Hiroshima was the first city targeted by an atomic bomb in World War II.
The United States dropped the uranium bomb Little Boy on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. The explosion destroyed much of the city and caused catastrophic civilian casualties, with many more people dying later from injuries and radiation effects.
Hiroshima was a military and communications center, but it was also a populated city. The bombing was followed three days later by the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. These attacks occurred during the final stage of the Pacific War, alongside the Soviet declaration of war on Japan and invasion of Japanese-held Manchuria.
Hiroshima is sometimes confused with Nagasaki because both cities were attacked with atomic weapons in August 1945. Hiroshima came first, while Nagasaki was bombed on 9 August, the same day the Soviet invasion began.