On what date did Emperor Hirohito announce Japan's surrender in his 1945 radio address?

Emperor Hirohito announced Japan's surrender in his 1945 radio address on 15 August 1945.

The broadcast told the Japanese people that the government had accepted the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. Hirohito's recorded speech was transmitted at noon in Japan, although many listeners struggled to understand its formal, courtly language. It was the first time most Japanese civilians had heard the emperor's voice.

The announcement followed the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Soviet declaration of war, and intense debate within Japan's wartime leadership. A group of military officers even attempted a coup to prevent the recording from being broadcast, but the effort failed.

This date is often called V-J Day, especially in Japan and many Commonwealth countries. The United States also used 14 August because the news arrived there on the previous calendar day, while the formal surrender ceremony took place on 2 September.