On the night of August 14 1945, as Japan prepared to surrender to the Allies, a group of rebel officers launched a coup d’état and seized control of Tokyo’s Imperial Palace.
Determined to fight on, even if it meant the annihilation of their country, the plotters ransacked the palace looking for the prepared recording of Emperor Hirohito’s surrender message and very nearly prevented the end of the second world war.
The events of that night — symbolising a loss of political control over the military — have come sharply into focus on Friday’s 70th anniversary as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, seeks to reinterpret Japan’s pacifist constitution and make it easier for its armed forces to fight.
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