Emperor Hirohito delivered Japan’s 1945 radio announcement accepting surrender in World War II.
Hirohito recorded the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War on August 14, 1945. The recording was broadcast to the Japanese public at noon on August 15, Japan Standard Time. It was the first time many Japanese people had heard their emperor’s voice.
His formal message did not use the simple phrase “Japan surrenders.” Instead, it announced that Japan had accepted the terms of the Potsdam Declaration and ordered the armed forces to cease fighting. The speech used highly formal classical Japanese, making it difficult for many listeners to understand immediately.
Hirohito remained emperor after the war, although the Allied occupation reshaped Japan’s political system and his constitutional position. The broadcast is often called the Jewel Voice Broadcast, from the Japanese term Gyokuon-hōsō.