National Memorial Service for War Dead

(Redirected from Shūsen-kinenbi) Official ceremony conducted annually on August 15, by the Japanese government

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National Memorial War Service for War Dead
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida addressing the attendees on August 15, 2022
Official name	全国戦没者追悼式
Observed by	Japanese
Type	National observance
Significance	A memorial service for military and civilian deaths during WW2, observed on the same day the Japanese Emperor, addressed the Japanese people, to announce the unconditional surrender of the Japanese forces.
Observances	Memorial service aired by national broadcaster NHK
Date	August 15
Next time	15 August 2025 (2025-08-15)
Related to	National Liberation Day of Korea, Victory over Japan Day

The National Memorial Service for War Dead (全国戦没者追悼式, Zenkoku Senbotsusha Tsuitōshiki') is an official, secular ceremony conducted annually on August 15 by the Japanese government at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. The ceremony is held to commemorate the victims of World War II. The first memorial ceremony was held on May 2, 1952.

Shūsen-kinenbi

Shūsen-kinenbi (Japanese: 終戦記念日, lit. "memorial day for the end of the war") or Haisen-kinennbi (Japanese: 敗戦記念日, "surrender memorial day") also written as shūsen-no-hi (Japanese: 終戦の日) or haisen-no-hi (Japanese: 敗戦の日) is an informal reference used by the public, for August 15 and related to the historical events that culminated with the ending of World War II, and the restoration of Japanese political independence.

The official name for the day, however, is "the day for mourning of war dead and praying for peace" (戦没者を追悼し平和を祈念する日, Senbotsusha o tsuitōshi heiwa o kinensuru hi). This official name was adopted in 1982 by an ordinance issued by the Japanese government.

Those events were:

14 August 1945, the Imperial Japanese government gave notice to the Allies of World War II accepting the conditions of the Potsdam Declaration,
15 August 1945, the day of the Shōwa surrender broadcast announcing to the people of Japan that the Imperial government had accepted the Potsdam Declaration, and unconditional surrender of the armed forces,
2 September 1945, the official signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender aboard the USS Missouri.
28 April 1952, the San Francisco peace treaty with Japan came into force which under international law ended the state war with the Allied nations, and returned independence to Japan.

It is not an official holiday under Japanese law.

Overview

By decision of the Third Yoshida Cabinet (Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida), on 2 May 1952 the Emperor Shōwa and Empress Kōjun of Japan held a memorial service for war dead in Shinjuku Gyoen. The next such service was held on March 28, 1959. In 1963 the date was moved to August 15, the day the Hirohito surrender broadcast (玉音放送, Gyokuon-hōsō) had aired in 1945.

In the following year, the service was held at Yasukuni Shrine, and in 1965 it was moved to the Budokan where it is still held today. In 1982 the National Diet enacted a law fixing the date of the ceremony to August 15. The service is meant to honor both Japanese military casualties and Japanese civilian victims of war, over 30 million deceased individuals in total.

The event is organized by the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. The Emperor and Empress are always in attendance, as well as representatives of business, labor, political, and religious organisations, and bereaved families. Roughly 6,000 attendees were recorded in 2007.

The service is scheduled at 11:51 am for one hour, and is broadcast by the Japan Broadcasting Corporation.

No invited leader has ever absented himself from the memorial, including those who have criticized visits to Yasukuni Shrine. There has never been a protest from foreign powers about the memorial.

Order of service

The Japanese Prime Minister addressing the attendees on August 15, 2008.
Opening
Entrance of the Emperor and Empress of Japan
Anthem: Kimigayo
Address by Prime Minister of Japan
Moment of silence (usually at noon)
Address by the Emperor
Addresses by Speaker of the House of Representatives, President of the House of Councillors, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and Representative for the Bereaved
Exit of the Emperor and Empress of Japan
Offering of Flowers
Closing

Notable events

1988: Emperor Shōwa on his deathbed, is flown to the ceremony by JGSDF helicopter (without Empress Kōjun).
2006: During the Speaker of the House of Representatives Yōhei Kōno's speech, an exceptionally clear reference was made to war responsibility.
2007: Last ceremony with a surviving parent of a war victim in attendance.
2009: Due to an irregular dissolution of the House of Representatives, there was no Speaker of the House of Representatives.
2011: The moment of silence was accidentally delayed by 26 seconds due to a long speech of Prime Miniter Naoto Kan.

References

^ "62回目の敗戦記念日に思う". 八重山毎日新聞社 / The Yaeyama-Mainichi Newspapers (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-08-15.
"「敗戦の日」を覚えて". 日本キリスト教協議会 / National Christian Council in Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2020-08-15. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
厚生労働省：全国戦没者追悼式について (in Japanese). Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. August 8, 2007. Archived from the original on March 21, 2008. Retrieved February 16, 2008.
終戦77年の戦没者追悼式、平和へ祈り [Pray for peace. Nationwide memorial for those who died in battle in the seventy-seventh year of the end of the war.] (in Japanese). The Nikkei. August 15, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2023.

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