Similarly to Germany during WW2, Japan had captured numerous countries and claimed them as their territory, including a large portion of China. However, Japan continued to fight in the Pacific against the Allies even after Germany admitted defeat in May of 1945. The Allied countries stuggled to contain Japanese expansion until America entered the war in 1941. When America joined the Allies and declared war on Japan after the bombing at Pearl Harbour, Hawaii, the Allies began to dominate the war in the Pacific Ocean. Once the war in Europe was over, the Allies were able to direct their full attention to the Japanese, who had otherwise been suffiently left alone in comparison to Germany. In fact, 80,000 Canadians enlisted to fight in the Pacific and were prepared to support the other Allied countries, but occurences such as the atomic bomb made the need for these volunteeers diminish.
The Atomic Bomb
Before the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the American air force firebombed Japanese cities for nearly six months, killing and devastating hundreds of thousands of people. Even so, the Japanese government refused to admit defeat and surrender to the Allies, which was unfortuantely at the expense of the civilian population.
The new president of America, Harry Truman, believed that Japan would not give up until the rancorous end, so Truman opted to utilize a newly developed weapon of mass destruction against the population of Japan. An interesting fact about the development of the bomb is that Albert Einstein, a well-known scientific genius, actually encouraged the American president to construct the bomb. Einstein nonetheless regretted his decision after witnessing the devastating effects of such a weapon.
Contrary to popular belief, the United States was not the only country involved in the creation of the atomic bomb. This new nuclear weapon was being developed by the U.S., in addition to assistance from Britain and Canada. This highly secretive operation was referred to as the Manhattan Project by the producing countries of the bombs. A lot of the uranium used in the nuclear weapons was actually taken from Canadian mines and refined on Canadian soil.
After years of work, The Enola Gay, an American bomber plane, dropped the first atomic bomb (code-named Little Boy) on Hiroshima at 8:16 on the morning of August 6th, 1945. With this release of apocalyptic energy, an estimated 70,000 people were killed instantly; in addition to the destruction of 48,000 buildings. Shockingly, it still appeared that the Japanese government would not surrender three days after the dropping of the first bomb. As a result, the American government authorized the use of the second atomic bomb on the Japanese port of Nagasaki, which was referred to as Fat Man. By 1950, it was estimated that a total of 400,000 people had died from the bomb and its lasting effects, such as radiation exposure and burns.
The new president of America, Harry Truman, believed that Japan would not give up until the rancorous end, so Truman opted to utilize a newly developed weapon of mass destruction against the population of Japan. An interesting fact about the development of the bomb is that Albert Einstein, a well-known scientific genius, actually encouraged the American president to construct the bomb. Einstein nonetheless regretted his decision after witnessing the devastating effects of such a weapon.
Contrary to popular belief, the United States was not the only country involved in the creation of the atomic bomb. This new nuclear weapon was being developed by the U.S., in addition to assistance from Britain and Canada. This highly secretive operation was referred to as the Manhattan Project by the producing countries of the bombs. A lot of the uranium used in the nuclear weapons was actually taken from Canadian mines and refined on Canadian soil.
After years of work, The Enola Gay, an American bomber plane, dropped the first atomic bomb (code-named Little Boy) on Hiroshima at 8:16 on the morning of August 6th, 1945. With this release of apocalyptic energy, an estimated 70,000 people were killed instantly; in addition to the destruction of 48,000 buildings. Shockingly, it still appeared that the Japanese government would not surrender three days after the dropping of the first bomb. As a result, the American government authorized the use of the second atomic bomb on the Japanese port of Nagasaki, which was referred to as Fat Man. By 1950, it was estimated that a total of 400,000 people had died from the bomb and its lasting effects, such as radiation exposure and burns.
Even after seeing the devastation of the bombs, many Allied government officials, including C.D Howe, the Canadian Minister of Munitions and Supply, were proud of the bomb and those who helped to develop it. Many took pride in knowing that Canadian scientists were intimately involved and associated with the production of "this great scientific development." Others, however, were disgusted with the ruining effects of the bomb and the sheer number of deaths of innocent people.
"We had news this morning of another successful atomic bomb being dropped on Nagasaki. These two heavy blows have fallen in quick succession upon the Japanese and there will be quite a little space before we intend to drop another."
-Henry L. Stimson
"The only use for an atomic bomb is to keep somebody else from using one."
-George Wald
"The atomic bomb certainly is the most powerful of all weapons, but it is conclusively powerful and effective only in the hands of the nation which controls the sky."
-Lyndon B. Johnson
Devastated by the atomic bombs, Japan surrendered to the Allies' call for an unconditional armistice a day after the events at Nagasaki. Finally, on August 14th, 1945, World War Two had come to an end.