Curated category
1945 in Japan
- Invasion of the Kuril IslandsThe decision to invade the Kuril Islands emerged from a sudden shift in Soviet military strategy during August 1945. Planners initially targeted Hokkaido…
- Soviet invasion of South SakhalinThe Soviet invasion of South Sakhalin kept troops fighting for more than a week after Japan had already surrendered. It struck the southern half of Sakhalin…
- Surrender of JapanAt 8:15 in the morning on the 6th of August 1945, a single aircraft released a single bomb over Hiroshima. Sixteen hours later, President Harry S.
- Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and NagasakiThe atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki killed between 150,000 and 246,000 people, most of them civilians. On the 6th of August 1945, the United States…
- Battle of OkinawaThe Battle of Okinawa began on the 1st of April 1945, when American forces launched the largest amphibious assault ever attempted in the Pacific Theater of…
- Battle of Iwo JimaThe Battle of Iwo Jima began on the 19th of February 1945, when the first wave of Marines landed on the southeastern beaches of a small volcanic island eight…
- Battle of West HunanThe Battle of West Hunan began on the 6th of April 1945, just weeks before Germany's surrender in Europe, but on the other side of the world the Second…
- Soviet invasion of ManchuriaThe Soviet invasion of Manchuria began at one minute past midnight Trans-Baikal time on the 9th of August 1945, simultaneously on three fronts.
- Bombing of TokyoOn the 18th of April 1942, sixteen North American B-25 Mitchells took off from the aircraft carrier Hornet. These modified bombers flew toward Tokyo and…
- Hirohito surrender broadcastAt precisely noon on the 15th of August, 1945, a radio announcer instructed the Japanese nation to stand for an announcement "of the highest importance." The…
- Invasion of Lingayen GulfThe Invasion of Lingayen Gulf began on the 3rd of January 1945, and what followed over the next ten days would claim the lives of around 738 ship-based…
- Occupation of JapanOn the 2nd of September 1945, aboard the USS Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay, Japan signed the instrument of surrender that ended the largest war in human…
- Japanese Instrument of SurrenderThe Japanese Instrument of Surrender was the printed agreement that ended World War II, signed on the deck of a warship anchored in Tokyo Bay just after nine…
- Victory over Japan DayVictory over Japan Day marks the moment the deadliest conflict in human history finally stopped. On the 15th of August 1945, Emperor Hirohito's voice came…