What happened at Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

What did the US hope to achieve?

Japan was at war with America and its allies, which included
Britain and Russia. The allies were winning the war and the
Japanese forces had been pushed back from many locations.
However fighting was still very fierce and soldiers and civilians
were dying every day.

What happened?

In August 1945, the US Air Force dropped two atomic bombs

on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They
caused hundreds of thousands of civilian casualties and were
shortly followed by the surrender of Japan and the end of
World War 2.
Click here for pictures of the destruction
Why is this important?

It was the first and only time that atomic bombs have been
used in a war. Looking at what happened to these cities is
probably the best way of understanding the death and damage
that will be caused if there is another nuclear conflict.
Why were the bombs used?

Deciding whether to use the bombs was like calculating an

equation. The Americans believed the number of people saved
by ending World War 2 quickly would be greater than the
number of people killed by the atomic bombs.
But there is still some controversy about whether this was
true.
What damage did the bombs cause?

At Hiroshima, the blast flattened buildings within a 2.5 km

radius of the bomb. At Nagasaki the hilly landscape meant the
destruction was less widespread.
The bombs killed about 240,000 people. Around 120,000 were
killed outright by the bombs, and a similar number died of
injuries and radiation sickness in the weeks, months and years
that followed.

US President Harry S Truman wanted the Japanese to

surrender as quickly as possible so he could save lives.
The atomic bomb was a deadly new weapon. Truman hoped
the massive destruction it caused would shock the Japanese
into realising they had to surrender.
What did the US hope to avoid?

President Truman wanted to avoid a land invasion of Japan.

There were 2.5 million Japanese troops stationed there and
Truman's staff estimated that defeating them would cost the
lives of 250,000 US soldiers.
Some historians also say that the US wanted to avoid Japan
being occupied by Russian troops. America and Russia were
allies but they did not really trust each other.
World War II
The Blitz
What was the Blitz?
Rare films of London in the Blitz
Event marks 70 years since Blitz
D-Day
What was D-Day?
My grandad fought at D-Day
Clickable map - D-Day
More WWII
Winston Churchill
The Holocaust
VE Day
VJ Day
Hiroshima after the bomb
Hiroshima and Nagasaki