This day in history

On 2 September, 1945, aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, World War II officially ends when Japanese officials surrender on behalf of their country.

A mass of news correspondents jammed the decks along with officers from all the participating Allied countries. American General Douglas MacArthur presided over the brief ceremony and signed the document on behalf of the combined Allied forces. According to the terms of the document, Emperor Hirohito and the Japanese government were now subject to the authority of the Supreme Allied Commander of occupied Japan, a post subsequently filled by General MacArthur.

A United Nations court finds Jean-Paul Akayesu, the former mayor of a small town in Rwanda, guilty of nine counts of genocide, the first conviction of this kind since the 1948 law banning genocide was introduced.

In England, police discover the body of Barbara Leach, the 12th victim of the Ian Sutcliffe, the “Yorkshire Ripper.”

Ho Chi Minh proclaims the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam).

Vice President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, makes his famous remark regarding American foreign policy saying America should, ‘speak softly and carry a big stick.’
 

Franco Prussian War: Napoleon III surrenders to the Prussian Army, who emerge victorious at the Battle of Sedan in France.