Eight Days in August - The Collapse of Japan

In the early hours of August 15, 1945, Japanese officers stormed the Imperial Palace.

Their target wasn't the emperor.

It was a phonograph record.

Recorded on August 14, it contained Emperor Hirohito's announcement accepting surrender. The conspirators sealed the palace, cut communications, killed the commander of the Imperial Guard, and spent hours desperately searching for the recording.

They never found it.

Hidden among palace documents, the record survived. The coup collapsed at dawn, and at noon, millions of Japanese citizens heard their emperor's voice for the first time, announcing that the war was ending.

In this episode of History Shorts, we tell the incredible story of the Kyūjō Incident—the last-minute attempt to prevent Japan's surrender and continue World War II.

It's one of the eight remarkable days told in my new book, Eight Days in August: The Final Week of World War II, out now from Stackpole Books.

 

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