Britain today is remembering the sacrifices of the nation in WW2 with the commemoration of VE Day.
It was 75 years ago today on 8th May, 1945 that Britain and its allies accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany which ended World War Two and brought 6 years of armed conflict in Europe to an end.
Winston Churchill addressed the House of Commons at 3pm on that day and paid tribute to the sacrifices of the British empire and her allies in the fight to defeat Nazi Germany. In his speech, Churchill also said that “we may allow ourselves a brief period of rejoicing, but let us not forget for a moment the toils and efforts that lie ahead.”
The Queen and her sister Princess Margaret stood outside Buckingham Palace alongside Winston Churchill on VE Day to celebrate the victory and participate in the joyful street parties taking place in London and across the country.
Due to the pandemic, this year’s VE Day celebrations have been scaled back, however this has not dampened the spirit of people wanting to remember the end of WW2 and a lasting peace – which allowed the world to start rebuilding after so many years of armed conflict.
Following the end of WW2, Britain faced years of hardship as its economy had been devastated, with rationing introduced until the mid 1950s.
It wasn’t until 2006 that Britain was able to settle all its WW2 debts to allies making the last debt repayments to Canada and the United States more than 60 years later.
