Kenji Hatanaka led the failed Japanese military coup intended to stop Hirohito's surrender broadcast. The attempted coup took place in Tokyo during the night of August 14–15, 1945.
Hatanaka and other officers opposed the decision to accept the Allied terms. They sought to prevent the emperor's recorded message from reaching the public and tried to find the phonograph records containing the speech. The rebels raided the Imperial Palace but failed to locate the recordings, which had been hidden by palace staff.
The plotters also seized the NHK broadcasting station and attempted to control its transmission. Their effort collapsed after senior military authorities refused to support the coup. Hatanaka later obtained a motorcycle and distributed leaflets, but he was unable to stop the announcement.
The recording was safely taken to NHK and broadcast at noon on August 15. The failed coup is an important reminder that Japan's surrender was contested inside the military even after the emperor had decided to accept the Allied declaration.