White House Sketches
President Harry Truman Proclaims V-J Day
September 2, 1945
Crowds outside the White House celebrate V-J Day, the Japanese surrender and the end of World War II. NARA.
In a radio address on the evening of September 1, 1945, President Truman stated, “As President of the United States, I proclaim Sunday, September the second, 1945, to be V-J Day—the day of formal surrender by Japan. It is not yet the day for the formal proclamation of the end of the war nor of the cessation of hostilities. But it is a day which we Americans shall always remember as a day of retribution—as we remember that other day, the day of infamy.” Celebrations began outside the White House after the armistice was declared on August 14, 1945, but Japan did not formally surrender until September 2.