Bidspirit auction | WORLD WAR II

WORLD WAR II - WORLD WAR II: An original telex issued by the United States Naval Communication Service Amphibious Forces, Pacific, one page, oblong 8vo, n.p., 9th August 1945. The telex relays important information received from the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in London, in full, ´Less than an hour ago an announcement was made through BBC London that ths Soviet Union had declared war against the Japanese Empire as of 9 August 1945. President Truman announced in Washington that Russia had declared war against Japan´ . With a pencil annotation to the centre, ´All Hands´ . Two file holes to the upper edge and a few areas of light age toning to the edges, otherwise VG Just a few days before the present telex was generated America had bombed Hiroshima, and on the morning of 9th August 1945 another atomic bomb was dropped over the Japanese city of Nagasaki. That same day saw the commencement of the Soviet-Japanese War with the invasion of Manchuria. There has long been contentious debate between historians as to why Japan surrendered in World War II, with this moment in history forcing their decision. Some believe their choice to surrender the following week was the result of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It´s possible that these actions finally pushed Emperor Hirohito to break the deadlock in the Supreme War Council and accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration for unconditional surrender issued by the Allied leaders on 26th July 1945 (the declaration included a threat of ´prompt and utter destruction´ if the armed forces of Japan didn´t surrender). However, other scholars have taken the view that Japan surrendered because of the Soviet Union´s declaration of war on the Japanese Empire. It was only when the Soviets, jockeying with the United States for post-war influence in Asia, invaded Manchuria that Japan´s leaders capitulated to avoid falling under Soviet dominance. In this theory, it is therefore believed that Japanese leaders declared the atomic bomb had forced them to surrender as it was less embarrassing to admit defeat due to to a miracle weapon.