Who accepted Japan’s surrender for the Allied powers during the 1945 Tokyo Bay ceremony?

Douglas MacArthur accepted Japan’s surrender for the Allied powers during the 1945 Tokyo Bay ceremony.

MacArthur served as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and also commanded the Southwest Pacific Area. At the September 2 ceremony aboard USS Missouri, he signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender in his capacity as the Allied supreme commander.

The Japanese delegation signed first. Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed for the Japanese government, followed by General Yoshijiro Umezu for Imperial General Headquarters. MacArthur then accepted the document before the other Allied representatives added their signatures.

MacArthur’s role is sometimes confused with that of Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, who signed immediately afterward as the United States representative. Nimitz was the senior U.S. Navy officer in the Pacific, but MacArthur presided over the ceremony and accepted the surrender on behalf of the Allied powers.