The instrument of surrender signed at Reims 7 May 1945.
Victory in Europe Day (
V-E Day or
VE Day) was on 8 May 1945, the date when the
World War II Allies formally accepted the
unconditional surrender of the armed
forces of
Nazi Germany and the end of
Adolf Hitler's
Third Reich. On 30 April
Hitler committed suicide during the
Battle of Berlin, and so the
surrender of Germany was authorized by his replacement, President
of Germany
Karl Dönitz. The
administration headed up by Dönitz was known as the
Flensburg government.
The act of
military surrender was signed on May 7 in
Reims
, France
, and
May 8 in Berlin
, Germany
.
Celebrations
More than a million people celebrated in the streets to mark the
end of the European part of the war. Many hardships remained,
however, including continued
rationing of
food and clothing, which lasted even longer in peacetime than it
had during 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 Prime Minister Winston Churchill, appeared on the balcony
of the Palace before cheering crowds. Princess
Elizabeth (the future
Queen Elizabeth II) and her sister Princess
Margaret were
allowed to wander anonymously among the crowds and take part in the
celebrations.
In the
United
States
, President Harry Truman, who celebrated his 61st birthday
that day, dedicated the victory to the memory of his predecessor,
Franklin D.
Roosevelt, who had died
less than a month earlier, on
April 12.
Flags remained at half-staff for the remainder of the 30-day
mourning period, which ended on
May 12.
Massive
celebrations also took place in Chicago
, Los Angeles
, Miami
, and
especially in New York
City
's Times
Square.
Soviet Victory Day
As the
Soviet
Union
was to the east of Germany it was May 9 Moscow Time when
German military surrender became effective, which is why Russia
and many
other European countries east of
Germany commemorate Victory
Day on May 9 instead of Western European May
8.
May 8th as public holiday
- The
former East
Germany
as Tag der Befreiung (Day of
liberation)
- Slovakia
as Deň víťazstva nad fašizmom (Victory
over Fascism Day)
See also
References
- Public holidays in Slovakia