In the Ruins of Empire: The Japanese Surrender and the Battle for Postwar Asia

Spector provides a masterful retelling of the turmoil following WW II. This is a period of which we hear virtually nothing, today, despite the fact that it was of crucial importance in shaping the next 65 years in the Pacific.

I found the book an excellent read. It tells the story of post-war asia that most people don't read about after the end of the war in the pacific. The confusing state of affairs between the time of the Japanese surrender to the return of stability to the East Asian region is something that is generally forgotten, falling thru the cracks between the greater history telling of the epic battles of WW2, and the newly minted histories of independence for the countries of the region. However, I found the book seemed to end rather abruptly, terminating in midpoint without ending in what I would have assumed to be a more logical endpoint for the book, at the point of independence for the various nations concerned. Instead, for example the book ends in its story of Vietnam at the point in which the French re-establish control of Hanoi and the Vietminh under Ho Chi Minh retreats into the countryside to prepare for war against the returned colonial master. Similar is the abrupt end to the story of Indonesia with the return of the Dutch and in Malaysia with the return of the English. The book fails to cover the continuing strife and struggles of Bien Dien Phu or the "Emergency" of British Malaya against the communist insurgence and the later "Konfantasi" with Indonesia.

This is a great summary of Asia in the post-war years. I was surprised at the extent of US and European involvement in China, Korea, and other countries after Japan surrendered. One of the key themes is how foreign liberating armies can soon become occupiers. Americans in China soon found this out after US marines were accused of raping a Chinese student. In other countries, the liberating army unleashed the powers of nationalism before the old colonial powers could reestablish the old regimes. My only disappointment with the book is that it did not cover Burma, Thailand, and a few other countries.

Most WWII histories act as if all hostile action ended on September 2 when the Japanese surrendered on the USS Missouri. Mr. Spector in this book shows that in many regards that the end of that drama was the beginning of another one. This book does an excellent job of exploring an under reported aspect of the Second World War and helps to explain why in the 20 years after the end of the War, east Asia became such a global hotspot. A great deal of attention is given to the failed attempts and assumptions of the European powers that they would simply walk back in and return to their lives as formal colonial masters. Mr. Spector does a great job exploring the various nationalistic conflicts and explaining why some were so violent and others were not. This is a great read for anyone who wants to learn more about the end of World War II in Asia or of Asian history in general.

On July 26, 1945, the goverments of the U.S., Britain, and China issued the Potsdam Declaration, a document that in no uncertain terms demands the unconditional surrender of Japan or it will face "prompt and utter destruction". Japan refused to surrender. On August 6, 1945, the U.S. drops the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. On August 9, 1945, the Soviet Union breaks its neutrality pact with Japan and invades Manchuria, which was still under Japanese control. The Supreme Council in Japan met that morning, August 9, to discuss the import of the atomic bomb attack (at the time there was a serious question whether the U.S. had the ability to make more than just one) and the Soviets' invasion of Manchuria (which many in the Japanese military downplayed). During that very meeting, news arrived that the U.S. had dropped a second atomic bomb, this time on Nagasaki. During the next several days intense talks among the Emperor, the government, and the military over possible surrender (including peace feelers to the Allies) took place, with a military coup to avoid surrender and continue fighting a very real possibility. On August 13, the Emperor agreed to surrender. On August 14, a military coup was attempted, but failed. (That same night, August 14-15, the U.S. conducted its largest bombing raid in the Pacific theatre with 1000 planes dropping bombs on eight Japanese cities.) On August 15, 1945, the Emperor's recorded surrender speech was broadcast to the Japanese people. Although August 15, 1945 is generally considered to be the end of World War II, the fighting did not automatically stop. Before its surrender (formally ratified September 2, 1945 aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay), Japan still controlled vast swaths of territory in other countries throughout Asia, including China, Manchuria, and Korea (in Indonesia, fka the Dutch East Indies, the Japanese granted independence just prior to their surrender and withdrawal). Under the terms of surrender Japan had to relinquish all such territory. This created a power vacuum. Ronald Spector's "In the Ruins of Empire" ably discusses the tumult and turmoil that roiled Asia, primarily between nationalist forces and their previously evicted colonial/imperial conquerors, directly after Japan's surrender. As each of the victorious Allies (the U.S., Britain, China, and the Soviets) and returning powers (e.g., the French, the Dutch) entered territories and nations under Japan's former sphere of influence, they had different objectives and there were widely varying results. The simmering internal feud between Mao's communist forces and Chiang Kai-shek's nationalist regime for control of China, for example, was back on in full but the enlistment by the U.S. of a few troops to aid the Nationalists was ineffective. Also explored are the brutal wars between nationalists and colonialists that erupted in Vietnam and Indonesia after the war, which in both instances led to the eventual withdrawal by the