Though Emperor Hirohito made the formal announcement on August 15, Japan offered its unconditional surrender to Allied forces on this day in 1945.

The alternative, according to the Potsdam Declaration, was “prompt and utter destruction.”

The ceremony took place in Tokyo Bay aboard the USS Missouri alongside more than 250 Allied warships. The Second World War, which had begun exactly six years and one day earlier, was finally over.

Little seen alternate view, original source unknown