Chinese soldiers and civilians captured by the Japanese army
After 14 years of resistance, we finally won the victory. Speaking of the end of the Anti-Japanese War, everyone is familiar with this: the United States dropped two atomic bombs and Japan announced its unconditional surrender. But the historical facts are far more tortuous and complex. I want to use this short article to briefly show Japan's desperate struggle and crazy arrogance before surrendering to , and by the way clarify a fact: Is Japan really "unconditionally surrendering"??
1. Potsdam Announcement
On July 17, 1945, the three giants of the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union met in Potsdam on the outskirts of Berlin. At this time, Roosevelt had passed away, and his successor, President Truman, attended the meeting; in the middle of the meeting, Churchill lost the election as Prime Minister, and was replaced by the new Prime Minister Attlee.
The three giants of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union met at the Potsdam Conference.
At the beginning of the meeting, Stalin announced that the Soviet Union would enter the war against Japan on August 15, 1945. In fact, the Soviet Union's decision to join the war with Japan was decided as early as half a year ago at the Yalta Conference. Japan has never received relevant intelligence. Seeing that the war situation is becoming more and more unfavorable, Japan has made a wishful thinking: returning the rights and interests it had previously seized in the Far East to the Soviet Union, and asking the Soviet Union to mediate peacefully. The condition is that in addition to the mainland, it requires the retention of North Korea and, preferably, an independent "Manchukuo".
The Soviet Union kept delaying its request for negotiations with Japan until it attended the Potsdam Conference and did not sit at the negotiating table with Japan. But Japan still harbors illusions and is waiting for a reply from the Soviet Union.
On the day that Stalin announced his decision to join the war with Japan, Truman received a top-secret telegram from China: Yesterday (16th), the atomic bomb explosion test was successful. Truman immediately changed his attitude from asking the Soviet Union to send troops to unwilling the Soviet Union to send troops , intending to use the atomic bomb to force Japan to surrender, so as to prevent the Soviet Union from gaining rights in the Far East in the future.
A few days later, Truman approved the order to use the atomic bomb: as soon as the Potsdam Conference is over, that is, after August 2, choose Hiroshima , Kokura, Niigata, and Nagasaki to drop the atomic bomb.
On July 26, the United States, Britain, and China issued the "Potsdam Declaration" urging Japan to surrender. The Soviet Union declared war on Japan and added the announcement after .
For such an important meeting and important decision, China was not notified of its participation. It is a sigh of relief that China is looked down upon. There is no way, international relations is about speaking with strength . On the 26th, Chiang Kai-shek was very angry after receiving the "Announcement" telegram. He wrote in his diary: "Du (Ruman)'s telegram was limited to a reply within 24 hours, otherwise Britain and the United States issued separate warnings against Japan. ... Moreover, the first line of the telegram only stated that the agreement between the President of the United States and the British Prime Minister did not include the Chinese President, which was even more inappropriate. The Chinese President must be added above the British Prime Minister. It should be revised accordingly. I (I) can agree with this warning." This shows that the US State Department's attitude towards China is contemptuous. "
2. Mushroom Cloud
On July 27, Japan received the "Potsdam Declaration". The Supreme War Guidance Council and the Cabinet held a meeting to discuss and, based on the opinions of Foreign Minister Togo Shigetoku , decided to neither reject nor accept the announcement.
The thinking of Japan’s top leaders was to wait and see the announcement while stepping up negotiations with the Soviet Union. Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki said in a statement: "I think the joint statement of the three countries is a replica of the Cairo talks. The (Japanese) government does not think it has any important value and can only ignore it." On the morning of August 6, the US military's B-29 bomber carried an atomic bomb nicknamed "Little Boy" and dropped it on Hiroshima. The atomic bomb exploded 580 meters above the ground, releasing terrifying infrared rays, shock waves, storm winds and radioactive energy. About 13 square kilometers of urban area was instantly reduced to ashes, killing about 30,000 people that day; in the end, the cumulative death toll exceeded 200,000.
Since Hiroshima's communication network had been destroyed, Tokyo did not receive the report until the afternoon of that day, but it was not sure that it was an atomic bomb, only that it was "a high-performance bomb with unprecedented destructive power." It was not until the next day that the Japanese Allied News Agency received Truman's broadcast statement and learned that the explosion was an atomic bomb, and reported it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After lunch on August 7, Interior Minister Kido Koichientered the palace to report to Emperor Hirohito (the following description, except for quotations and special nouns, is called "Emperor Hirohito",Hirohito is a person's name, and emperor is a position.There is no honorific title). Kido recalled: "His Majesty knew very well that the war in Japan had reached its worst moment, but he did not panic and said resolutely: 'Since it has reached this point, if the war is not ended early -'"
Emperor Hirohito wanted to end the war at this time, but did not want to surrender, and was still willing to negotiate with the Soviet Union.
Photos of Emperor Hirohito in military uniform
Foreign Minister Togo learned that Stalin and Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov returned to Moscow and hurriedly reported it to the Japanese Ambassador to the Soviet Union Sato's anxiety was no longer concealed: "The situation is becoming increasingly urgent. We must quickly understand the Soviet Union's clear attitude, and report the Soviet Union's reply as quickly as possible."
The Soviet Union also responded "quickly". The next day, August 8, Molotov sent the Soviet Union a declaration of war on Japan and decided to enter a state of war with Japan starting from the 9th. This was six days ahead of Stalin's promise in Potsdam and was the Soviet Union's response to Truman's intention to dominate the Far East.
I would also like to mention here: the "Japan-Soviet Neutrality Treaty" was signed in April 1941 and was valid for 5 years; according to this provision, the Soviet Union did not abide by the treaty. The treaty is that is meant to be torn up, and everyone knows this very well. But why did Japan have no complaints about the Soviet Union's abandonment of the treaty? That's because, just three months after the treaty was signed, the Japanese Army mobilized 16 divisions and 850,000 people under the name of "Kwantung Army Special Exercise", preparing to wait for the Soviet Red Army in the Far East to be transferred to the Western Front Soviet-German battlefield to raid the Soviet Union and attack Germany from east to west. Since the Soviet troops in the Far East had not moved and the Western Front had stabilized after hard fighting, the Japanese Army did not dare to take action.
3. Debate
Did Japan try the power of the atomic bomb and lose the opportunity to compromise with the Soviet Union? Did Japan simply surrender? No.
On the morning of August 9, Prime Minister Suzuki was at home and learned about the Soviet Union’s participation in the war through the Allied News Agency of Japan. He sighed: “What is coming has finally arrived.” At this time, Foreign Minister Togo came to Suzuki’s private residence and eagerly expressed his desire to recognize the Potsdam Declaration. Togo proposed only one condition: that the Allies retain Japan's national system, the emperor system.
Suzuki then turned to the side of ending the war. Prior to this, he was wavering because the cabinet had been debating for months whether to go to war or not. As early as April, when the war in Japan was very unfavorable, the Army formulated a "Decision Operation Preparation Outline" and planned to fight the final decisive battle with the Allied forces in Japan. The commander of the First General Army, Sugiyama, even shouted, "It is not an excuse to kill one of the enemy at the expense of ten of our own."
77-year-old Prime Minister Suzuki resigned on the 17th after Japan surrendered.
After the first atomic bomb and the declaration of war by the Soviet Union, Emperor Hirohito and Prime Minister Suzuki tended to accept the "Potsdam Declaration". The debate among Japan's top leaders has shifted from "war or surrender" to "under what conditions".
html On the morning of the 39th, Prime Minister Suzuki entered the palace urgently. After receiving Emperor Hirohito's instructions to end the war, he held a supreme war guidance meeting in the palace. Foreign Minister Togo reiterated his suggestion: accept the Potsdam Declaration on the condition that the national system (emperor system) is retained. The hardliners in the cabinet are dominated by Prime Minister Anami Yuki and Chief of Staff Umezu Yoshijiro (the war criminal who forced China to sign the "Ho-Mei Agreement").Prime Minister Anami insisted at the meeting: "With the atomic bombing and the Soviet Union's participation in the war, it is difficult for us to win, but there is always a chance in continuing to fight for the honor of the Yamato nation."
The hard-liners insisted: Even if they want to accept it, they must add three conditions on the basis of retaining the national system: 1. Japan will withdraw its troops independently; 2. Japan will handle those responsible for the war; 3. Allied forces will not occupy Japan. If Japan's conditions are not recognized, a decisive battle will take place locally, even at the cost of " one hundred million (Japanese) jade ".
If you think that Anan is the only one with an "iron head", you are wrong. Anan made a special statement: The military's attitude is tougher than mine, does not believe that the war has been lost ! Dongxiang shouted: It is absolutely impossible for the Allied Powers to accept such conditions.
As a result, the participants were divided into two groups, some supported "one condition" and some supported "four conditions". The meeting was held from 11 o'clock to 1 o'clock in the afternoon. No results were obtained and the meeting was adjourned. The meeting was held from afternoon to 10 pm, but with no results, the meeting was adjourned again.
While the quarrel continued, around 4 p.m., news came that Nagasaki had been bombed by another atomic bomb.
4. "Fat Man"
On the morning of August 9, a US military plane carrying an atomic bomb nicknamed "Fat Man" flew to the bombing target Kokura. When they reached the sky above Kokura, due to clouds and thick smoke affecting visibility, it was decided to drop the atomic bomb on the second target, Nagasaki. At 10:58, "Fat Man", which was more powerful than "Little Boy", exploded in Nagasaki, killing about 100,000 people and razing 60% of the buildings to the ground.
He is indeed a "fat man"
Even though the disaster is approaching, the hard-liners - should be called "die-hards" - still insist on the "four points" and will not relent. During this period, Minister Kidouchi and Prime Minister Suzuki met with Emperor Hirohito three times, and finally decided to convene an "imperial meeting." So, around 12 o'clock in the middle of the night, the debate continued in the conference room in the palace air-raid shelter.
Anan insisted: "The four conditions are absolutely necessary. If the other side does not adopt them, 100 million people will fight to the death and survive." Umezu supported Anan: "If we surrender unconditionally, we will be sorry for the fallen heroes. The four conditions are the minimum concessions."
It was already 2 o'clock in the morning on August 10, and the meeting was still undecided. Suzuki had no choice but to stand up and said: "The matter has come to this. I have no choice but to go to the emperor in person to ask for instructions and obey the emperor's decision."
Emperor Hirohito said to Suzuki: "At this time, you should endure the unbearable. Dismiss the loyal troops. Armed and designated those who were loyal to me yesterday as war criminals, it is unbearable due to the situation, but it is also necessary for the future of the country."
Suzuki received the order and resumed the meeting again, emphasizing the "one condition" proposal, which was approved by Emperor Hirohito. At 4 o'clock in the morning, everyone signed the document and then adjourned the meeting.
On the morning of the 10th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs conveyed the notice of acceptance of the "Potsdam Declaration" to the Allies through Switzerland and Sweden. Matsumoto, the deputy minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was quick-witted and thought that he must notify foreign countries as soon as possible, especially to let the Allied officers and soldiers know - it turned out that he was still afraid of being beaten - that night, the news of Japan's acceptance was broadcast to the world through radio.
This is why on the night of August 10, cheers and firecrackers suddenly sounded in Chongqing, Shanghai and other places.
5. This is not over yet...
After the United States received Japan's notice, Truman held a meeting in the White House . There was a debate at the meeting about Japan's conditions. However, the current interest of the United States is to end the war before the Soviet Union reaches Japan, so it decided to accept Japan's conditions. The U.S. Secretary of State immediately drafted a reply, which said: "From the moment of surrender, the national governance authority of the Emperor and the Japanese government will be placed under the restrictions of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers...The final form of the Japanese government will be determined according to the freely expressed will of the Japanese people."
This passage contains a hidden mystery and leaves a lot of room for interpretation of the emperor's status.
html On March 11, this reply was notified to Japan after seeking the consent of China, the Soviet Union, and Britain.
html On March 12, Japan received a reply from the Allies, which Foreign Minister Togo and Emperor Hirohito considered acceptable. However, Prime Minister Anan Riku and others strongly objected, saying that the answer contained the word "forced subordination" and proposed that a note must be sent to the Allies, requesting clarification on the national system issue. Those who originally agreed to accept the Potsdam Declaration also turned to support the hardliners, including Prime Minister Suzuki. In the end, Emperor Hirohito also wavered and said: "Let's study it carefully."
As a hard-line military group, the military group was still chattering. The Chief of Staff and the Chief of the General Staff met Emperor Hirohito and said: The Allied Powers' reply, "no matter in name or in fact, is to demand our unconditional surrender. In particular, it has tarnished the dignity of the Emperor as the center of the country and destroyed the country." They asked Emperor Hirohito to revoke the notice recognizing the "Potsdam Declaration".
Is their toughness just a personal opinion? No, they represent the psychology of a large number of crazy invaders . The Commander-in-Chief of the Dispatch Forces in China, Okamura Neiji, sent an urgent message: "(We) will never be fooled by the enemy's peace offensive and domestic pessimism. We firmly believe that this is the time for us to move forward to achieve the goal of war at the risk of annihilating the entire army." Okamura Neiji also said: "Millions of army troops surrendered without a decisive battle. Such a shame has not been seen in the history of world wars." At the same time, the Southern Army. Commander-in-Chief Juichi Terauchi also called: "(Answer to the Allied Powers) Our Southern Army absolutely cannot accept that... until one officer and one soldier will advance to the death in order to eliminate the old enemy and show the true character of the Imperial Army. It is determined to safeguard the national system and will never be willing to accept unprecedented humiliation in order to be destroyed. This is the common wish of the entire army, especially the front-line Imperial Army."
13 The whole day was spent in the "Huihai". The supreme war guidance meeting was held in the morning, the cabinet meeting was held in the afternoon, and the royal family meeting was held at the same time. There was a fierce debate over "immediate acceptance" or "re-note", and there was no conclusion until late at night. The ball was kicked in front of Emperor Hirohito again.
html On the morning of the 314th, it was decided to hold an emergency imperial meeting attended by the command and the cabinet. By noon, Emperor Hirohito was in person. After Suzuki made his opening remarks, Ananda Riku spoke with tears in his eyes: "According to the conditions of the reply, it is impossible to maintain the national system." Finally, Emperor Hirohito made a speech, to the effect of: I believe that it is no longer possible to continue the war. The Allies' reply has basically accepted our request, so I want to accept it; if it is necessary to appeal to the people, I am willing to stand in front of the microphone.
Six, August 15 Incident
The cabinet immediately met to review the end-of-war edict , and all cabinet members, including Anan, signed it. That night, Suzuki sent the draft edict to the palace and informed the Allies. At around 11 o'clock in the night, the recording of the radio tape of Emperor Hirohito reading the surrender edict began. At close to 12 midnight, the recording was completed, and the tape was collected by the attendant into the vault.
had just gone to bed when gunshots and noises rang out in the palace. It turned out that a group of die-hard young soldiers from the Army Provincial Military Affairs Bureau were unwilling to surrender and conspired to mobilize the Eastern Army and the Guards Division troops to take control of the palace "to wait for the Holy Judgment to change." On the night of the 14th, when they learned of the decision to surrender, the leaders, Major Hatanaka, Lieutenant Colonel Shiizaki and others, entered the palace to persuade Lieutenant General Moriyu, the commander of the Guards Division, to stage a mutiny. Morito wanted to carry out Emperor Hirohito's orders. While he was lobbying, Hatanaka took out his pistol and shot Morijiu to death with several rounds. Then he shouted to his accomplices desperately: "Because time is running out, we will kill him!"
Several other officers of the Guards Division were also shot or stabbed to death. Many palace officials, including ministers, were imprisoned. Then they forged orders, assigned Guards Division troops to set up security around the palace, and occupied the broadcasting station to prevent the surrender decree from being broadcast. The mutineers anxiously searched the palace for the tape.A palace attendant was clever and placed a sign saying " Female Officers Bathroom" at the entrance of the underground vault. Several officers and soldiers with swords in their hands walked around the entrance and left.
After dawn, the Eastern Army came to persuade the mutineers to put down their weapons. Seeing that they could not get the support of the Eastern Army, and the forged division orders were exposed, they surrendered.
Major Hatanaka and others committed suicide in the square in front of the palace after trial on the afternoon of August 15 ( was not shot ). Before them, in the early morning of the same day, Prime Minister Anami, a representative of the hardliners, put on a shirt given by Emperor Hirohito and committed suicide by caesarean section.
In addition, there were many people and incidents that did not obey and surrender, and there is no need to describe them one by one here.
At noon on August 15, the recording of Emperor Hirohito accepting surrender was broadcast. Japan surrendered on the condition of retaining the national system-the emperor system.
Emperor Hirohito had a small radio placed in front of him, listening to his own voice, and from time to time he picked up the white gloves on the table to wipe his tears.
Is it unwillingness or regret?
7. Avalanche and Snowflakes
After the September 18th Incident in 1931, "Kobe Shimbun" conducted a public opinion poll. Almost all the respondents supported the Kwantung Army . The reason is: "If the entire Manchuria (Northeast China) and even China (a disparaging name for China) are occupied, Japan will get rich, and we will be saved (from the economic crisis)." In the donation activities to express condolences to the officers and soldiers at the front, the most active "were middle school students, primary school students and the proletariat in order."
When he decided to accept the "Potsdam Declaration", one of the reasons given by Emperor Hirohito was that he could not bear the suffering of his people - only Japanese citizens, completely ignored that the people of China and Southeast Asia are human beings too ! ——But 30 years later, in 1975, when a reporter asked him about his war responsibility, Hirohito said: "I have not studied this kind of word in literature, so I don't understand it, so it is difficult to answer this question." Whether it is an individual, a team, or even a country, the positive fighting spirit is called perseverance; the anti-humanity and madness that will not stop is called mad dog madness !
The author of this article: Ma Ru, a "This Is War" franchise author, may not be reproduced without the permission of the author and "This Is War". Violators will be held legally responsible.
Editor's introduction: Wang Zhengxing, a former officer of a field unit of the People's Liberation Army, has served in infantry units, headquarters, logistics departments and other units. He is committed to the study of war history and tactics , and has a unique understanding of military tactics and non-war operations. His book " this is war " was recommended in two issues in Phoenix TV " eight-minute " column in May and June 2014. His public account name is also "This is War". Welcome to follow
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