More than a month after Japan’s surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, Japanese forces in north China formally handed over authority to Chinese and other Allied forces. It happened on October 10, 1945, inside Beiping’s (Beijing) Forbidden City in a ceremony attended by representatives of the main victorious powers.

There were several reasons for the late surrender. Most importantly, China’s war-ravaged logistics system did not allow Chinese and American forces to deploy sufficient troops to Beijing and other northern strongholds until several weeks later. A rushed handover of authority from the Japanese forces could have resulted in complete chaos.

To bridge this logistical gap, the U.S. military launched Operation Beleaguer, deploying over 50,000 U.S. Marines to northern China. Their mission was to secure vital railways, mines, and ports. They also guarded the Japanese troops until Nationalist administrators could arrive to take formal custody of the region.

This delicate choreography was a race against time, as a shadow war was already brewing for the future of China. Fearing that Communist guerrillas would seize Japanese weapons, Chiang Kai-shek ordered Japanese commanders to maintain local law and order. For weeks, undefeated Japanese soldiers paradoxically acted as armed peacekeepers under Allied instruction.

Finally, October 10 was a date fraught with symbolism. It was the National Day of the Republic of China, which had originated only 34 years earlier after more than two millennia of imperial rule. Hosting the ceremony on this day signaled the rebirth of the republic after years of conflict and turmoil.

Below a selection of photos from the event.