General Order No. 1 was the directive that ordered Japanese forces to surrender after Japan accepted Allied terms.
The United States Joint Chiefs of Staff prepared General Order No. 1, and President Harry Truman approved it on 17 August 1945. General Douglas MacArthur issued it to Japan after the surrender decision, and Japanese Imperial General Headquarters transmitted it to Japanese forces on 2 September.
The order required Japanese units to surrender to designated Allied commanders, reveal their military dispositions, preserve equipment, and await disarmament. It also established practical arrangements for the occupation of Japan and Japanese-controlled territories. It was therefore an operational instruction implementing surrender, rather than the surrender instrument itself.
One important consequence concerned Korea. Japanese forces north of the 38th parallel were directed to surrender to Soviet forces, while those south of the parallel surrendered to American forces. This arrangement contributed to the postwar division of Korea. The order also helped turn a national decision into coordinated military compliance across a vast region.