In late 1995 amidst heated debate over the blame placed on Rear Adm. Husband E. Kimmel and Maj. Gen. Walter C. Short for the devastation of the attack on Pearl Harbor and their subsequent demotions, the department of defense ordered its own investigation into the matter. This investigation was the only official inquiry made into the appropriateness of posthumously promoting Kimmel and Short to the ranks they held prior to the attack. As the first investigation to be conducted outside the Army and Navy establishments, it took a fresh look at the controversy.

This book reproduces the complete report issued by the investigators with added commentary and an explanation of what it all means by coauthors Fred Borch and Daniel Martinez. Borch was the Army's representative on the team conducting the investigation, and his firsthand knowledge contributes significantly to the analysis presented. Martinez, an acknowledged expert on the attack, gives an important historical perspective to the study. A foreword by Donald Goldstein, part of Gordon Prange's research-writing team for many years, gives further insights in what happened and why on that fateful December day.