Japanese Instrument of Surrender
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The Japanese Instrument of Surrender was the written agreement that established the armistice ending the Pacific War and with it World War II. It was signed by representatives from the Empire of Japan, the United States of America, the Republic of China, the United Kingdom, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of Canada, the Provisional Government of the French Republic, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the Dominion of New Zealand on the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945. The date is sometimes known as Victory over Japan Day, although that designation is more frequently used to refer to the date of Emperor Hirohito's announcement of the acceptance of the terms of the Potsdam Declaration on August 15.
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[edit] Surrender Ceremony
The signing ceremony aboard the deck of the Missouri lasted 23 minutes and was broadcast throughout the world. The instrument was first signed by the Japanese foreign minister Mamoru Shigemitsu "By Command and on behalf of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese Government" and then Gen. Yoshijiro Umezu, Chief of the Army General Staff, "By Command and on behalf of the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters" at 09:04. Afterwards, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur, Commander in the Southwest Pacific and Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, also signed. As witnesses, U.S. Lieutenant General Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV, who had surrendered the Philippines, and British Lieutenant General Arthur Percival, who had surrendered Singapore, received two of the six pens he used to sign the instrument. Another pen went to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. MacArthur was followed by
- Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz for the United States,
- General Hsu Yung-Ch'ang for the Republic of China,
- Admiral Bruce Fraser for the United Kingdom,
- Lieutenant General Kuzma Derevyanko for the Soviet Union,
- General Sir Thomas Blamey for Australia,
- Colonel Lawrence Moore Cosgrave for Canada,
- General Philippe Leclerc de Hautecloque for France,
- Vice Admiral C.E.L. Helfrich for the Netherlands, and
- Air Vice Marshal Leonard M. Isitt for New Zealand.
On September 6, Colonel Bernard Theilen brought the document and an imperial rescript to Washington, D.C. and, on the following day, presented them to President Harry Truman in a formal White House ceremony. The documents were then exhibited at the National Archives.
[edit] Flags Flown at the Ceremony
The deck of the Missouri furnished just two American flags. One had flown the mast of Commodore Perry's ship when he had sailed into Tokyo Bay nearly a century before to urge the opening of Japan's ports to foreign trade. MacAuthur himself was of course a direct descendant of the New England Perry family and cousin of Commodore Matthew Perry. Perhaps it was MacArthur himself who insisted on the flag and saw himself as a second "opener" of Japan rather than than the nation's conqueror. It is often said that the second flag had flown over the White House on the day Pearl Harbor was attacked. However, Captain Stuart Murray of the Missouri explained:
"At eight o’clock we had hoisted a clean set of colors at the mainmast and a clean Union Jack at the bow as we were at anchor, and I would like to add that these were just regular ship’s flags, GI issue, that we’d pulled out of the spares, nothing special about them, and they had never been used anywhere so far as we know, at least they were clean and we had probably gotten them in Guam in May. So there was nothing special about them. Some of the articles in the history say this was the same flag that was flown on the White House or the National Capitol on 7 December 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor, and at Casablanca, and so forth, also MacArthur took it up to Tokyo and flew it over his headquarters there. The only thing I can say is they were hard up for baloney, because it was nothing like that. It was just a plain ordinary GI-issue flag and a Union Jack. We turned them both in to the Naval Academy Museum when we got back to the East Coast in October. The only special flag that was there was a flag which Commodore Perry had flown on his ship out in that same location 82 years before. It was flown out in its glass case from the Naval Academy Museum. An officer messenger brought it out. We put this hanging over the door of my cabin, facing forward, on the surrender deck so that everyone on the surrender deck could see it."
[edit] Summary of the Instrument
The document, prepared by the United States War Department, set out in eight short paragraphs the complete capitulation of Japan. The opening words "We, acting by command of and in behalf of the Emperor of Japan" signified the importance attached to the Emperor's role by the Americans who drafted the document. The short second paragraph went straight to the heart of the matter: "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." The third paragraph commanded all Japanese forces wherever situated and the Japanese people to cease 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 or his direction. The fourth read "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." The fifth stated "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-combatant duties unless specifically relieved by him or under his authority. The sixth states "We hereby undertake for the Emperor, the Japanese Government and their successors to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration in good faith, and to issue whatever orders and take whatever action 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." The seventh article basically says that the Japanese General Headquarters must liberate all allied prisoners of war and civilian internees in their control must be released, protected, and cared for. The eighth specifically states "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." This official document was signed of "Tokyo Bay, Japan" at 09:04 on the SECOND day of SEPTEMBER 1945.
[edit] Text of the Document
"We, acting by command of and on behalf of the Emperor of Japan, the Japanese Government and the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters, hereby accept the provisions in the declaration issued by the heads of the Governments of the United States, China, and Great Britain 26 July 1945 at Potsdam, and subsequently to by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which four powers are hereafter referred to as the Allied Powers.
"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.
"We hereby command all Japanese forces wherever situated and the Japanese people to cease 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.
"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.
"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-combatant duties unless specifically relieved by him or under his authority.
"We hereby undertake for the Emperor, the Japanese Government, and their successors to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration in good 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.
"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.
"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".
Signed of TOKYO BAY, JAPAN of 09.04 on the SECOND day of SEPTEMBER, 1945
Mamoru Shigemitsu By Command and in behalf of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese Government
Yoshijiro Umezu By Command and in behalf of the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters
Accepted at TOKYO BAY, JAPAN at 0908 on the SECOND day of SEPTEMBER, 1945, for the United States, Republic of China, United Kingdom and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and in the interests of the other United Nations at war with Japan.
Douglas MacArthur
Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers
C.W. Nimitz
United States Representative
Hsu Yung-Ch'ang
Republic of China Representative
Bruce Fraser
United Kingdom Representative
Kuzma Derevyanko
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Representative
Thomas Blamey
Commonwealth of Australia Representative
L. Moore Cosgrave
Dominion of Canada Representative
Jacques Le Clerc
Provisional Government of the French Republic Representative
C.E.L. Helfrich
Kingdom of the Netherlands Representative
Leonard M. Isitt
Dominion of New Zealand Representative
[edit] See also
- German Instrument of Surrender, 1945
- Imperial General Headquarters
- Surrender of Japan
- Victory over Japan Day
- Occupied Japan
- Japanese holdout
[edit] External links
