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USS Missouri BB-63 |
Japanese Surrender Sept. 2, 1945 |
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Page 3 |
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General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Allied Commander, reads his speech opening the surrender ceremony, the representatives of all the Allied nations standing behind him. From left to right; General Hsu Yung-Chang (China) Admiral Sir Bruce A. Fraser, G.C.B., K.C.B., K.B.E., C.B., O.B.E. Lt. General Kuzma Derevyanko (USSR), General Sir Thomas Blamey (Australia) Colonel Lawrence Moore Cosgrave (Canada) General Jacques LeClerc (France) Vice Admiral Conrad E. L. Helfrich (The Netherlands) Air Vice Marshall Leonard M. Isitt (New Zealand) "We are gathered here, representatives 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 people 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 befits the sacred purposes we are about to serve, committing all our people unreservedly to faithful compliance with the understanding 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 world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past -- a world dedicated to the dignity of man and the fulfillment of his most cherished wish for freedom, tolerance and justice. Following the signing of the documents MacArthur continued, this time transmitting to the world. "Today the guns are silent. A great tragedy has ended. A great victory has been won.... As I look back upon the long, tortuous trail from those grim days of Bataan and Corregidor, when an entire world lived in fear, when democracy was on the defensive everywhere, when modern civilization trembled in the balance, I thank a merciful God that he has given us the faith, the courage and the power from which to mold victory. 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 concepts of war. Men since the beginning of time have sought peace.... Military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn failed, leaving the only path to be by way of the crucible of war. 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 advances in science, art, literature and all material and cultural development of the past two thousand years. It must be of the spirit if we are to save the flesh." |
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The Japanese delegation aboard USS Missouri BB-63. Front row left to right; Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu (top hat) General Yoshijiro Umezu, Chief of the Army General Staff. Second row left to right; Lt. General Suichi Miyakazi Toshikazu Kase (Foreign Ministry) Rear Admiral Tadatoshi Tomioka Katsuo Okazaki (Foreign Ministry) Major General Yatsuji Nagai |
Apr. 28, 2020 Note: In virtually every publication since this photo was taken the names of the men in the second row have been published in reverse order. The corrected order appears above. This error was discovered by Col. William "Bill" Garrison, Jr., U.S.A. (Ret.) who provided supporting documentation. He has also had personal contact with several of the members of the Japanese delegation who confirmed their identities. The error apparently came from information listed incorrectly on the original U.S. Army Signal Corps photo. As part of the proof, Col. Garrison provided a copy of a magazine article from Aug. 29, 1965 entitled "The Way It Looked To Them" in which Gen. Nagai is interviewed. In the interview Gen. Nagai identifies himself as the man on the far right in the second row the photo. (Download Article PDF) Col. Garrison had corrected a 75 year old mistake and MaritimeQuest is happy to be able to contribute to the historical correction of this photo. |
Third row left to right; Rear Admiral Ichiro Yokoyama Saburo Ota (Foreign Ministry) Captain Katsuo Shiba (Navy) Colonel Kaziyi Sugita |
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Another view of the Japanese delegation. (order same as above) |
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Another view of General Yoshijiro Umezu signing the Instrument of Surrender. |
(Photo courtesy of Alan Sutherland, R.N.) |
Japanese Surrender |
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Page 3 |
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Page published May 26, 2007 |