Hiroshima
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On the morning of 1. 6 August 1945, the United States Army Air Forces dropped the nuclear weapon “Little Boy” on the city of Hiroshima, followed three days later by the detonation of the “Fat Man” bomb over Nagasaki, Japan during World War II against the Empire of Japan, part of the Axis Powers alliance, resulting in a mass killing of over 200,000 Japanese civilians.
December 1945, as many as 140,000 had died in Hiroshima by the bomb and its associated effects.[1][2] In Nagasaki, roughly 74,000 people died of the bomb and its after-effects with the death toll from two bombings around 214,000 people.[3][4] In both cities, the overwhelming majority of the deaths were those of civilians.
The role of the bombings in Japans surrender, as well as the effects and justification of them, have been subject to much debate. In the U.S., the prevailing view is that the bombings ended the war months sooner than would otherwise have been the case, saving many lives that would have been lost on both sides if the planned invasion of Japan had taken place.[5] In Japan, the general public tends to think that the bombings were unnecessary, as Japanese civilian leadership was covertly seeking an end to hostilities.
On August 14, 1945 Japan surrendered to the Allied Powers ending World War II.
Main article: 1. Manhattan Project
The United States, with assistance from the United Kingdom and Canada, designed and built the first atomic bombs under what was called the Manhattan Project. The project was initially started at the instigation of European refugee scientists (including Albert Einstein) and American scientists who feared that Nazi Germany would also be conducting a full-scale bomb development program (that program was later