On what date did Emperor Hirohito announce Japan's surrender to its people by radio?

Emperor Hirohito announced Japan's surrender to its people by radio on 15 August 1945.

The broadcast was a recording of the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War, transmitted at noon Japan Standard Time. Hirohito said Japan had accepted the terms of the Potsdam Declaration and instructed the nation to end the fighting. Because the speech used formal Classical Japanese, many listeners did not immediately understand that it meant surrender.

The announcement followed the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet Union's entry into the war against Japan. It came before the formal signing of surrender documents, which took place on 2 September aboard USS Missouri.

The date can cause confusion because the announcement was heard in the United States on 14 August, owing to the time difference. Britain and Japan generally associate V-J Day with 15 August, while the United States officially commemorates it on 2 September.