By: HISTORY.com Editors

1946

Several Japanese soldiers surrender after learning Pacific War has ended

Published: November 05, 2009Last Updated: May 27, 2025

On January 2, 1946, four months after Japan officially surrendered in World War II, an American soldier accepts the surrender of about 20 Japanese soldiers who had been hiding underground for almost a year—and only discovered that the war was over by reading it in the newspaper.

On the island of Corregidor, located at the mouth of Manila Bay, a lone soldier on detail for the American Graves Registration was busy recording the makeshift graves of American soldiers who had lost their lives fighting the Japanese. He was interrupted when approximately 20 Japanese soldiers approached him waving a white flag. They had been living in an underground tunnel built during the war and learned that their country had already surrendered when one of them ventured out in search of water and found a newspaper announcing Japan’s defeat.

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Citation Information

Article title
Several Japanese soldiers surrender after learning Pacific War has ended
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
September 17, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
May 27, 2025
Original Published Date
November 05, 2009

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