The surrender of Japan ended the Second World War, and the formal instrument of surrender was signed on board the American battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Japanese representatives, including Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijiro Umezu, signed in front of General Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and representatives of the Allied nations. Japan had announced its willingness to surrender in mid-August, after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet declaration of war, when Emperor Hirohito broadcast the decision in a radio address. The ceremony was followed by the Allied occupation of Japan, led by the United States, which lasted until 1952.
Before and after
- 17 August 1945Publication of Animal Farm
- 17 August 1945Publication of Indonesia Raya
- 28 August 1945Occupation of Japan
- from 2 September 1945 to 2 July 1976North Vietnam
- 2 September 1945Surrender of Japan
- 11 September 1945Birth of Franz Beckenbauer
- 12 September 1945Founding of VfL Wolfsburg
- from 13 September 1945 to 30 March 1946War in southern Vietnam
- 24 October 1945Founding of United Nations
More in Wars, politics & history
- 6 August 1945Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
- from January 1978 to February 1979Iranian Revolution
- from 25 December 1979 to 15 February 1989Soviet-Afghan War
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- from 15 March 2011 to 8 December 2024Syrian Civil War
- 28 February 20262026 Iran War
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.
