There were two surrender signings. The first was on May 7, 1945, when German Col. Gen. Alfred Jodl signed Germany's surrender on all fronts in Reims, France.
The second signing - insisted upon by Soviet Premier Josef Stalin - was by German Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel the next day in Berlin.
Jodl and Keitel were later found guilty of war crimes by the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany, and both were subsequently executed.
V-E Day marked the end of most of the fighting in Europe, where tens of millions of service members and civilians were killed since the start of hostilities.
The conflict began in 1939, when Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. Among the dead were about 6 million Jews who were murdered by Nazi Germany.
Some 250,000 U.S. troops were also killed in the fighting in the European theater.
After the many deaths during the war in Europe, V-E Day was cause for worldwide celebration.
Tens of thousands of people filled the streets of New York, New Orleans, London, and cities in Canada, Australia and other Allied nations. There was also a massive celebration in Paris. U.S. forces participated in the celebrations in France, a nation that had borne much of the brunt of the fighting. The Soviets celebrated their own "Victory Day" on May 9.
President Harry S. Truman announced V-E Day to the American people, saying in a radio address: "Our rejoicing is sobered and subdued by a supreme consciousness of the terrible price we have paid to rid the world of Hitler and his evil band. Let us not forget, my fellow Americans, the sorrow and the heartache, which today abide in the homes of so many of our neighbors - neighbors whose most priceless possession has been rendered as a sacrifice to redeem our liberty."
Although fighting ended in Europe, it continued in the Pacific, where U.S. and Allied forces fought the Japanese in Okinawa, the Philippines and other places. The areas of Western Europe liberated by Allied forces would become thriving democracies, while those liberated in the East would be occupied for decades by Soviet forces.
Today, memorials around the world mark the events of V-E Day and World War II and honor those who served and paid the ultimate sacrifice, including the National World War II Memorial in Washington.
There were two surrender signings. The first was on May 7, 1945, when German Col. Gen. Alfred Jodl signed Germany's surrender on all fronts in Reims, France.
The second signing - insisted upon by Soviet Premier Josef Stalin - was by German Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel the next day in Berlin. Jodl and Keitel were later found guilty of war crimes by the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany, and both were subsequently executed.
V-E Day marked the end of most of the fighting in Europe, where tens of millions of service members and civilians were killed since the start of hostilities.
The conflict began in 1939 when Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. Among the dead were about 6 million Jews who were murdered by Nazi Germany. Some 250,000 U.S. troops were also killed in the fighting in the European theater.
After the many deaths during the war in Europe, V-E Day was cause for worldwide celebration.
Tens of thousands of people filled the streets of New York, New Orleans, London, and cities in Canada, Australia and other Allied nations. There was also a massive celebration in Paris. U.S. forces participated in the celebrations in France, a nation that had borne much of the brunt of the fighting. The Soviets celebrated their own "Victory Day" on May 9.
President Harry S. Truman announced V-E Day to the American people, saying in a radio address: "Our rejoicing is sobered and subdued by a supreme consciousness of the terrible price we have paid to rid the world of Hitler and his evil band. Let us not forget, my fellow Americans, the sorrow and the heartache, which today abide in the homes of so many of our neighbors - neighbors whose most priceless possession has been rendered as a sacrifice to redeem our liberty."
Although fighting ended in Europe, it continued in the Pacific, where U.S. and Allied forces fought the Japanese in Okinawa, the Philippines and other places. The areas of Western Europe liberated by Allied forces would become thriving democracies, while those liberated in the East would be occupied for decades by Soviet forces.
Today, memorials around the world mark the events of V-E Day and World War II and honor those who served and paid the ultimate sacrifice, including the National World War II Memorial in Washington.
