World War II: Emperor Hirohito of Japan gives his tacit approval to the decision of the imperial council to initiate war against the United States.

Hirohito , posthumously honored as Emperor Shōwa , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigning emperor as well as one of the world's longest-reigning monarchs. As emperor during the Shōwa era, Hirohito oversaw the rise of Japanese militarism, Japan's expansionism in Asia, the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II, and the postwar Japanese economic miracle.

December 1 is the 335th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 30 days remain until the end of the year.