Hirohito's Surrender Broadcast — The Voice of the Emperor

Emperor Hirohito broadcast Japan's acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration's terms at noon on August 15, 1945 — the first time in history that most Japanese had ever heard the Emperor's voice. Speaking in formal court Japanese that many could barely understand, Hirohito announced that Japan would 'endure the unendurable.' Reaction across Japan ranged from stunned weeping to grief-stricken prostrations to suicides by military officers. A coup attempt by fanatical Army officers to seize the surrender announcement recordings — Operation Kyūjō — had been defeated just hours before. The day is observed in Japan as the anniversary of the war's end (August 15); the formal surrender on September 2 marked the legal conclusion.