When is VJ Day? 2020 UK date marks the 75th anniversary
THE 75th anniversary of VJ Day will be celebrated on August 15.
It marks the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered to the allies in World War II, effectively ending the biggest conflict in human history. Here’s what we know about it.
What is VJ Day?
Victory over Japan marked the end of World War Two, after the US dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
On August 6 and 9, 1945, the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The Soviet Union also declared war on Japan on August 9, launching the soviet invasion of Manchuria on the same day that the second atomic bomb was dripped on Nagasaki.
A colossal force of over 1.5 million men and thousands of pieces of military hardware swept south and invaded the Japanese puppet state of Manchuko alongside the Mongolians.
As a result Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s acceptance of the terms of the Potsdam Declaration on August 15 – which outlined the terms of the nation’s surrender.
US President Harry S Truman declared the day as Victory over Japan Day, at a White House press conference.
British Prime Minister Clement Atlee confirmed the news in a broadcast saying: “The last of our enemies is laid low.”
The following day King George VI spoke to the country saying: “Our hearts are full to overflowing, as are your own.
“Yet there is not one of us who has experienced this terrible war who does not realise that we shall feel its inevitable consequences long after we have all forgotten our rejoicings today.”
During the Second World War, fighting in the Asia-Pacific took place from Hawaii to North East India.
Britain and the Commonwealth’s principle fighting force, the Fourteenth Army, was one of the most diverse in history – more than 40 languages were spoken, and all the world’s major religions represented.
When is VJ Day?
VJ Day takes place every year on August 15 in the UK and marks the initial announcement of Japan’s surrender.
2020 is important as it marks the 75th anniversary.
It is also known as Victory over Japan Day, V-P Day, and Victory in the Pacific Day.
Americans celebrate VJ Day September 2, when the surrender documents were signed aboard the USS Missouri in 1945.
How does it differ to VE Day?
It differs from VE Day as the war in the Pacific lasted longer than the war in the European theatre.
VE Day (Victory in Europe) is marked May 8 after German Col. Gen. Alfred Jodl signed Germany’s full surrender.
The surrender came 8 days after Adolf Hitler committed suicide in his Berlin bunker, April 30, and less than a week after the official end of the Battle of Berlin on May 2.
How will it be celebrated this year?
VJ Day will be celebrated across the UK to mark the allied victory.
The Government’s events will pay tribute to the tens of thousands of service personnel from across the UK and the Commonwealth who fought and died in the war against Japan, including prisoners of war.
The Red Arrows will perform a UK-wide flypast over Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff and London, something that hasn’t happened since the 2012 London Olympics.
They will make a special pass of The Royal Hospital Chelsea, for the three Burma Star recipient veterans who live there.
There will be multiple official events lead by the royal family, starting with a two-minute silence lead at 11am by Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall.
The televised silence is part of a service held between 9.30am and 11.30am that will be lead from the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.
The event itself is closed to the public however due to coronavirus restrictions.
Churches across the UK will then ring a single bell 75 times from 11.10am after the Cry for Peace as the service concludes.
The VJ Day Schedule
6am – Battle’s O’er
Pipers will play Battle’s O’er at 6am local time in the country they are in including those overseas who will be playing the tune at different times to suit their own countries plans.
10.58am – The Last Post
Buglers/Trumpeters and Cornet players sound the Last Post all over the UK.
11am – Two Minute Silence
11.02am – Reveille
Following the Two Minute Silence, all Buglers/Trumpeters and Cornet players will play Reveille.
11.10am – The Cry for Peace Around the World
Town Criers and Church representatives read out the Cry for Peace at 11.10am local time. Following the ‘Cry for Peace,’ participating churches will ring their bells 75 times, one ring for each year since VJ Day.
8.18pm – Sunset
Buglers/Trumpeters and Cornet players will play Sunset as the finale of the day’s celebrations.
8.30pm – 10pm – The Nation’s Tribute
A special programme, The Nation’s Tribute, will be broadcast on BBC One.
There will also be dedicated programmes broadcast on the BBC.
A re-telling of the story of Victory Over Japan will be broadcast on BBC One with tributes led by the Duke of Cambridge.
The Duke of Edinburgh, who was present in Tokyo Bay for the signing in September 1945, will feature in a montage of veterans of the pacific theatre which will be shared on social media and on large screens.
Veterans of the Far East campaign will be present at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire to remember fallen comrades too.
In both North and South Korea it is celebrated as the “the day the light returned” because the peninsula had been occupied by Japan who inflicted horrible brutality on the Koreans.