Surrender of Japan

end of World War II, 2 September 1945

1944 Iowa-class battleship

1945 agreement ending hostilities in WWII

radio broadcast in which Emperor Hirohito announced the Japanese surrender in World War II

day on which Japan surrendered, effectively ending World War II

1945 photograph by Alfred Eisenstaedt

coup d'état

is a Japanese word meaning "ignore", "take no notice of" or "treat with silent contempt". It is composed of two kanji: (moku "silence") and (satsu "killing"). In 1945, the Japanese government used the word in its initial rejection of the Potsdam Declaration, the Allied demand that Japan surrender unconditionally in World War II. It has been argued that the word was misunderstood by the Allies and that the misunderstanding interrupted a negotiation for a peaceful end to the war. The consensus of modern historians, however, is that the Allies understood the word correctly.