V-E Day: May 8, 1945
Updated February 21, 2017 | Factmonster Staff 
May 8 marks the day of victory for Allies in World War II
 The London Daily Mirror, May, 8, 1945 |
On Mar. 7, 1945, the Western Allies—whose chief commanders in the field were Omar N. Bradley and Bernard Law Montgomery—crossed the Rhine after having smashed through the strongly fortified Siegfried Line and overran West Germany. German collapse came after the meeting (Apr. 25) of the Western and Russian armies at Torgau in Saxony, and after Hitler's death amid the ruins of Berlin, which was falling to the Russians under marshals Zhukov and Konev. The unconditional surrender of Germany was signed at Rheims on May 7 and ratified at Berlin on May 8, a day thereafter known as V-E Day and marked by celebration of the Allied victory in Europe.
Winston Churchill and V-E Day Video
Watch events unfold in Britain when Winston Churchill announces the end of World War II, V-E Day, in 1945.
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