With document after document, Kimmel makes the case that his pre-attack preparations in Hawaiʻi, based on the information he had, were not only reasonable and complete but also met with the complete approval and endorsement of his superiors in Washington, DC. He goes on to describe the delays, misdirection, and bare-faced lies he faced in trying to gain access to the intelligence documents he never knew about before the attack and only learned of, little by little, years later.

This book is Admiral Kimmel making his own case, so it is expected to be a little self-serving. Even so, with his primary reliance on the written record to tell his story, he leaves little wiggle-room that the case he makes is strong. He states plainly many times that he was never provided with the essential intelligence material that was known to several of his superiors in Washington. In the years since the attack, and even since the release of this book, no document or communiqué has been presented to show that any of that intelligence was ever shared with him.

Kimmel’s writing style was very easy, using plain language and without military jargon. Even though he was making his case with document after document, he managed to keep the text anything but dry and the book was difficult to put down; I finished the final two-thirds of it in one sitting.

I was fortunate that I had read Edwin Layton’s And I Was There before reading Admiral Kimmel’s Story. Layton had been Kimmel’s intelligence officer up to and through the Pearl Harbor attack and his book detailed his assessment of the intelligence situation in Hawaiʻi before the attack. This offered some additional background and more context for the case Kimmel was making. Kimmel was a little more hesitant than Layton to name names of those responsible for the intelligence blackout in Hawaiʻi, but Kimmel made it clear where he felt the responsibility rested.

I am very happy to have read this book and only wish I had gotten around to it sooner. I would not only recommend this book without hesitation, but I believe it is essential that this book be read. Without a full and honest understanding of Kimmel’s position, the intelligence situation at Pearl Harbor cannot be discussed competently.