"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
09/02/2020 at 12:35 • Filed to: wingspan, Planelopnik, TDIAH
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"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
09/02/2020 at 12:35 • Filed to: wingspan, Planelopnik, TDIAH | 11
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Japanese sign formal surrender onboard USS Missouri in Tokyo harbor.
US Navy carrier planes fly in formation over the US and British fleets in Tokyo Bay during surrender ceremonies. The battleship USS Missouri (BB-63), where the signing ceremony took place, is at left. The light cruiser USS Detroit (CL-8) is in the right distance. Aircraft include Grumman TBM Avengers, Grumman F6F Hellcats, Curtiss SB2C Helldivers, and Vought F4U Corsair.
Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signs the Instrument of Surrender on behalf of the Japanese Government, formally ending World War II
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur signs the Instrument of Surrender on behalf of the Allied Powers
One interesting tidbit about the ceremony. Rumor has it that the flag flown from Missouri on September 2, 1945 was one that had been flying over the White House (or the US Capitol) on December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Captain Stuart Murray of USS Missouri stated afterward that the story was “baloney,” and that the flag and Union Jack of the United States flown that day were standard GI issue taken from the ship’s stores.
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
However, there was one special flag in attendance that day, an American flag that had flown from Commodore Matthew Perry’s flagship in 1853–1854 when he sailed into Tokyo Bay with the US Navy’s Far East Squadron to force the Japanese to open their ports to foreign trade. That flag, encased in a glass-topped frame, was flown to Japan and attached to the bulkhead of Missouri for the ceremony. General MacArthur, who signed the surrender document on behalf of the Allies, was a cousin of Commodore Perry.
The Perry flag is visible in the background behind the assembled military dignitaries. General MacArthur is at the microphone.
CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
> ttyymmnn
09/02/2019 at 12:47 |
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Spoiler alert boi
gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
> ttyymmnn
09/02/2019 at 15:09 |
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I always wondered what percautions were taken to protect all the high value indeviduals and ships. Given the devotion, it wasn’t like coups were unheard of.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ky%C5%ABj%C5%8D_incident
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsue_incident
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ttyymmnn
> gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
09/02/2019 at 15:44 |
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I’m sure there were precautions in place, including a robust CAP. Maybe that’s why they had the ceremony on a ship in the harbor.
coqui70
> gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
09/02/2019 at 20:26 |
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After the two atomic bombs were dropped there probably wasn’t a lot of interest in continuing the fight. A lot of folks committed suicide instead of surrendering though.
In all a fitting end to a grueling ordeal, a lot of Allied blood was shed to get to that moment.
A lot of Japanese civilians died as well - their faith in the infallibility of the Emperor and the military was in retrospect illogical.
ToeMotor
> gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
09/02/2019 at 20:33 |
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After the surrender and before the formal signing , a few Japanese pilots refused to quit..., and shot down 1 plane for sure that I remem ber reading about.
After that, Ma cArthur had the propellers of all Japanese planes removed.
Im sure other precautions were taken as well,
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gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
> coqui70
09/02/2019 at 20:51 |
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The mentality wasn’t that illogical if you look at the preceding 40 years of J apanese propaganda for both the civilian and military population. And how in previous years ultra nationalist coups were often met with slaps on the wrist .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_15_Incident
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coqui70
> gmporschenut also a fan of hondas
09/02/2019 at 21:31 |
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Yes hence “in retrospect” - it was all good for Japan while they were winning - but once America got fully mobilized the tables turned. The theory that we would fold after Pearl Harbor was flawed.
Like a comedian once said ... there’s one thin g we’re really good at.
f86sabre
> ttyymmnn
09/02/2019 at 21:38 |
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Have you found any good books discussing that last week of the war? I would imagine drawing up the articles, setting up the signing and all that would be interesting to learn about.
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ttyymmnn
> f86sabre
09/02/2019 at 21:42 |
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I have not, and I think you are right. Wiki has a barebones timeline of the end of the war. I wonder if any of the documents were mostly written by the time the Japanese surrendered. The writing was on the wall, so to speak, for some time.
I have written about the last US airman to die in WWII. He was a photographer’s mate on board a B-32 that was flying a recon mission over Tokyo. The Emperor had already accepted the Potsdam Declaration, so the flight should have been unmolested. They were jumped by Japanese fighters and Sergeant Anthony Marchione was killed. The next day, the US ordered the propellers to be removed from all Japanese aircraft.
The Ghost of Oppo
> coqui70
09/02/2020 at 12:49 |
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I am not saying you are wrong, but the Japanese military did correctly deduce that the US did not have any more atomic bombs(with it taking months to build new ones) and some wanted to continue the fight.
Just Jeepin'
> ttyymmnn
09/02/2020 at 12:55 |
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However, there was one special flag in attendance that day, an American flag that had flown from Commodore Matthew Perry’s flagship in 1853–1854 when he sailed into Tokyo Bay with the US Navy’s Far East Squadron to force the Japanese to open their ports to foreign trade.
I think that’s called rubbing it in. I’m not sure that’s a shining example of America exerting moral leadership.
user314
> coqui70
09/02/2020 at 13:06 |
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Actually, the Japanese military was completely in favor of fighting on, even after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the USSR breaking its neutrality pact. Minister of the Army General Korechika Anami in particular remarked: “Would it not be wondrous for this whole nation to be destroyed like a beautiful flower?”. It finally fell to the Emperor to make the decision to surrender:
I have given serious thought to the situation prevailing at home and abroad and have concluded that continuing the war can only mean destruction for the nation and prolongation of bloodshed and cruelty in the world. I cannot bear to see my innocent people suffer any longer. ...
I was told by those advocating a continuation of hostilities that by June new divisions would be in place in fortified positions [at Kujkuri Beach , east of Tokyo] ready for the invader when he sought to land. It is now August and the fortifications still have not been completed. ...
There are those who say the key to national survival lies in a decisive battle in the homeland. The experiences of the past, however, show that there has always been a discrepancy between plans and performance. I do not believe that the discrepancy in the case of Kujkuri can be rectified. Since this is also the shape of things, how can we repel the invaders? [He then made some specific reference to the increased destructiveness of the atomic bomb.]
It goes without saying that it is unbearable for me to see the brave and loyal fighting men of Japan disarmed. It is equally unbearable that others who have rendered me devoted service should now be punished as instigators of the war. Nevertheless, the time has come to bear the unbearable. ...
I swallow my tears and give my sanction to the proposal to accept the Allied proclamation on the basis outlined by [Tg,] the Foreign Minister.
Had he gone the other way and sided with the military , it’s very likely the war would have continued to the point that Operation DOWNFALL would have occurred, which would have involved the planned amphibious invasion , chemical and (eventually) more nuclear weapons :
[Manhattan
Project Director Leslie]
Groves expected to have another “Fat Man” atomic bomb ready for use on August 19, with three more in September and a further three in October;
a second Little Boy bomb (using U-235) would not be available until December 1945.