Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta proclaim Indonesia's independence in Jakarta, beginning the revolution against Dutch rule.
Japan overthrows the French administration in Indochina; Bảo Đại then proclaims the Empire of Vietnam with Trần Trọng Kim as prime minister.
Bảo Đại, the last Nguyễn emperor, abdicates and hands the imperial seal and sword to the revolutionary government at Huế, ending the monarchy.
The Việt Minh seize power in Hanoi on 19 August, then in Huế and Saigon; Emperor Bảo Đại abdicates at the end of the month.
Hồ Chí Minh reads the Declaration of Independence at Ba Đình Square, proclaiming the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
A famine in northern Vietnam under French and Japanese rule kills an estimated 400,000 to 2 million people.
Under the Treaty of Manila, the United States recognises the independence of the Republic of the Philippines.