The United States drop atomic bombs on Japan

From March 1945 onwards, the United States bombed dozens of Japanese cities. Fire bombs destroyed large parts of the cities and killed hundreds of thousands of civilians. The United States used the attacks to prepare for an invasion, hoping to force Japan to surrender, but it did not.

Meanwhile, the US continued to work on the construction of atomic bombs with even greater impact, and on 6 August 1945, an American bomber dropped the first atomic bomb in history. The Japanese city of Hiroshima was the target. The bomb destroyed the city and killed tens of thousands of civilians. A big fire destroyed the city even further. Harmful radiation doubled the number of victims in the months following the explosion. The United States threatened further attacks if Japan would not surrender.

Three days later, they dropped another atomic bomb, this time on the city of Nagasaki. Here, too, tens of thousands were killed and the city was destroyed. This time, the Japanese gave in. On August 15, 1945, the Japanese emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s unconditional surrender on the radio.

Two weeks later, on 2 September, the Second World War officially came to an end.