Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s acceptance of the Allied surrender terms in August 1945.
His recorded address was broadcast to the Japanese public at noon on 15 August 1945. In the speech, Hirohito said that Japan had decided to accept the joint declaration issued by the Allied powers. Because he used formal classical Japanese and did not directly use the ordinary word for surrender, some listeners initially found the message difficult to interpret.
The broadcast was historically significant because it was the first time many Japanese civilians had heard the voice of their emperor. The recording had been made at the Imperial Palace the previous day and was replayed over NHK radio.
Hirohito remained emperor after the war, while Japan was occupied and reconstructed under Allied supervision. He reigned until his death in 1989, making him the longest-reigning emperor in modern Japanese history.