Husband Edward Kimmel (February 26, 1882 - May 14, 1958) was an admiral in the United States Navy. He was the commander of the Pacific Fleet at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Along with Army Lieutenant General Walter Short, Admiral Kimmel became a scapegoat for American unpreparedness prior to the attack, and their careers were effectively ruined. He was relieved of his command in mid-December 1941 and reverted to the rank of Rear Admiral (although this was not specifically retaliatory, as before the outbreak of the war it was standard procedure for no American officer to hold a higher rank than Major General, with officers being brevetted temporarily for high command). He retired a few months later, in March, 1942.

Kimmel died in 1958 in Groton, Connecticut.

On May 25, 1999, the United States Senate passed a resolution exonerating Kimmel and Short. "They were denied vital intelligence that was available in Washington," said Senator William V. Roth Jr. (R-DE), noting that they had been made scapegoats by the Pentagon. Senator Strom Thurmond (R-SC) called Kimmel and Short "the two final victims of Pearl Harbor." (1)

External link

• History.navy.mil biography of Kimmel