Who signed Japan’s Instrument of Surrender for Canada in 1945?

Lawrence Moore Cosgrave signed Japan’s Instrument of Surrender for Canada in 1945.

Cosgrave was a Canadian Army colonel and military attaché. He represented Canada at the ceremony aboard USS Missouri on September 2, 1945, signing after Australia’s General Thomas Blamey and before France’s General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque.

Cosgrave became notable for an error during the signing. On the Japanese copy of the document, he accidentally signed one line too low, in the space intended for France. General Richard Sutherland corrected the document by crossing out “French Republic” and writing “Dominion of Canada” beneath Cosgrave’s signature. Cosgrave’s signature was correctly placed on the Allied copy.

The mistake did not invalidate the surrender. It was corrected during the ceremony, and the Japanese delegates accepted the amended document. The episode is often remembered because it shows how a highly rehearsed international ceremony still included a small administrative mishap.