Oxford Dictionary of World History | Nagasaki, bombing of
Nagasaki, bombing of
The second target for an atomic bomb attack, three days after the Americans bombed
Hiroshima
. A city and port in south-west Japan, on the west coast of the island of Kyushu, its population was 419,901 in
2002
. Visited by the Portuguese in
1545
, it was the first Japanese port to open up to western trade. The bomb fell on
9
August
1945
. While the hilly terrain protected the population of 230,000 from the full effects of the explosion, 40,000 people were killed and tremendous destruction caused. On the following day Japan surrendered and the ceasefire began on
15
August
, the official surrender finally being signed on
2
September
. Nagasaki now specializes in shipbuilding and heavy engineering.
[The entire page is 117 words long]
Join eNotes
The above is a free excerpt. Get total access to this content with the:
