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SURRENDER OF JAPAN

"The result of the futile and senseless German resistance to the might of the aroused free peoples of the world stands forth in awful clarity as an example to the people of Japan."

Potsdam Declaration, signed by PRESIDENT TRUMAN, PRIME MINISTER CHURCHILL, and concurred in by CHIANG KAI-SHEK, President of the National Government of China, calling on the Japanese to surrender unconditionally.

Potsdam. July 26, 1945. [1]

(1) We-the President of the United States, the President of the National Government of the Republic of China, and the Prime Minister of Great Britain, representing the hundreds of millions of our countrymen, have conferred and agree that Japan shall be given an opportunity to end this war.

(2) The prodigious land, sea and air forces of the United States, the British Empire and of China, many times reinforced by their armies and air fleets from the west, are poised to strike the final blows upon Japan. This military power is sustained and inspired by the determination of all the Allied Nations to prosecute the war against Japan until she ceases to resist.

[2] Department of State, Radio Bulletin #178, July 26, 1945. 

(3) The result of the futile and senseless German resistance to the might of the aroused free peoples of the world stands forth in awful clarity as an example to the people of Japan. The might that now converges on Japan is immeasurably greater than that which, when applied to the resisting Nazis, necessarily laid waste to the lands, the industry and the method of life of the whole German people. The full application of our military power, backed by our resolve, will mean the inevitable and complete destruction of the Japanese armed forces and just as inevitably the utter devastation of the Japanese homeland.

(4) The time has come for Japan to decide whether she will continue to be controlled by those self-willed militaristic advisers whose unintelligent calculations have brought the Empire of Japan to the threshold of annihilation, or whether she will follow the path of reason.

(5) Following are our terms. We will not deviate from them. There are no alternatives. We shall brook no delay.

(6) There must be eliminated for all time the authority and influence of those who have deceived and misled the people of Japan into embarking on world conquest, for we insist that a new order of peace, security and justice will be impossible until irresponsible militarism is driven from the world.

(7) Until such a new order is established and until there is convincing proof that Japan's war-making power is destroyed, points in Japanese territory to be designated by the Allies shall be occupied to secure the achievement of the basic objectives we are here setting forth.

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(8) The terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out and Japanese sovereignty shall be limited to the islands of Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikoku and such minor islands as we determine.

(9) The Japanese military forces, after being completely disarmed, shall be permitted to return to their homes with the opportunity to lead peaceful and productive lives.

(10) We do not intend that the Japanese shall be enslaved as a race or destroyed as a nation, but stern justice shall be meted out to all war criminals, including those who have visited cruelties upon our prisoners. The Japanese Government shall remove all obstacles to the revival and strengthening of democratic tendencies among the Japanese people. Freedom of speech, of religion, and of thought, as well as respect for the fundamental human rights shall be established.

(11) Japan shall be permitted to maintain such industries as will sustain her economy and permit the exaction of just reparations in kind, but not those which would enable her to re-arm for war. To this end, access to, as distinguished from control of, raw materials shall be permitted. Eventual Japanese, participation in world trade relations shall be permitted.

(12) The occupying forces of the Allies shall be withdrawn from Japan as soon as these objectives have been accomplished and there has been established in accordance with the freely expressed will of the Japanese people a peacefully inclined and responsible government.

(13) We call upon the government of Japan to proclaim now the unconditional surrender of all

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Japanese armed forces, and to provide proper and adequate assurances of their good faith in such action. The alternative for Japan is prompt and utter destruction.

"The Japanese Government are ready to accept the terms enumerated in the joint declaration which was issued at Potsdam on July 26, 1945 . . ."

Japanese offer of surrender, exchange of correspondence between the Secretary of State, JAMES F. BYRNES, and MAX GRÄSSLI, Charge d'Affaires ad interim of Switzerland, August 10 through the 14th, 1945. [2]

GRÄSSLI Letter of August 10, 1945.

AUGUST 10, 1945

SIR:

I have the honor to inform you that the Japanese Minister to Switzerland, upon instructions received from his Government, has requested the Swiss Political Department to advise the Government of the United States of America of the following:

"In obedience to the gracious command of His Majesty the Emperor who, ever anxious to enhance the cause of world peace, desires earnestly to bring about a speedy termination of hostilities with a view to saving mankind from the calamities to be imposed upon them by further continuation of the war, the Japanese Government several weeks ago asked the

[2] Department of State Bulletin, August 12, 1945. For Potsdam 
Declaration see preceding document. 

Soviet Government, with which neutral relations then prevailed, to render good offices in restoring peace vis-ā-vis the enemy powers. Unfortunately, these efforts in the interest of peace having failed, the Japanese Government in conformity with the august wish of His Majesty to restore the general peace and, desiring to put an end to the untold sufferings entailed by war as quickly as possible, have decided upon the following.

"The Japanese Government are ready to accept the terms enumerated in the joint declaration which was issued at Potsdam on July 26th, 1945, by the heads of the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, and China, and later subscribed by the Soviet Government, [3] with the understanding that the said declaration does not comprise any demand which prejudices the prerogatives of His Majesty as a Sovereign Ruler.

"The Japanese Government sincerely hope that this understanding is warranted and desire keenly that an explicit indication to that effect will be speedily forthcoming."

In transmitting the above message the Japanese Minister added that his Government begs the Government of the United States to forward its answer through the intermediary of Switzerland. Similar requests are being transmitted to the Governments of Great Britain and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics through the intermediary of Sweden, as well as to the Government of China through the intermediary of Switzerland. The Chinese Minister at Berne has already been informed of the fore

[3] In its declaration of war against Japan, effective as of Aug. 9 1945, 
the Soviet Government retroactively joined in the declaration of July 26, 
1945, issued at Potsdam, Germany, defining terms of surrender for Japan. 

going through the channel of the Swiss Political Department.

Please be assured that I am at your disposal at any time to accept for and forward to my Government the reply of the Government of the United States.

Accept [etc.]

                                              GRÄSSLI
                                              Charge d'Affaires ad interim
                                              of Switzerland

The Honorable
JAMES F. BYRNES 
Secretary of State. 

BYRNES Reply of August 11, 1945. [4]

AUGUST 11, 1945

SIR:

I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your note of August 10, and in reply to inform you that the President of the United States has directed me to send to you for transmission by your Government to the Japanese Government the following message on behalf of the Governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and China:

"With regard to the Japanese Government's message accepting the terms of the Potsdam proclamation, but containing the statement, 'with the understanding that the said declaration does not comprise any demand which prejudices the prerogatives of His Majesty as a sovereign ruler,' our position is as follows:

"From the moment of surrender the authority of

[4] Ibid. 

the Emperor and the Japanese Government to rule the state shall be subject to the Supreme Commander of the Allied powers who will take such steps as he deems proper to effectuate the surrender terms.

"The Emperor will be required to authorize and ensure the signature by the Government of Japan and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters of the surrender terms necessary to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration, and shall issue his commands to all the Japanese military, naval and air authorities and to all the forces under their control wherever located to cease active operations and to surrender their arms, and to issue such other orders as the Supreme Commander may require to give effect to the surrender terms.

"Immediately upon the surrender the Japanese Government shall transport prisoners of war and civilian internees to places of safety, as directed, where they can quickly be placed aboard Allied transports.

"The ultimate form of government of Japan shall, in accordance with the Potsdam Declaration, be established by the freely expressed will of the Japanese people.

"The armed forces of the Allied Powers will remain in Japan until the purposes set forth in the Potsdam Declaration are achieved."

Accept [etc.]

                                                       JAMES F. BYRNES
                                                       Secretary of State

Mr. MAX GRÄSSLI
Charge d'Affaires ad interim of 
Switzerland. 

GRÄSSLI Letter of August 14, 1945. [5]

AUGUST 14, 1945.

SIR:

I have the honor to refer to your note of August 11, in which you requested me to transmit to my Government the reply of the Governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and China to the message from the Japanese Government which was communicated in my note of August 10.

At 20.10 today (Swiss Time) the Japanese Minister to Switzerland conveyed the following written statement to the Swiss Government for transmission to the four Allied governments:

"Communication of the Japanese Government of August 14, 1945, addressed to the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China:

"With reference to the Japanese Government's note of August 10 regarding their acceptance of the provisions of the Potsdam declaration and the reply of the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China sent by American Secretary of State Byrnes under the date of August 11, the Japanese Government have the honor to communicate to the Governments of the four powers as follows:

"1. His Majesty the Emperor has issued an Imperial rescript regarding Japan's acceptance of the provisions of the Potsdam declaration.

"2. His Majesty the Emperor is prepared to authorize and ensure the signature by his Government

[5] Department of State Bulletin, August 19, 1945.

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and the Imperial General Headquarters of the necessary terms for carrying out the provisions of the Potsdam declaration. His Majesty is also prepared to issue his commands to all the military, naval, and air authorities of Japan and all the forces under their control wherever located to cease active operations, to surrender arms and to issue such other orders as may be required by the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces for the execution of the above-mentioned terms."

Accept [etc.]

                                               GRÄSSLI
                                               Charge d'Affaires ad interim 
                                               of Switzerland 

AUGUST 14, 1945.

SIR:

With reference to your communication of today's date, transmitting the reply of the Japanese Government to the communication which I sent through you to the Japanese Government on August 11, on behalf of the Governments of the United States, China, the United Kingdom, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which I regard as full acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration and of my statement of August 11, 1945, I have the honor to inform you that the President of the United States has directed that the following message be sent to you for transmission to the Japanese Government:

"You are to proceed as follows:

"(1) Direct prompt cessation of hostilities by

[6] Ibid. 

Japanese forces, informing the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers of the effective date and hour of such cessation.

"(2) Send emissaries at once to the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers with information of the disposition of the Japanese forces and commanders, and fully empowered to make any arrangements directed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers to enable him and his accompanying forces to arrive at the place designated by him to receive the formal surrender.

"(3) For the purpose of receiving such surrender and carrying it into effect, General of the Army Douglas MacArthur has been designated as the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and he will notify the Japanese Government of the time, place and other details of the formal surrender."

Accept [etc.]

                                                      JAMES F. BYRNES
                                                      Secretary of State

MAX GRÄSSLI, Esquire,
Charge d'Affaires ad interim of Switzerland

"I deem this reply a full acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration which specifies the unconditional surrender of Japan."

Statement by PRESIDENT TRUMAN on the Japanese notes accepting the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. [7]

Washington. August 14, 1945.

I have received this afternoon a message from the Japanese Government in reply to the message forwarded to that Government by the Secretary of State on August 11. I deem this reply a full acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration which specifies the unconditional surrender of Japan. In the reply there is no qualification.

Arrangements are now being made for the formal signing of surrender terms at the earliest possible moment.

General Douglas MacArthur has been appointed the Supreme Allied Commander to receive the Japanese surrender. Great Britain, Russia, and China will be represented by high-ranking officers.

Meantime, the Allied armed forces have been ordered to suspend offensive action.

The proclamation of V-J Day must wait upon the formal signing of the surrender terms by Japan.

Following is the Japanese Government's message accepting our terms:

"Communication of the Japanese Government August 14, 1945, addressed to the Governments

[7] Department of State Bulletin, August 19, 1945.

the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China:

"With reference to the Japanese Government's note of August 10 regarding their acceptance of the provisions of the Potsdam declaration and the reply of the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China sent by American Secretary of State Byrnes under the date of August 11, the Japanese Government have the honor to communicate to the Governments of the four powers as follows:

"1. His Majesty the Emperor has issued an Imperial rescript regarding Japan's acceptance of the provisions of the Potsdam declaration.

"2. His Majesty the Emperor is prepared to authorize and ensure the signature by his Government and the Imperial General Headquarters of the necessary terms for carrying out the provisions of the Potsdam declaration. His Majesty is also prepared to issue his commands to all the military, naval, and air authorities of Japan and all the forces under their control wherever located to cease active operations, to surrender arms and to issue such other orders as may be required by the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces for the execution of the above-mentioned terms."

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"It is my earnest hope that pending the formal accomplishment of the instrument of surrender armistice conditions may prevail on every front and that a bloodless surrender may be effectuated."

Statement by GENERAL MACARTHUR, Supreme Allied Commander, after meeting with the Japanese emissaries on the terms and details of surrender.

Manila. August 20, 1945. [8]

The Japanese emissaries have reported to general headquarters. They imparted all information required and instructions of the United Nations are being conveyed by them to the Government of Japan and to Japanese Imperial Headquarters. In my capacity as Supreme Commander for the Allied powers I shall soon proceed to Japan with accompanying forces composed of ground, naval and air elements. Subject to weather that will permit landings, it is anticipated that the instrument of surrender will be signed within ten days.

At that time, having accepted the general surrender of the Japanese armed forces for the United States, the Chinese Republic, the United Kingdom and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and in the interest of other United Nations at war with Japan, I shall direct Japanese Imperial Headquarters to issue general orders which will instruct Japanese commanders wherever situated to surrender uncon-

[8] New York Times, August 21, 1945. 

ditionally themselves and all of the forces under their control to the appropriate theatre commander.

Responsibility for that portion of the southwest Pacific area which lies south of the Philippines will be assumed by British and Australian commanders.

It is my earnest hope that pending the formal accomplishment of the instrument of surrender armistice conditions may prevail on every front and that a bloodless surrender may be effectuated. [9]

Occupation and surrender terms for Japan.

GENERAL MACARTHUR'S statement on surrender terms for Japan.

Manila. August 23, 1945. [10]

(1) Weather permitting, air-borne forces accompanying the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers will land at Atsugi Airdrome, in the vicinity of Tokyo, and naval and marine forces will land in the vicinity of Yokosuka Naval Base on Aug. 28, 1945. The instrument of surrender will be signed in the Tokyo area on Aug. 31.

(2) Requirements of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers presented to Japanese representatives at Manila, Philippine Islands, Aug. 20, 1945:

Requirements for entry of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and his accompanying forces.

[9] General MacArthur was appointed Supreme Allied Commander to receive 
the Japanese surrender by President Truman on August 14, 1945. See 
preceding document.
[10] New York Times, August 23, 1945. 

(1) The Japanese Imperial Government and Japanese Imperial General Headquarters will require execution of the following requirements effective 1800 hours [6 P. M.] Aug. 24, 1945:

(a) Japanese armed forces and civilian aviation authorities will insure that all Japanese military, naval and civil aircraft in Japan remain on ground, on water or aboard ship until further notification of disposition to be made of them.

(b) Japanese or Japanese-controlled military, naval or merchant vessels of all types in Japanese waters will be maintained without damage and will undertake no movement beyond voyages in progress pending instructions of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Vessels at sea will immediately render harmless and throw overboard explosives of all types. Vessels not at sea will immediately remove explosives of all types to safe storage ashore.

(c) Merchant vessels under 100 gross tons engaged in civilian supply activities in Japanese waters are excepted from foregoing instructions. Vessels in Tokyo Bay engaged in evacuation of personnel from Yokosuka Naval Base are also excepted.

(d) Japanese or Japanese-controlled ships at sea, wherever located, will report their positions in plain language immediately to the nearest United States, British or Soviet radio station. They will proceed to the nearest Allied port or such port as the Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet, may direct and will await further orders. Ships will burn navigational lights at night and will display searchlights with beams held vertically.

(e) Japanese or Japanese-controlled submarines, wherever located, will remain on the surface, fly a

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black flag or pennant and show lights at night. They will report their positions in accordance with the next preceding paragraph and will proceed on the surface to the nearest of the following ports: Agana, Guam; Midway Island or Subic Bay, Philippine Islands. Upon arrival at a point ten miles from entrance to port, communicate with port and lie to until boarded by Allied naval forces.

Safety and well-being of all United Nations prisoners of war and civilian internees will be scrupulously preserved to include the administrative and supply services essential to provide adequate food, shelter, clothing and medical care until such responsibility is undertaken by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Local delivery of supplies dropped for United Nations prisoners of war and internees will be insured.

Each camp or place of detention of United Nations prisoners of war and civilian internees will be marked with letters PW twenty feet in height in yellow on black background, reading south to north.

(2) The Japanese Imperial Government and Japanese Imperial Headquarters will require execution of the following requirements effective 1800 hours Aug. 25:

(a) All mines, minefields and other obstacles to safe movement by land, sea and air into the Tokyo Bay area will be removed and, pending such action, all safety lanes will be kept open and clearly marked.

(b) All aids to navigation will be re-established and, pending the accomplishment of this task, the existing war system of navigational lighting will be maintained except that all dimmed lights will be shown at full brilliancy.

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(c) Piloting services will continue to operate in the Tokyo Bay area and all pilots will be held in their normal stations ready for service and equipped with charts.

(d) Japanese naval and other personnel concerned with operation of ports will remain at their stations and continue to carry out their normal duties.

(e) Immobilize all vessels and craft, of whatever type, in Tokyo Bay and approaches thereto.

(f) Remove breech-locks from and fully depress and render inoperative all coast-defense antiaircraft and other fixed and mobile artillery of all calibers within the Tokyo Bay area.

(g) Completely disarm all craft in Tokyo Bay area and render inoperative all weapons, of whatever type, which may exist in the area of initial evacuations, in addition to those specifically set forth herein.

(3) The Japanese Imperial Government and Japanese Imperial Headquarters will require execution of the following requirements effective 1800 hours Aug. 27, 1945:

(a) Prepare Yokosuka Naval Base for occupation and possible operation by United States naval units.

(b) Evacuate all combatant units of Japanese armed forces from the area of initial evacuation and confine them to limits of their assigned bivouacs. There is excepted all civil police and gendarmerie, which will be maintained as necessary to prevent outbreaks, sniper fire and other overt acts and to prohibit and prevent any substantial gathering of the populace. There are also excepted such unarmed military personnel as are necessary for normal caretaking functions. Firearms employed by civil police and gendarmerie will be limited to small arms. On

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Oshima the personnel may remain but will be disarmed.

(c) Provide accommodations, billets and camp area facilities and utilities for the Supreme Commander.

(4) The Japanese Imperial Government and Japanese Imperial Headquarters will require execution of the following requirements effective 0600 hours [6 A. M.] Aug. 28, 1945:

(a) Make available members of the Imperial General Staff for conference with representatives of the Supreme Commander for the Allied powers at Atsugi Airdrome immediately upon arrival and at such times and places thereafter as may be directed for prompt settlement of all matters requiring attention.

(b) Make available 125 local guides and interpreters familiar with "initial evacuations."

(5) To insure safe entry into Tokyo Bay area, a Japanese ship will, as soon as practicable and not later than 0800 hours [8 A. M.] Aug. 26, 1945, meet United States naval forces twenty miles bearing 135 degrees from Oshima and will lead those forces into Sagami Wan [Bay] and will supply twelve pilots to conduct certain forces into Tokyo Bay when and as directed by the senior United States naval commander present. These pilots will be equipped with complete charts showing the location of all underwater defenses, mine fields and other obstructions, and also all aids to navigation.

(6) The following general measures are being taken by 0600 hours Aug. 25, 1945, by forces of the Allied Powers within their several areas of action:

(a) United Nations aircraft will conduct daylight

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and night surveillance flights over Japan and Japanese-controlled areas.

(b) United Nations air forces will drop supplies to United Nations prisoners-of-war and internee camps and places of detention.

(c) United Nations naval forces will occupy the coastal waters of Japan and Japanese-controlled areas.

(d) United Nations' naval forces may start minesweeping operations at any of the following ports: Osaka, Sasebo, Nagasaki, Takasu (Kagoshima Wan), Jinsen (Chemulpo), Tsingtao, Shanghai, Canton, Hong Kong and Singapore.

In the above duties they will be unmolested.

INSTRUMENT OF SURRENDER of all Japanese forces to GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR, Supreme Allied Commander.

Tokyo Bay. Aboard the battleship Missouri. September 2, 1945. [11]

(1) We, acting by command of and in behalf of the Emperor of Japan, the Japanese Government, and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters, hereby accept provisions in the declaration issued by the heads of the Governments of the United States, China, and Great Britain July 26, 1945, at Potsdam, and subsequently adhered to by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which four powers are hereafter referred to as the Allied Powers.

[11] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945. 

(2) We hereby proclaim the unconditional surrender to the Allied Powers of the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters and of all Japanese armed forces and all armed forces under Japanese control wherever situated.

(3) We hereby command all Japanese forces, wherever situated, and the Japanese people to ceases hostilities forthwith, to preserve and save from damage all ships, aircraft, and military and civil property and to comply with all requirements which may be imposed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers or by agencies of the Japanese Government at his direction.

(4) We hereby command the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters to issue at once orders to the commanders of all Japanese forces and all forces under Japanese control, wherever situated, to surrender unconditionally themselves and all forces under their control. [12]

(5) We hereby command all civil, military, and naval officials to obey and enforce all proclamations, orders, and directives, deemed by the supreme commander for the Allied Powers to be proper to effectuate this surrender and issued by him or under his authority, and we direct all such officials to remain at their posts and to continue to perform their non-combat duties unless specifically relieved by him or under his authority.

(6) We hereby undertake for the Emperor, the Japanese Government, and their successors to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam declaration in good

[12] For instruments of Surrender in other areas-Philippine Islands, 
September 3, 1945; Korea, September 9, 1945; South East Asia, September 
12, 1945-see, The End of the War in the Pacific. National Archives 
Publication No. 46-6. Washington. Government Printing Office, 1945. 

faith, and to issue whatever orders and take whatever action may be required by the supreme commander for the Allied Powers or by any other designated representative of the Allied Powers for the purpose of giving effect to that declaration.

(7) We hereby command the Japanese Imperial Government and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters at once to liberate all Allied prisoners of war and civilian internees now under Japanese control and to provide for their protection, care, maintenance, and immediate transportation to places as directed.

(8) The authority of the Emperor and the Japanese Government to rule the state shall be subject to the supreme commander for the Allied Powers, who will take such steps as he deems proper to effectuate these terms of surrender. [13]

[13] For order of signing see succeeding document. 

". . . it is for us, both victors and vanquished, to rise to that higher dignity which alone benefits the sacred purposes we are about to serve, committing all of our peoples unreservedly to faithful compliance with the undertakings they are here formally to assume."

Statement by GENERAL MACARTHUR preceding the signing of the Surrender Instrument by Japan. Tokyo Bay. Aboard the battleship Missouri. September 2, 1945. [14]

We are gathered here, representative of the major warring powers, to conclude a solemn agreement whereby peace may be restored. The issues, involving divergent ideals and ideologies, have been determined on the battlefields of the world and hence are not for our discussion or debate. Nor is it for us here to meet, representing as we do a majority of the peoples of the earth, in a spirit of distrust, malice, or hatred. But rather it is for us, both victors and vanquished, to rise to that higher dignity which alone benefits the sacred purposes we are about to serve, committing all of our peoples unreservedly to faithful compliance with the undertakings they are here formally to assume.

It is my earnest hope and indeed the hope of all mankind that from this solemn occasion a better

[14] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945. Tokyo is approximately 14 
hours ahead of New York time (E. W. T.). Proceedings incidental to the 
signing of the surrender instrument by Japan took place on Sunday, 
September 2, Japanese time, but Saturday, September 1, Washington time. 

world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past-a world founded upon faith and understanding-a world dedicated to the dignity of man and the fulfillment of his most cherished wish-for freedom, tolerance, and justice.

The terms and conditions upon which the surrender of the Japanese Imperial forces is here to be given and accepted are contained in the instrument of surrender now before you.

As Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, I announce it my firm purpose, in the tradition of the countries I represent, to proceed in the discharge of my responsibilities with justice and tolerance, while taking all necessary dispositions to insure that the terms of surrender are fully, promptly, and faithfully complied with.

I now invite the representatives of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese Government and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters to sign the instrument of surrender at the places indicated.

The Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers will now sign on behalf of the nations at war with Japan.

The representatives of the United States of America will sign now.

The representative of the Republic of China will now sign.

The representative of the United Kingdom will now sign.

The representative of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics will now sign.

The representative of Australia will now sign.

The representative of Canada will now sign.

The representative of France will now sign.

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The representative of the Netherlands will now sign.

The representative of New Zealand will now sign.

Let us pray that peace be now restored to the world, and that God will preserve it always. These proceedings are closed.

". . . Maintain our national strength at a level which will discourage future acts of aggression aimed at the destruction of our way of life."

Statement of ADMIRAL CHESTER W. NIMITZ, Commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet, at the signing of the Surrender Instrument by Japan.

Tokyo Bay. Aboard the battleship Missouri. September 2, 1945. [15]

On board all vessels at sea and in port, and at our many island bases in the Pacific, there is rejoicing and thanksgiving. The long and bitter struggle, which Japan started so treacherously on the 7th of December 1941, is at an end.

I take great pride in the American forces which have helped to win this victory. America can be proud of them. The officers and men of the United States Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and merchant marine who fought in the Pacific have

[15] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945. 

written heroic new chapters in this Nation's military history. I have infinite respect for their courage, resourcefulness, and devotion to duty. We also acknowledge the great contribution to this victory made by our valiant Allies. United we fought and united we prevail.

The port of Tokyo, which was first opened by Commodore Perry in 1853, is now crowded with United States men-of-war. The process of bringing Japan into the family of civilized nations, which was interrupted when Japan launched her program of conquest, will soon begin again.

Today all freedom-loving peoples of the world rejoice in the victory and feel pride in the accomplishments of our combined forces. We also pay tribute to those who defended our freedom at the cost of their lives.

On Guam is a military cemetery in a green valley not far from my headquarters. The ordered rows of white crosses stand as reminders of the heavy cost we have paid for victory. On these crosses are the names of American soldiers, sailors and marines-Culpepper, Tomaino, Sweeney, Bromberg, Depew, Melloy, Ponziani-names that are a cross-section of democracy. They fought together side by side. To them we have a solemn obligation-the obligation to insure that their sacrifice will help to make this a better and safer world in which to live.

To achieve this it will be necessary for the United Nations to enforce rigidly the peace terms that will be imposed upon Japan. It will also be necessary to maintain our national strength at a level which will discourage future acts of aggression aimed at the destruction of our way of life.

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Now we turn to the great tasks of reconstruction and restoration. I am confident that we will be able to apply the same skill, resourcefulness, and keen thinking to these problems as were applied to the problems of winning the victory.

"A great tragedy has ended. A great victory has been won."

Address by GENERAL MACARTHUR after the signing of the Surrender Instrument by Japan.

Tokyo Bay. Aboard the battleship Missouri. September 2, 1945. [16]

My fellow countrymen, today the guns are silent. A great tragedy has ended. A great victory has been won. The skies no longer rain death-the seas bear only commerce-men everywhere walk upright in the sunlight. The entire world is quietly at peace. The holy mission has been completed, and in reporting this to you, the people, I speak for the thousands of silent lips, forever stilled among the jungles and the beaches and in the deep waters of the Pacific which marked the way. I speak for the unnamed brave millions homeward bound to take up the challenge of that future which they did so much to salvage from the brink of disaster.

As I look back on the long tortuous trail from those grim days of Bataan and Corregidor, when an entire world lived in fear; when democracy was on the

[16] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945.

We have known the bitterness of defeat and the exultation of triumph, and from both we have learned there can be no turning back. We must go forward to preserve in peace what we won in war.

A new era is upon us. Even the lesson of victory itself brings with it profound concern, both for our future security and the survival of civilization. The destructiveness of the war potential, through progressive advances in scientific discovery, has in fact now reached a point which revises the traditional concept of war.

Men since the beginning of time have sought peace. Various methods through the ages have attempted to devise an international process to prevent or settle disputes between nations. From the very start workable methods were found insofar as individual citizens were concerned, but the mechanics of an instrumentality of larger international scope have never been successful. Military alliance, balances of power, League of Nations all in turn failed, leaving the only path to be by way of the crucible of war.

The utter destructiveness of war now blots out this alternative. We have had our last chance. If we do not now devise some greater and more equitable system Armageddon will be at our door. The problem basically is theological and involves a spiritual recrudescence and improvement of human character that will synchronize with our almost matchless advance in science, art, literature, and all material and cultural developments of the past 2,000

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years. It must be of the spirit if we are to save the flesh.

We stand in Tokyo today reminiscent of our countryman, Commodore Perry, 92 years ago. His purpose was to bring to Japan an era of enlightenment and progress by lifting the veil of isolation to the friendship, trade, and commerce of the world. But alas the knowledge thereby gained of western science was forged into an instrument of oppression and human enslavement. Freedom of expression, freedom of action, even freedom of thought were denied through suppression of liberal education, through appeal to superstition, and through the application of force.

We are committed by the Potsdam Declaration of principles to see that the Japanese people are liberated from this condition of slavery. It is my purpose to implement this commitment just as rapidly as the armed forces are demobilized and other essential steps taken to neutralize the war potential. The energy of the Japanese race, if properly directed, will enable expansion vertically rather than horizontally. If the talents of the race are turned into constructive channels, the country can lift itself from its present deplorable state into a position of dignity.

To the Pacific basin has come the vista of a new emancipated world. Today, freedom is on the offensive, democracy is on the march. Today, in Asia as well as in Europe, unshackled peoples are tasting the full sweetness of liberty, the relief from fear.

In the Philippines, America has evolved a model for this new free world of Asia. In the Philippines, America has demonstrated that peoples of the East

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and peoples of the West may walk side by side in mutual respect and with mutual benefit. The history of our sovereignty there has now the full confidence of the East.

And so, my fellow-countrymen, today I report to you that your sons and daughters have served you well and faithfully with the calm, deliberate, determined fighting spirit of the American soldier and sailor based upon a tradition of historical trait, as against the fanaticism of any enemy supported only by mythological fiction, their spiritual strength and power has brought us through to victory. They are homeward bound-take care of them.

"We command all Our people forthwith to cease hostilities, to lay down their arms and faithfully to carry out all the provisions of the Instrument of Surrender. . ."

Imperial Rescript by HIROHITO, Emperor of Japan, prior to the signing of the surrender instrument.

Tokyo. September 2, 1945. [17]

Accepting the terms set forth in Declaration issued by the heads of the Governments of the United States, Great Britain, and China on July 26th, 1945, at Potsdam and subsequently adhered to by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, We have commanded the Japanese Imperial Government and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters to sign on

[17] The End of the War in the Pacific/Surrender Documents in Facsimile
. National Archives Publication No. 46-6. Washington. Government 
Printing Office, 1945.

Our behalf the Instrument of Surrender presented by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and to issue General Orders to the Military and Naval Forces in accordance with the direction of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. We command all Our people forthwith to cease hostilities, to lay down their arms and faithfully to carry out all the provisions of Instrument of Surrender and the General Orders issued by the Japanese Imperial Government and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters hereunder.

Order for the unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces and Japanese-controlled forces at home and abroad by the Imperial General Headquarters of Japan.

Tokyo. September 2, 1945. [18]

(1) The Imperial General Headquarters by direction of the Emperor, and pursuant to the surrender to the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers of all Japanese armed forces by the Emperor, hereby orders all of its commanders in Japan and abroad to cause the Japanese armed forces and Japanese-controlled forces under their command to cease hostilities at once, to lay down their arms, to remain in their present locations and to surrender uncondi-

[18] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945.

tionally to commanders acting on behalf of the United States, the Republic of China, the United Kingdom and the British Empire, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, as indicated hereafter or as may be further directed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

Immediate contact will be made with the indicated commanders, or their designated representatives, subject to any changes in detail prescribed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and their instructions will be completely and immediately carried out.

(a) The senior Japanese commanders and all ground, sea, air, and auxiliary forces within China (excluding Manchuria), Formosa, and French Indochina north of 16 degrees north latitude shall surrender to Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek.

(b) The senior Japanese commanders and all ground, sea, air, and auxiliary forces within Manchuria, Korea north of 28 degrees north latitude and Karafuto shall surrender to the commander in chief of Soviet forces in the Far East.

(c) The senior Japanese commanders and all ground, sea, air, and auxiliary forces within the Andamans, Nicobars, Burma, Thailand, French Indo-China south of 16 degrees north latitude, Malaya, Borneo, Netherlands Indies, New Guinea, Bismarks, and the Solomons, shall surrender to the Supreme Allied Commander, South East Asia Command or the commanding general, Australians, to be arranged between them, and the details of this paragraph then prepared by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

(d) The senior Japanese commanders and all

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ground, sea, air, and auxiliary forces in the Japanese-mandated islands, Ryukus, Bonins and other Pacific islands shall surrender to the Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet.

(e) The Imperial General Headquarters, its senior commanders, and all ground, sea, air, and auxiliary forces in the main islands of Japan, minor islands adjacent thereto, Korea south of 38 degrees north latitude, and the Philippines shall surrender to the commander in chief United States Army Forces in the Pacific.

(f) The above indicated commanders are the only representatives of the Allied Powers empowered to accept surrender, and all surrenders of Japanese forces shall be made only to them or to their representatives.

The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters further orders its commanders in Japan and abroad to disarm completely all forces of Japan or under Japanese control, wherever they may be situated, and to deliver intact and in safe and good condition all weapons and equipment at such time and at such places as may be prescribed by the Allied commanders indicated above.

Pending further instructions, the Japanese police force in the main islands of Japan will be exempt from this disarmament provision.

The police force will remain at their posts and shall be held responsible for the preservation of law and order. The strength and arms of such a police force will be prescribed.

(2) The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters shall furnish to the supreme commander for the Allied Powers within (time limit) of receipt of this order

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complete information with respect to Japan and all areas under Japanese control as follows:

(a) Lists of all land, air, and antiaircraft units showing locations and strengths in officers and men.

(b) Lists of all aircraft, military, naval and civil, giving complete information as to the number, type, location, and condition of such aircraft.

(c) Lists of all Japanese and Japanese-controlled naval vessels, surface and submarine and auxiliary naval craft in or out of commission and under construction, giving their position, condition, and movement.

(d) Lists of all Japanese and Japanese-controlled merchant ships of over 100 gross tons in or out of commission and under construction, including merchant ships formerly belonging to any of the United Nations now in Japanese hands, giving position, condition, and movement.

(e) Complete and detailed information, accompanied by maps showing locations and layouts of all mines, mine fields, and other obstacles to movement by land, sea, and air and the safety lanes in connection therewith.

(f) Locations and descriptions of all military installations and establishments, including airfields, seaplane bases, antiaircraft defenses, ports and naval bases, storage depots, permanent and temporary land and coast fortifications, fortresses and other fortified areas.

(g) Locations of all camps and other places of detention of United Nations prisoners of war and civilian internees.

(3) Japanese armed forces and civil aviation authorities will insure that all Japanese military and

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naval and civil aircraft remain on the ground, the water, or aboard ship until further notification on the disposition to be made of them.

(4) Japanese or Japanese-controlled naval or merchant vessels of all types will be maintained without damage and will undertake no movement pending instructions from the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Vessels at sea will remove explosives of all types to safe storage ashore.

(5) Responsible Japanese or Japanese-controlled military and civil authorities will insure that:

(a) All Japanese mines, mine fields, and other obstacles to movement by land, sea, and air wherever located be removed according to instructions of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

(b) All aids to navigation be reestablished at once.

(c) All safety lanes be kept open and clearly marked pending accomplishment of (a) above.

(6) Responsible Japanese and Japanese-controlled military and civil authorities will hold intact and in good condition pending further instructions from the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers the following:

(a) All arms, ammunitions, explosives, military equipment stores and supplies and other implements of war of all kinds and all other war material (except as specifically prescribed in section 4 of this order).

(b) All land, water, and air transportation, and communication facilities and equipment.

(c) All military installations and establishments including airfields, seaplane bases, antiaircraft defenses, ports and naval bases, storage depots, permanent and temporary land and coast fortifications,

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fortresses and other fortified areas together with plans and drawings of all such fortifications, installations and establishments.

(d) All factories, plants, shops, research institutions, laboratories, testing stations, technical data, patents, plans, drawings and inventions designed or intended to produce or to facilitate the production or use of all implements of war and other material and property used or intended for use by any military or para-military organization in connection with its operations.

(7) The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters shall furnish to the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers within (time limit) of receipt of this order complete lists of all the items specified in paragraphs A, B, and D of section 6 above, indicating the numbers, types, and locations of each.

(8) The manufacture and distribution of all arms, ammunition, and implements of war will cease forthwith.

(9) With respect to United Nations prisoners-of-war and civilian internees in the hands of Japanese or Japanese-controlled authorities:

(a) The safety and well-being of all United Nations prisoners-of-war and civilian internees will be scrupulously preserved to include the administrative and supply service essential to provide adequate food, shelter, clothing, and medical care until such responsibility is undertaken by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

(b) Each camp or other place of detention of United Nations prisoners of war and civilian internees together with its equipment, stores, records, arms, and ammunition will be delivered immediately to the

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command of the senior officer designated representative of the prisoners of war and civilian internees.

(c) As directed by the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers prisoners of war and civilian internees will be transported to places of safety where they can be accepted by Allied authorities.

(d) The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters will furnish to the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers within (time limit) of the receipt of this order complete lists of all United Nations prisoners of war and civilian internees indicating their location.

(10) All Japanese and Japanese-controlled military and civil authorities shall aid and assist the occupation of Japan and Japanese-controlled areas by forces of the Allied Powers.

(11) The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters and appropriate Japanese officials shall be prepared on instructions from Allied occupation commanders to collect and deliver all arms in the possession of the Japanese civilian population.

(12) This and all subsequent instructions issued by the Supreme Commander for the Allied forces of other Allied military authorities will be scrupulously and promptly obeyed by Japanese and Japanese-controlled military and civil officials and private persons.

Any delay or failure to comply with the provisions of this or subsequent orders, and any action which the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers determines to be detrimental to the Allied Powers, will incur drastic and summary punishment at the hands of the Allied military authorities and the Japanese Government.

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"It is our responsibility-ours, the living-to see to it that this victory shall be a monument worthy of the dead who died to win it."

Radio address by PRESIDENT TRUMAN on the signing of the Surrender Instrument by Japan.

Washington. September 1, 1945. [19]

My fellow Americans, the thoughts and hopes of all America-indeed of all the civilized world-are centered tonight on the battleship Missouri. There on that small piece of American soil anchored in Tokyo Harbor the Japanese have just officially laid down their arms. They have signed terms of unconditional surrender.

Four years ago the thoughts and fears of the whole civilized world were centered on another piece of American soil-Pearl Harbor. The mighty threat to civilization which began there is now laid at rest. It was a long road to Tokyo-and a bloody one.

We shall not forget Pearl Harbor.

The Japanese militarists will not forget the U. S. S. Missouri.

The evil done by the Japanese war lords can never be repaired or forgotten. But their power to destroy and kill has been taken from them. Their armies and what is left of their navy is now impotent.

To all of us there comes first a sense of gratitude to Almighty God who sustained us and our Allies in the dark days of grave danger, who made us to

[19] Congressional Record, September 6, 1945. President Truman's address 
was delivered September 1, New York time (E. W. T.), September 2, Japanese 
time. 

grow from weakness into the strongest fighting force in history, and who now has seen us overcome the forces of tyranny that sought to destroy His civilization.

God grant that in our pride of the hour we may not forget the hard tasks that are still before us; that we may approach these with the same courage, zeal and patience with which we faced the trials and problems of the past 4 years.

Our first thoughts, of course thoughts of gratefulness and deep obligation-go out to those of our loved ones who have been killed or maimed in this terrible war. On land and sea and in the air American men and women have given their lives so that this day of ultimate victory might come and assure the survival of a civilized world. No victory can make good their loss.

We think of those whom death in this war has hurt, taking from them husbands, sons, brothers, and sisters whom they loved. No victory can bring back the faces they long to see.

Only the knowledge that the victory, which these sacrifices have made possible, will be wisely used, can give them any comfort. It is our responsibility-ours, the living-to see to it that this victory shall be a monument worthy of the dead who died to win it.

We think of all the millions of men and women in our armed forces and merchant marine all over the world who, after years of sacrifice and hardship and peril, have been spared by providence from harm.

We think of all the men and women and children who during these years have carried on at home, in lonesomeness and anxiety and fear.

Our thoughts go out to the millions of American

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workers and businessmen, to our farmers and miners-to all those who have built up this country's fighting strength and who have shipped to our allies the means to resist and overcome the enemy.

Our thoughts go out to our civil servants and to the thousands of Americans who, at personal sacrifice, have come to serve in our Government during these trying years; to the members of the selective-service boards and ration boards; to the civilian defense and Red Cross workers; to the men and women in the USO and in the entertainment world-to all those who have helped in this cooperative struggle to preserve liberty and decency in the world.

We think of our departed gallant leader, Franklin D. Roosevelt, defender of democracy, architect of world peace and cooperation.

And our thoughts go out to our gallant allies in this war; to those who resisted the invaders; to those who were not strong enough to hold out, but who nevertheless kept the fires of resistance alive within the souls of their people; to those who stood up against great odds and held the line until the United Nations together were able to supply the arms and the men with which to overcome the forces of evil.

This is a victory of more than arms alone. This is a victory of liberty over tyranny.

From our war plants rolled the tanks and planes which blasted their way to the heart of our enemy, from our shipyards sprang the ships which bridged all the oceans of the world for our weapons and supplies; from our farms came the food and fiber for our armies and navies and for all our allies in all the corners of the earth; from our mines and factories came the raw materials and the finished products

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which gave us the equipment to overcome our enemies.

But back of it all was the will and spirit and determination of a free people who know what freedom is, and who know that it is worth whatever price they had to pay to preserve it.

It was the spirit of liberty which gave us our armed strength and which made our men invincible in battle. We now know that that spirit of liberty, the freedom of the individual and the personal dignity of man are the strongest and toughest and most enduring forces in all the world.

And so on VJ-day, we take renewed faith and pride in our own way of life. We have had our day of rejoicing over this victory. We had our day of prayer and devotion. Now let us set aside VJ-day as one of renewed consecration to the principles which have made us the strongest Nation on earth and which, in this war, we have striven so mightily to preserve.

Those principles provide the faith, the hope, and the opportunity which helped men to improve themselves and their lot. Liberty does not make all men perfect nor all society secure. But it has provided more solid progress and happiness and decency for more people than any other philosophy of government in history. And this day has shown again that it provides the greatest strength and the greatest power which man has ever reached.

We know that under it we can meet the hard problems of peace which have come upon us. A free people with free allies, who can develop an atomic bomb, can use the same skill and energy and determination to overcome all the difficulties ahead.

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Victory always has its burdens and its responsibilities as we as its rejoicing.

But we face the future and all its dangers with great confidence and great hope. America can build for itself a future of employment and security. Together with the United Nations it can build a world of peace founded on justice and fair dealing and tolerance.

As President of the United States I proclaim Sunday, September 2, 1945, to be VJ-day-the day of formal surrender by Japan. It is not yet the day for the formal proclamation of the end of the war or of the cessation of hostilities. But it is a day which we Americans shall always remember as a day of retribution-as we remember that other day, the day of infamy.

From this day we move forward. We move toward a new era of security at home. With the other United Nations we move toward a new and better world of peace and international good will and cooperation.

God's help has brought us to this day of victory. With His help we will attain that peace and prosperity for ourselves and all the world in the years ahead.