Thursday, August 23, 1945. The Red Army and the Japanese.

The Battle of Shumshu ended with the Red Army defeating the Imperial Japanese Army on the island.

The Red Army took Port Arthur.

Stalin ordered Japanese POWs in the hands of the Red Army to be transported to the USSR.  The Japanese would start repatriating them the following year, but in 1949 some were transferred to Communist China, and the final Soviet repatriation was accomplished in 1950.  At that time there were over 2,000 remaining who were not repatriated.  Some of them returned after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but some chose to voluntarily remain in Russia as, by that time, they'd integrated into Russian society and had families.

This behavior was typical for Communist countries, which tended to regard POWs as criminals and hold them for long periods of time after hostilities ceased.

"Captain Leekins, G-2 Island Commander, Colonel Haregawa and party leaving, USS Amick (DE 168), Palau Islands, 23 August 1945."

In contrast, Douglas MacArthur ordered, on this day, the release of 5,000 Filipinos held for security reasons.

President Truman awarded the Medal of Honor to twenty-eight servicemen.

The PLA prevailed in the Battle of Baoying.

Last edition:

Wednesday, August 22, 1945. Surrenders.

Labels: 1940s, 1945, Displaced Persons, Imperial Japanese Army, Japan, Marshall Islands, Red Army, Romania, The Holocaust, World War Two

Saturday, August 18, 1945. The last American KIA of World War Two. Anthony J. Marchione.

Sukarno became the first President of Indonesia.

A B-32, an obscure bomber that was a competitor of the B-29.

B-32 crewman Anthony J. Marchione became the last American to die in WWII when the B-32 he was flying in over Tokyo in a photography mission was attacked by Japanese fighter aircraft in spite of the Japanese surrender.  The attack on the two B-32s followed an attack the prior day on B-32s in the same locality, which the bombers were investigating.  Staff Sergeant Joseph Lacharite was severely wounded and would take years to recover from his injuries.

The plane he was on was named "Hobo Queen"

The Consolidated B-32 Dominator is an almost forgotten World War Two aircraft. A competitor with the B-29, it was produced as a fallback to the B-29, and plans to replace B-17s and B-24s with the Dominator were cancelled due to production delays.  118 were built.

Indian nationalist, who sided with the Japanese during the war, died at age 48 in an airplane crash in Formosa.

The Soviets invaded the Kuril Islands, which was certainly a questionable act given the Japanese having announced their surrender.  The resulting Battle of Shumshu was the last battle of the Second World War.

On the other hand, Japanese forces on the Asian mainland continued to resist Soviet advances there, albeit ineffectively.

The Japanese government was clearly having trouble getting some forces to stand down.

Last edition:

Friday, August 17, 1945. The long trip of the U-977.

Labels: 1940s, 1945, Dutch East Indies, Dutch Empire, German Kriegsmarine, Hirohito, Indonesia, Indonesian National Revolution, It was because of World War Two, Nationalist Chinese Army, The written word, World War Two