Chester Nimitz signed Japan’s surrender instrument immediately after Douglas MacArthur.
MacArthur signed first for the Allied powers as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz then signed as the representative of the United States. Representatives of China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand followed.
Nimitz had commanded the United States Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas during much of the war against Japan. His signature represented the United States government and armed forces at the formal ceremony, while MacArthur’s signature represented the Allied command structure.
Nimitz used two pens during the signing. One later went to the Nanjing Museum and the other to the United States Naval Academy Museum. The signing order is sometimes confused with the broader Allied command hierarchy, but Nimitz was specifically the second Allied signer after MacArthur.