244 ENDGAME AND AFTERMATH 194 4 –1955
On May 7, 1945, the Supreme Allied
Commander, General Dwight D.
Eisenhower, accepted the unconditional
surrender of all German land, sea, and
air forces at his headquarters in Reims,
in northeastern France. In Britain, the
news that the surrender document had
been signed was broadcast that evening
on the BBC. The following day, which
was named Victory in Europe Day
(usually abbreviated to VE Day), was
declared a national holiday.Celebrating victory
Even before the start of the official
celebrations, the festivities began. In
London, more than a million people
took to the streets, while celebratory bonfires blazed the length
and breadth of the country. Effigies of Hitler were burned on many
of them. In America, the celebrations were slightly more subdued,
primarily because the US was still mourning the death of President
Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had died less than a month earlier.
However, 15,000 policemen were still mobilized to control the huge
crowds that had massed in Times Square, New York. There were
also huge celebrations in Paris, with parades on the Champs-Élysées,
and in France May 8 (La féte de la Victoire) continues to be a public
holiday. In the USSR, however, because Stalin refused to recognize
the signature at Reims and insisted on a formal surrender ceremony
in Berlin on May 8, celebrations did not take place until May 9.△ Special edition
A commemorative edition
of the UK magazine Picture Post
celebrates VE Day. The magazine
had previously campaigned
against the Nazi regime.△ Nazi downfall
Soldiers from the US 7th Army fly the Stars and Stripes flag to celebrate victory, perched
on what had been Hitler’s viewing podium in the Luitpold Arena, Nuremberg, where the
Nazi Party’s infamous rallies had been held.V E DAY
Germany’s surrender on May 7, 1945, was celebrated
across the Western world the following day. Hitler
had killed himself in his bunker eight days previously,
and war in Europe had finally ended.
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