On the 8th of May in 1945, the Allies from World War II in the West celebrated “Victory in Europe Day”. Cities in most of the allied nations, as well as formerly occupied cities in Western Europe, put out flags and banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi war machine.

he 8th of May was the day when German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms: In Prague, Germans surrendered to their Soviet counterparts, after the latter had lost more than 8,000 soldiers, and the Germans many more; in Copenhagen and Oslo; at Karlshorst, near Berlin; in northern Latvia; on the Channel Island of Sark—the German surrender was completed in a final cease-fire. More surrender documents were signed in Berlin and in eastern Germany.

Pockets of German-Soviet confrontation would continue into the next day. On May the 9th, the Soviets would lose 600 more troops in Silesia before the Germans finally surrendered. Consequently, V-E Day was not celebrated until the 9th in Moscow, with a radio broadcast salute from Stalin himself: "The age-long struggle of the Slav nations… has ended in victory. Your courage has defeated the Nazis. The war is over."

We wish all of our players a peaceful VE Day 2015!
Keep an eye open for other dedicated announcements!

The War Thunder Team