Eighty one years on from victory in Europe, we honour the courage, sacrifice, and unbreakable spirit that saved freedom and changed the course of history.
Today, on the 81st anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, Britain stands once again in solemn gratitude and proud remembrance.
Eighty one years ago, on 8th May 1945, the guns finally fell silent across Europe. After six years of devastation, sacrifice, courage, and unimaginable suffering, Nazi Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allied Powers, bringing an end to the war in Europe and the collapse of Hitler’s murderous Third Reich.
VE Day was not merely the conclusion of a military campaign. It was the triumph of civilisation over barbarism, of liberty over tyranny, and of democracy over dictatorship. It was a victory secured through the blood, toil, tears, and sweat of a generation of Britons who refused to surrender when all seemed lost.
At 3pm on that historic afternoon, Prime Minister Winston Churchill addressed the nation by radio. His words echoed across homes, factories, barracks, and bomb damaged streets:
“THIS IS YOUR VICTORY.”
And indeed it was. It belonged to the RAF pilots who defended Britain in the skies above southern England during the Battle of Britain. It belonged to the sailors of the Royal Navy who kept vital supply routes alive through the Atlantic convoys. It belonged to the soldiers who stormed the beaches of Normandy and fought across Europe. It belonged to the nurses, engineers, miners, farmers, factory workers, and mothers who kept Britain going through years of rationing and bombardment.
Most of all, it belonged to a people who stood firm when much of Europe had fallen.
Watch: Churchill’s victory speech and Red Arrows flypast – VE Day 75 – BBC
Britain’s role in the Second World War remains one of the proudest chapters in our national story. In 1940, after the fall of France, Britain stood alone against the seemingly unstoppable might of Nazi Germany. Across the Channel, Hitler expected surrender or compromise. Instead, he was met with Churchill’s immortal defiance.
“We shall fight on the beaches,” he declared to the House of Commons in June 1940, words which still stir the soul today. Britain did not bend. Britain did not break. Britain endured.
Without Britain’s resistance during those darkest days, the future of Europe would have been unimaginably grim. Our island became the fortress of freedom, the base from which liberation would eventually come. The courage shown by ordinary Britons altered the course of world history.
VE Day itself brought scenes of extraordinary joy. Across the nation, church bells rang out for the first time in years. Crowds flooded the streets waving Union Flags, dancing, singing, and embracing strangers. In London, landmarks including Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, and Nelson’s Column were illuminated in celebration. Thousands gathered outside Buckingham Palace to cheer the Royal Family and Churchill, who appeared repeatedly on the balcony to thunderous applause.
In one of the most memorable episodes of the day, the future Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth, and Princess Margaret slipped anonymously into the jubilant crowds outside the Palace, joining the celebrations alongside ordinary Britons whose sacrifices had defended the nation they would one day serve.
Yet beneath the joy there was also grief.
Nearly every family in Britain had suffered loss. Fathers never returned home. Sons lay buried in foreign fields. Cities and towns bore the scars of bombing. Millions across Europe had perished under Nazi occupation, including six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust. Even on VE Day, the war against Japan continued, and many British servicemen remained in danger overseas. Final victory would not come until VJ Day in August 1945.
That balance of celebration and solemnity remains important today.
VE Day is not about glorifying war. It is about remembering the cost of freedom and understanding that peace can never be taken for granted. It reminds us that evil exists, that democracy is fragile, and that courage and national unity matter.
Westminster Abbey and St Margaret’s Church played their part in those historic moments. After Churchill addressed Parliament announcing Germany’s surrender, MPs walked together to St Margaret’s Church in thanksgiving. Even amid jubilation, the nation understood the importance of humility before God and gratitude for deliverance.
As we mark VE Day 81, there are now only a small number of veterans left who experienced those events firsthand. Their voices grow quieter with each passing year. That places an even greater responsibility upon us to remember, to teach younger generations, and to defend the values for which they fought.
We live today in a world once again marked by uncertainty and conflict. Freedom is challenged in many places. Democracy is tested. National resilience matters as much now as it did in 1940. The example set by the wartime generation remains a guiding light for Britain today.
We should never apologise for patriotism rooted in gratitude and historical truth. Britain was not a bystander in the struggle against fascism. Britain was central to victory. Churchill’s leadership, the determination of the British people, and the sacrifice of our armed forces helped save Europe from tyranny.
That is why VE Day matters.
It matters because nations that forget their history lose sight of who they are. It matters because freedom was purchased at terrible cost. It matters because the men and women who secured victory deserve eternal remembrance.
And it matters because, in remembering them, we renew our own commitment to liberty, duty, courage, and country.
Today, as Union Flags fly proudly across our towns and villages, we honour the greatest generation. We remember the fallen. We salute the veterans. We give thanks for victory.
And we say, with pride and gratitude:
We will remember them.
