Crowds gathering in celebration at
Piccadilly Circus
, London during VE Day on 8 May 1945
Field Marshal
Wilhelm Keitel
signing the final surrender terms on 8 May 1945 in Berlin
Final positions of the
Allied
armies, May 1945
Adolf Hitler
, the
Nazi leader
, had
committed suicide on 30 April
during the
Battle of Berlin
, and Germany's surrender was authorised by his successor,
Reichsprasident
Karl Donitz
. The administration headed by Donitz was known as the
Flensburg Government
. The act of military surrender was first signed at 02:41 on 7 May in
SHAEF
HQ at
Reims
,
[2]
and a slightly modified document, considered the definitive
German Instrument of Surrender
, was signed on 8 May 1945 in
Karlshorst
, Berlin at 22:43 local time.
The German High Command will at once issue orders to all German military, naval and air authorities and to all forces under German control to cease active operations at 23.01 hours Central European time on 8 May 1945...
Upon the defeat of Germany, celebrations erupted throughout the
Western world
, especially in the United Kingdom, in North America and in USSR. More than one million people celebrated in the streets throughout the UK to mark the end of the European part of the war. In London, crowds massed in
Trafalgar Square
and up
the Mall
to
Buckingham Palace
, where King
George VI
and Queen
Elizabeth
, accompanied by their daughters and
Prime Minister
Winston Churchill
, appeared on the balcony of the palace before the cheering crowds. Churchill went from the palace to
Whitehall
, where he addressed another large crowd:
God bless you all. This is your victory. In our long history, we have never seen a greater day than this. Everyone, man or woman, has done their best.
Celebrations in London on 8 May 1945
Celebrations in
Toronto
on 8 May 1945
Churchill asked
Ernest Bevin
to come forward and share the applause. Bevin said, "No, Winston, this is your day", and proceeded to conduct the people in the singing of "
For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
".
Later, Princess
Elizabeth
(the future Queen Elizabeth II) and her sister Princess
Margaret
were allowed to wander incognito among the crowds and take part in the celebrations.
[4]
The 2015 film
A Royal Night Out
was inspired by Elizabeth and Margaret mingling with the public that night.
[
citation needed
]
In the United States, the event coincided with President
Harry Truman
's 61st birthday.
[5]
He dedicated the victory to the memory of his predecessor,
Franklin D. Roosevelt
, who had died of a cerebral hemorrhage less than a month earlier, on 12 April.
[6]
Flags remained at
half-staff
for the remainder of the 30-day mourning period.
[7]
[8]
Truman said of dedicating the victory to Roosevelt's memory and keeping the flags at half-staff that his only wish was "that Franklin D. Roosevelt had lived to witness this day".
[6]
Later that day, Truman said that the victory made it his most enjoyable birthday.
[5]
Great celebrations took place in many American cities, especially in
New York
's
Times Square
.
Tempering the jubilation somewhat, both Churchill and Truman pointed out that the war against Japan had not yet been won. In his radio broadcast at 15:00 on 8 May, Churchill told the
British people
, "We may allow ourselves a brief period of rejoicing (as Japan) remains unsubdued".
In America, Truman broadcast at 09:00 and said it was "a victory only half won".
On the same day in 1945,
Muslims
in
French Algeria
celebrating the end of the war (of which some were also peacefully protesting for
independence
) became the targets of
violence and massacres
by
colonial
authorities and
pied-noir
settler militias, which would last until 26 June 1945.
[13]
[14]
[15]
While details of the killings were largely overlooked in
metropolitan France
, the impact on the Algerian Muslim population was traumatic, especially on the large numbers of Muslim soldiers in the
French Army
who were then returning from the war in Europe.
[16]
Nine years later, the
Algerian War
began, leading to independence from France in
March 1962
.
[17]
In February 2005,
Hubert Colin de Verdiere
,
France's ambassador to Algeria
, formally apologized for the massacre, calling it an "inexcusable tragedy".
[18]
[19]
National celebrations
edit
VE Day is celebrated across European nations as public holidays and national observances.
The Festival of Joy is an Austrian event held in honor of VE Day. The
Austrian Mauthausen Committee
(MKO) has organised the Festival of Joy since 2013, in cooperation with the
Austrian Government
and the
City of Vienna
. The festival is held annually on
Heldenplatz
.
[20]
On the eve of the diamond jubilee in 2020,
Russian President
Vladimir Putin
, at the request of Chancellor
Sebastian Kurz
, gave a live address broadcast on Austrian TV channel
ORF
.
[21]
France celebrates VE Day on 8 May, being a national and
public holiday
.
Orleans
simultaneously celebrates both VE Day and the anniversary of the
Siege of Orleans
being lifted on this date by French forces led by
Joan of Arc
during the
Hundred Years War
.
[22]
Events in
Berlin
occur on 8 May to commemorate those who fought against Nazism in the
German Resistance
and died in World War II. In 2020, a regional holiday in Berlin occurred on 8 May to mark the 75th anniversary of surrender.
[23]
East Germany
celebrated 8 May as its
Tag der Befreiung
(Day of Liberation), first celebrated under
Walter Ulbricht
's government in 1950 and repeated annually until the
fall of communism
.
[24]
Between 1975 and 1990, it was
Tag des Sieges
(Victory Day).
[
citation needed
]
8 May is known in Poland as "Narodowy Dzie? Zwyci?stwa" (National Victory Day).
Poland
officially recognised 9 May from 1945 until 2014, and on 24 April 2015, Poland officially recognised National Victory Day.
[25]
On 8 May 1945, a meeting of the Council of Ministers was held, debating whether to establish the holiday on 8 May (proposed by
Marshal
Michał Rola-?ymierski
) or 10 May (proposed by the government).
[26]
Finally, in Poland, the National Day of Victory and Freedom was established on 9 May by decree.
From 1946 to 1989, it was celebrated with Russian traditions, as Poland was a
socialist state
at the time. The main celebrations were carried out at Plac Zwyci?stwa or
Plac Defilad
in
Warsaw
(most notably in
1985
).
After 1990 and the
fall of the Soviet Union
, no official ceremonies were organized; however, many cities and military units together with local governments organized their own festivities. The
Russian minority in Poland
continues to celebrate 9 May traditions to this date. At the end of March 2015, due to the upcoming 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe, the President of the Institute of National Remembrance Łukasz Kami?ski sent a letter to the
Marshal of the Sejm
requesting a change from 9 to 8 May.
[27]
On 24 April, the
Sejm
adopted the Act on National Victory Day to be celebrated on 8 May, at the same time abolishing the National Day of Victory and Freedom celebrated on 9 May.
[28]
In the United Kingdom, VE Day is not an annual public holiday. In 1995 and 2020, the bank holiday was moved from the preceding Monday to 8 May to commemorate the 50th and 75th anniversaries of VE Day, respectively.
[29]
[30]
Commemorative events
edit
-
Belgium
: In Belgium, the commemoration of the termination of
World War II
since 1974 has been part of the
Armistice of 11 November 1918
(Dutch: Wapenstilstandsdag), an annual national holiday. Every year on this day, a truce-ceremony is held in the presence of the king at the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
near the
Congress Column
in
Brussels
. It was first intended to commemorate the victims of the
First World War
and subsequently those of
World War II
and all other wars worldwide.
[
citation needed
]
-
Czech Republic
: Since the
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia
in 1993, the
Czech Republic
has officially recognized 8 May as Victory Day (
Den vit?zstvi
) Liberation Day (
Den osvobozeni
).
[31]
[32]
In recent years the liberation of
Plze?
by American forces has been commemorated on 5 May.
[33]
[34]
[35]
From 1948 to 1993, the
Czechoslovak Republic
celebrated 9 May, which was marked with a military parade of the
Czechoslovak People's Army
(?SLA) on
Letna
every five years.
[36]
[37]
-
European Union
: 9 May is
Europe Day
which celebrates "peace and unity in Europe", on the anniversary of the 1950
Schuman Declaration
.
[38]
-
Baltic states
:
Estonia
,
Latvia
and
Lithuania
officially commemorate 8 May, but do not commemorate 9 May since it marked the
Soviet occupation
in 1944 for these states.
[39]
Despite this, the local
Russian communities
still informally celebrate 9 May. Russian diplomats, other representatives from the
Commonwealth of Independent States
, and local politicians of Russian origin usually take part.
[40]
[41]
List of associated holidays
edit
Country
|
Holiday name
|
Date
|
Type
|
Notes
|
Armenia
|
Victory and Peace Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[42]
|
Shushi Liberation Day
|
8 May
|
National public
|
It is celebrated jointly with VE Day
|
Azerbaijan
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[42]
|
Bailiwick of Guernsey
|
Liberation Day
, Guernsey
|
9 May
|
Regional public
|
British
Channel Islands
have three
Liberation Days
: 9 May in
Jersey
and
Guernsey
;
[43]
10 May in
Sark
;
[44]
and 16 May in
Alderney
|
Liberation Day
, Sark
|
10 May
|
Regional public
|
[44]
|
Liberation Day
, Alderney
|
16 May
|
Regional public
|
[43]
|
Belarus
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[45]
|
Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
Regional public
|
Public holiday only in
Republika Srpska
but celebrated across the nation
[46]
|
Czech Republic
|
Victory Day
|
8 May
|
National public
|
as "
Den vit?zstvi
"
|
Estonia
|
Remembrance Day
|
8 May
|
National commemorative
|
Not a public holiday; commemorative services are held during the day.
[47]
|
Georgia
|
Victory over Fascism Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
As "???????? ??????????? ???" (Victory over Fascism Day)
[48]
[49]
|
Israel
|
VE Day
|
9 May
|
National commemorative
|
Considered a national day of remembrance.
[50]
|
Italy
|
Liberation Day
|
25 April
|
National public
|
Public holiday.
[51]
|
Jersey
|
Liberation Day
|
9 May
|
Regional public
|
[52]
|
Kazakhstan
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[53]
|
Kosovo
|
Europe Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[54]
|
Kyrgyzstan
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[42]
|
Latvia
|
Remembrance Day
|
8 May
|
National commemorative
|
As
Nacisma sagr?ves un Otr? pasaules kara upuru piemi?as diena
(The Crushing of Nazism and Commemoration Day of Victims of World War II). Not a public holiday; commemorative services are held during the day.
[55]
|
Lithuania
|
Remembrance Day
|
8 May
|
National commemorative
|
As
Antrojo pasaulinio karo auk? atminimo diena
(Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the World War II).
[56]
Not a public holiday; commemorative services are held by the President and other officials.
|
Moldova
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[42]
[57]
|
Netherlands
|
Liberation Day
|
5 May
|
National commemorative
|
as "
Bevrijdingsdag
" (Liberation Day), a public holiday held once every year on 5 May.
[58]
|
Denmark
|
Liberation Day
|
5 May
|
National commemorative
|
as "
Befrielsesdag
" (Liberation Day), an official
flag flying day
, not a public holiday.
[59]
|
Norway
|
Liberation Day
|
8 May
|
National commemorative
|
as "
Frigjøringsdagen
" (Liberation Day) and
The National Veterans Day
, an official
flag flying day
, not a public holiday.
[60]
|
Russia
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
as "День Победы" (Victory Day)
[61]
[62]
|
Serbia
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
as "
Дан победе
" / "
Dan pobede
" (Victory Day), a public working holiday.
[63]
[64]
|
Slovakia
|
Victory over Fascism Day
|
8 May
|
National public
|
as "De? vi?azstva nad fa?izmom"
[65]
|
Tajikistan
|
Victory Day
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[42]
|
Turkmenistan
|
Day of Remembrance of National Heroes of Turkmenistan in the 1941?1945 World War
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[66]
|
Ukraine
|
Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II 1939 ? 1945
|
8 May
|
National public
|
[67]
|
Uzbekistan
|
Day of Remembrance and Honour
|
9 May
|
National public
|
[68]
Known as "День Памяти и Почестей"; before 1999, it was known as "Галаба куни" or "День победы" (Victory Day).
[
citation needed
]
|
The instrument of surrender signed 7 May 1945 stipulated that all hostilities must cease at 23:01 (
CET
), 8 May 1945. Since that point in time would be on 9 May in local time in the
Soviet Union
, most Soviet states including Russia celebrated
Victory Day
on 9 May.
[69]
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Media related to
VE Day
at Wikimedia Commons