90 Miles From Tyranny : August 14, 1945: Japan’s surrender made public on Victory over Japan Day, (V-J Day).

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Friday, August 14, 2026

August 14, 1945: Japan’s surrender made public on Victory over Japan Day, (V-J Day).





Japan’s unconditional surrender to the Allies is made public on V-J Day, or Victory over Japan Day, in an official announcement on August 14, 1945. (Because of time zone differences, it was August 15 in Japan.) Japan formally surrendered in writing two weeks later, on September 2.

Even though Japan’s War Council, urged by Emperor Hirohito, had already submitted a declaration of surrender to the Allies via ambassadors on August 10, fighting continued between the Japanese and the Soviets in Manchuria and between the Japanese and the United States in the South Pacific.

In fact, two days after the Council agreed to surrender, a Japanese submarine attacked the Oak Hill, an American landing ship, and the Thomas F. Nickel, an American destroyer, both east of Okinawa.

After the devastating bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the leadership of Japanese emperor Hirohito was put to the test.3:33m watch

On the afternoon of August 14, Japanese radio announced that an Imperial Proclamation was soon to be made, accepting the terms of unconditional surrender drawn up at the Potsdam Conference. That proclamation had already been recorded by the emperor.



The news did not go over well in Japan, as more than 1,000 Japanese soldiers stormed the Imperial Palace in an attempt to find the proclamation and prevent its being transmitted to the Allies. Soldiers still loyal to Emperor Hirohito repulsed the attackers.

That evening, General Korechika Anami, the member of the War Council most adamantly against surrender, committed ritualistic suicide by seppuku. His reason: to atone for the Japanese army’s defeat, and to be spared having to hear his emperor speak the words of surrender.

At the White House, U.S. president Harry S. Truman relayed the news to the American people, and V-J Day celebrations broke out in Washington, D.C., New York City, San Francisco and in cities and towns across the country and around the world.


More This Day In History:

June 26, 1948, the United States launched the Berlin Airlift, known as "Operation Vittles"
June 28, 1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand Is Assassinated
June 30, 1908 The Tunguska explosion (or Tunguska event)
July 1, 1863: The Battle Of Gettysburg Begins
July 2, 1937 Amelia Earhart disappears
July 3, 1775: George Washington Takes Command Of The Continental Army
July 4, 1776: The Declaration Of Independence Is AdoptedJuly 13, 1949: Pope Pius XII excommunicates all communist Catholics
July 17, 1918: The Romanov Family Is Executed By Communists
July 19, 1799: The Rosetta Stone Is Discovered
July 21, 1861: The First Battle of Bull Run
July 22, 1298: William Wallace Is Defeated At The Battle Of Falkirk
July 25, 1898 - U.S. forces invade Puerto Rico
July 26, 1847 - Liberia proclaimed its independence: Wakanda Realized.
July 29, 1588: The Spanish Armada Is Defeated
August 3, 1492: Christopher Columbus Sets Sail For The New World
August 4, 1790: Alexander Hamilton creates Coast Guard to intercept smugglers that avoided Tariffs
August 5, 1620: The Mayflower Makes Its Failed First Attempt To Depart England
August 12, 1898: Armistice ends the Spanish-American War
August 13, 1521: The Aztec Capital Falls To Hernán Cortés

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