Who presided over the Allied surrender ceremony aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay?

Douglas MacArthur presided over the Allied surrender ceremony aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.

MacArthur served as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and opened the September 2, 1945, ceremony. He accepted the Japanese surrender on behalf of the Allied nations before inviting representatives to sign the document.

After MacArthur signed, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz signed for the United States. Representatives of China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand then added their signatures.

MacArthur’s role continued after the ceremony. He directed the Allied occupation of Japan, which introduced political, constitutional, economic, and social reforms. He worked with Emperor Hirohito, who remained on the throne but lost his previous status as a divine ruler under the postwar constitutional order.