The Hirohito surrender broadcast announced Japan’s acceptance of the Potsdam Declaration on August 15, 1945.
The recorded speech was broadcast at noon Japan Standard Time. Emperor Hirohito read the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War, telling the Japanese people that the government had accepted the Allied declaration and would end the conflict.
The date can cause confusion because the announcement occurred on August 14 in the United States and parts of the Americas because of time-zone differences. The formal surrender ceremony took place later, on September 2, 1945, aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
The speech was not a live broadcast. NHK technicians recorded Hirohito reading it at the Imperial Palace late on August 14, and the recording was replayed the following day. It was the first time most Japanese people had heard their emperor’s voice.