Hiroshima was targeted by the first atomic bomb used in warfare in August 1945.
On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped the uranium weapon Little Boy over Hiroshima. The bomb was carried by the B-29 bomber Enola Gay, commanded by Colonel Paul Tibbets. The attack destroyed much of the city and caused enormous civilian casualties, with many more people dying later from injuries and radiation effects.
Three days afterward, the United States dropped Fat Man on Nagasaki. These were the first and only wartime uses of nuclear weapons. Japan announced its acceptance of the Allied surrender terms on August 15, although historians continue to debate how different factors, including the Soviet declaration of war, influenced the decision.
Hiroshima was an important military and industrial center, but it also contained a large civilian population. The bombing remains a major subject in discussions of nuclear weapons, wartime decision-making, civilian protection, and the origins of the nuclear age.