This Day In History, 1945: Japan Surrenders, World War II Ends

WWII officially ended on this day in 1945, following the surrender of Japan to Allied Forces.

On #VJDay, ensure you thank a World War II veteran while we still can. pic.twitter.com/4b6PCtynqw

— Travis Akers (@travisakers) September 2, 2020

as this is the 75th anniversary of Japan's Surrender, here's a pic reminding us that Canada signed in the wrong place, forcing all subsequent signers to do likewise. pic.twitter.com/gBWO7UBr2k

— Steve Saideman (@smsaideman) September 2, 2020

V-J Day 75th anniversary: 5 things to know about Japan's World War II surrender https://t.co/zVtr4TwRW2

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) September 2, 2020

Japan Officially Surrenders - 75th Anniversary

Seventy-five years ago today, the Japanese officially surrendered to the Allies on board the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay. #USMCMuseum #OTD #WWII75 #SemperFi #Marines pic.twitter.com/MPxFKoK4Cu

— U.S. Marine Corps Museum🇺🇸 (@USMCMuseum) September 2, 2020

On September 2, 1945, the Japanese unconditionally surrendered aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Celebrations broke out across the free world as a result of the war finally and truly being over. https://t.co/V2LnDGRdVe

— National WWII Museum (@WWIImuseum) September 2, 2020

Wait a minute. Didn't I just do an "end of the war" post on August 14? Yes (you can read it here.) The government of Japan announced that they would surrender on August 14; September 2 is when the formal surrender paperwork was signed on the U.S.S. Missouri. The LA Times article in the tweet above has details.

In 2012, I visited the U.S.S. Missouri site in Hawaii; this is what I wrote:

Yesterday we toured the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor and the USS Missouri Memorial, both of which were fascinating and very moving. I was surprised to learn that after 71 years since the attack in 1941, there are 13 Pearl Harbor survivors still living. When a survivor dies, if the family wishes, the Navy will conduct a memorial service out on the white Arizona memorial structure, then send a diver with the cremated remains down under the water. The specially packaged remains are then inserted into a crack in the Arizona, allowing the veteran to be interred with his fallen comrades for all eternity.

On the Missouri, I was most intrigued to see the actual site of the Japanese surrender, which brought World War II to an end. My favorite tidbit: As they were setting up for the ceremony on the deck of the Missouri, apparently General Douglas MacArthur arranged for the tallest soldiers and sailors on the ship to be lined up along the pathway where the Japanese officials would walk - one last bit of in-your-face intimidation for the much-shorter representatives from Japan.