The USS Missouri and the Philippines: A Historic Moment on September 2, 1945

The USS Missouri in 1944 (Photo from Wikipedia)

September 01, 2025 — Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines

Article by AIMS Museo Maritimo Personnel

On September 2, 1945, a pivotal moment in world history took place aboard the USS Missouri (BB-63), a U.S. Navy battleship anchored in Tokyo Bay, Japan. On that day, Japan formally surrendered to the Allied Powers, effectively ending World War II. 

The USS Missouri was chosen for the ceremony due to its symbolic importance—it was named after President Harry S. Truman’s home state and had served as Fleet Admiral William F. Halsey’s flagship during the final weeks of the war (National Museum of the U.S. Navy, n.d.). Commissioned in 1944, it had also participated in key battles in the Pacific Theater.

General Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, led the surrender ceremony. Japanese officials, led by Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijiro Umezu, signed the Instrument of Surrender (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, 2023).

The Philippines had endured brutal Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945. The country and thousands of its citizens were greatly affected by the Fall of Bataan (1942) and the Battle of Manila (1945) (Degan, 2015).

The surrender aboard the USS Missouri not only ended hostilities but also paved the way for the post-war rebuilding of Japan and the eventual independence of the Philippines in 1946.

Today, the USS Missouri, which now rests in Hawaii, still serves as a powerful source of reflection, remembrance, and insight into global conflict and the path to reconciliation.

References

Degan, P. (2015). Flattop Fighting in World War II The Battles Between American and Japanese Aircraft Carriers. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. https://www.google.com.ph/books/edition/Flattop_Fighting_in_World_War_II/cSkn4wfNR7sC?hl=en&kptab=overview

National Museum of the U.S. Navy. (n.d.). Formal Surrender. https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/museums/nmusn/explore/photography/wwii/wwii-pacific/japanese-surrender/formal-surrender.html

U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. (2023, August 8). Surrender of Japan (1945). https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/surrender-of-japan