World war II chronology - August 1945

2 August 1945	The Potsdam Agreement is signed.
4 August 1945	August 6 is set as the date for dropping the first atomic bomb weapon in war, against Hiroshima, Japan. Little Boy is loaded into B-29 Superfortress No. 82. In Canada, the Prime Minister tells the House of Commons that no act of subversion or sabotage had been found before or during the war by the Japanese Canadians. However, disloyal Japanese Canadians would be deported to Japan, and no further Japanese immigration would be allowed. Also, a set quota of dispersed Japanese Canadians would be allowed to return to the west coast of British Columbia.
5 August 1945	B-29 Superfortress No. 82, carrying an atomic bomb for use on Japan, is renamed Enola Gay, after the pilot's mother.
6 August 1945	The B-29 plane Enola Gay takes off from Tinian island in the Marianas islands, piloted by Colonel Paul Tibbets, carrying an uranium atomic bomb. One of three American planes flying over Hiroshima, Japan, drops three parachutes carrying blast-recording equipment. American Colonel Paul Tibbets and the crew of the Enola Gay flying at 31,600 feet altitude, drop a 4400 kg uranium-based atomic bomb over Hiroshima, Japan, set to detonate at 1850 feet above the city. The blast has the impact of a 500-mph wind, leveling almost everything within a two-mile radius, destroying 70,000 buildings, sixty percent of the city. 70,000 are killed, and 80,000 wounded. The atomic bomb becomes the largest man-made explosion in history, and largest single killer in history. (By the end of the year, a further 60,000 have died from burns, wounds, and radiation sickness.) Quote by Enola Gay co-pilot Captain Robert Lewis over Hiroshima, Japan: "My God, what have we done?".
8 August 1945	Emperor Hirohito informs the Japanese prime minister that the war must be ended as soon as possible, on the basis of the Potsdam Declaration The Soviet Union declares war on Japan.
9 August 1945	The Soviet Red Army advances into Manchuria and outer Mongolia. In Japan, the Supreme War Council meets, with Emperor Hirohito present. The cabinet and high command are evenly split on the issue of whether to surrender or continue fighting. Emperor Hirohito Mikado is asked to decide; he recommends acceptance of the Allied terms for surrender. An American plane drops a plutonium-atomic bomb over the Urakami suburb of Nagasaki, Japan, off-target by three miles. Estimated dead are 38-70,000. (Preferred targets were Kokura and Nigata, which were passed over due to poor weather conditions.) Lieutenant Robert Hampton Gray, of the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve, a fighter pilot on the British Royal Navy HMCS Formidable aircraft carrier, leads an air assault on Japanese warships. His plane catches fire, but he continues dropping bombs, sinking destroyer Amakusa in Onagawa Bay, Honshu. He is killed in action, and is posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.  Canadian pilot Lieutenant Gerald Anderson is killed when his plane crashes into stern of carrier HMS Formidable while trying to land. (He is the last Canadian killed during the war.)
10 August 1945	The Japanese government requests peace with the United States, but insists on retaining the Emperor. Royal Canadian Navy cruiser HMCS Uganda returns to Esquimalt, British Columbia, Canada. Earlier, the crew voted 556 to 344 to not volunteer for duty in the Pacific, after Prime Minister William King said Canadians would serve in the Pacific only voluntarily.
11 August 1945	The United States' reply to Japan: the Emperor must be subject to the Supreme Commander, and the form of government in Japan would be established by the free will of the people.
12 August 1945	Soviet troops enter northern Korea.
13 August 1945	US President Harry Truman authorizes a 1000-plane raid on Tokyo, Japan.
14 August 1945	The Japanese Supreme Council meets, with Emperor Hirohito present. They are evenly divided over issue of accepting unconditional surrender, or seeking a guarantee of the survival of the monarchy. Emperor Hirohito recommends accepting unconditional surrender. American B-29 bombers attack Tokyo. The US receives the Japanese acceptance of unconditional surrender. US President Harry Truman announces the end of The Second World War.
15 August 1945	Emperor Hirohito addresses the public of Japan, announces the surrender of Japan. Romania issues twelve postage stamps marking the 1st anniversary the armistice with Russia. The USSR issues a postage stamp marking the victory of Allied Nations in Europe.
16 August 1945	The Regent of Siam proclaims the declaration of war of January 1942 to be null and void.
17 August 1945	Poland and Russia sign a treaty establishing the Russian-Polish border, basicly the Curzon Line established after the First World War, with a few deviations in Poland's favor.
20 August 1945	Soviet forces complete their conquest of Manchuria.
24 August 1945	Quote by captured Brigadeführer Kurt Meyer, commander of 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Jugend": "As I sit here now, Germany in five years or less will be Communist. Russia will always have both time and the necessary resources to do what she likes when she likes."
26 August 1945	American troops begin arriving in Japan.
31 August 1945	American General Douglas MacArthur signs the document listing the terms of Japan's surrender, on the American battleship Missouri, in Tokyo Bay.