Everything about the Emperor’s Surrender

On this day 80 years ago, the Japanese public (with a few exceptions) heard the emperor’s voice for the first time. Speaking to the country through the phonograph record, he announced that the government accepted the Potsdam Declaration, which called for “unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces.” It is called “gyokuon-hoso” (jewelry voice broadcast) in formal Japanese and This word is not actually included kofuku (surrender).

Activities that resulted in widespread surrender to broadcasts

Six months before Hirohito’s surrender aired, the head of the so-called three giants – U.S. President Franklin D., also turned to the Pacific Theatre due to the inevitable ally victory in Europe, and Roosevelt was keen to get assurances from Stalin about the Soviet Union’s participation in the war against Japan.

Stalin agreed to launch the Pacific War within two to three months after Germany’s surrender, on the condition that the Soviet Union could also control the southern Sakhalin and the Curry Islands. On August 8, 1945, Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov informed Japanese Ambassador Naotake Sato that the Soviet Union announced a war against Japan. The Soviet invasion of Manchuria began the next day, and more than one million troops were deployed. A few hours later, the United States detonated an atomic bomb in Nagasaki.

This was a bombing from Hiroshima three days ago. Thousands of people were killed or disabled due to the attack. Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson describe The decision to use atomic weapons in Japan as the “most unevilable choice”. He added: “The Japanese government may decide that it is very resistant to the ending” and “the major battle will not end until the second half of 1946.” This will result in millions of casualties, he said. However, critics believe that the two explosions are immoral and unnecessary, as Japan is already on the verge of surrender.

Emperor Heloshito is 1945 | Family Collection / Wikimedia

Japan accepts Potsdam Declaration

The United States, Britain and China issued the Potsdam Declaration two weeks before the Hiroshima bombing, which statement If Japan does not surrender, it will face “speed and complete destruction.” It also called for the elimination of “authors who deceived and misled the Japanese people to begin conquering the world”, but did not mention the emperor or the details about the government. In response, Prime Minister Suzuki used the term “Mokusatsu”, which actually means “killing silently.” An ambiguous word can be translated in a different way, and is called de facto rejection by the power of the Allied forces.

After the atomic bombing and the Soviet invasion of Suzuki, Suzuki, along with Foreign Minister Shigenori Dogo and Admiral Mitsumasa Yonai, the Minister of Navy, prepared to accept the Potsdam declaration on the condition that the emperor was not abolished. Opposing them is the Minister of War Korechika Anami, Chief of Army General Staff Yoshijiro Umezu and Chief of Navy Staff Soemu Toyoda. They were ready to surrender, provided that Japan disarmed itself, conducted its own war trial, and maintained the war after the war, and they were still not occupied except for the emperor retaining his position.

Late August 9 Gozen Kaigi – Meeting held before the emperor. In the suffocating underground shelter, the sides of the two deadlocks raise their arguments. Then there is the historic moment solve Room. “At the end of the speech, I swallowed my tears and approved the proposal to accept the Allied declaration based on the outline of the Foreign Minister. I have seriously considered the prevalence at home and abroad and concluded that continuing war can only mean destruction of the nation, and blood and cruelty in the world, blood and cruelty in the world. ”

Kyujo Event

Tokyo then released a message to the ambassadors of Switzerland and Sweden, which reached its allies. Japan is ready accept Potsdam declared that as long as there is no need to “constitute any demand to undermine the privileges of being sovereign rulers”. “this reply However, U.S. Secretary of State James F. Byrnes did not explicitly guarantee the emperor’s position. He wrote: “The final form of the Japanese government should be established by the freely expressed will of the Japanese people in accordance with the Potsdam Declaration.”

Many officials in the Ministry of War fear that the Japanese government and the emperor would be sublimated under the command of the Allied forces, forcing Heloshito to play the ritual. That was a result that they could not stand. Led by Major Kenji Hatanaka, they handed their focus to General Anami, the most important military figure in Japan, demanding his support in the coup to prevent acceptance of Potsdam’s announcement. He refused. However, Hatanaka has not abandoned the plan yet. He gathered support from other officers and prepared for the final effort to keep the war moving forward.

At about 9:30 pm on August 14, the rebels in Hatanaka put their plans into action. Their goal was to occupy the Imperial Palace – known at the time as Kyujo – hoping that it would inspire the rest of the army to revolt. They also aim to intercept the surrender broadcasts in Glochito. In order to capture the palace, the rebels needed the cooperation of Lieutenant General Wu Shi. After refusal, he and his brother-in-law Michinori Shiraishi were murdered. Another group of Hatanaka’s rebels planned to kill Prime Minister Suzuki in his office, but he escaped just before they arrived. General Anami also committed suicide in the coup.

Japanese civilians listen, August 15, 1945, listen to the surrender radio | Wikimedia

Jewelry Voice Broadcast

By 8 a.m. on August 15, the rebellion had been completely demolished. Hatanaka then opened fire shortly afterwards until Hirohito’s surrender broadcast was aired left and right. It was reportedly smuggled into a safe place in a laundry basket. It lasted about four and a half minutes and began with “the theme of kindness and loyalty to us: after deeply thinking about the general trends of the world and the actual conditions obtained in today’s empire, we decided to achieve a resolution of the current situation by taking extraordinary measures.”

He went on to say, “The war situation has developed, not necessarily for Japan’s advantage.” He added, “The enemy has begun to hire a new, cruelest bomb, and the power to cause damage is indeed immeasurable, causing many innocent lives.” The emperor admitted that Japan accepted the Potsdam Declaration, but did not use the term “surrender”. This lack of clarity increased his use of formal court language and poor audio quality, which meant that after the speech, there was some confusion among the public.

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