PHOTOS: V-E Day 69 years ago, allies celebrate surrender of Germany
May 7, 2014
New Yorkers gather around a youth wearing a mask of Adolf Hitler to cheer the news of the surrender of Germany in New York's Times Square on May 7, 1945. (AP Photo/Harry Harris) ( WWII NYC CHEERS GERMAN SURRENDER )
Looking north from 44th Street, New York's Times Square is packed Monday, May 7, 1945, with crowds celebrating the news of Germany's unconditional surrender in World War II. (AP Photo/Tom Fitzsimmons) ( VE DAY TIMES SQUARE )
FRANKFURT, GERMANY: (FILES) A picture taken 07 May 1945 in Frankfurt am Main shows (from L) British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, US General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Soviet Marshal Gregori Zhukov and British Air Chief Marshal Arthud Tedder, toasting in Frankfurt after the signing of the German surrender in Reims. The date that World War II finally came to an end in Europe is still a matter for debate. For the British and Americans it ended on May 7, 1945 with the signing of the German surrender in Reims. For the Russians, it was the signature of the unconditional surrender in Berlin on May 9 and for the French it remains May 8, the day the fighting actually came to a halt. STF/AFP/Getty Images ( PAR2005050361269 )
On VE Day, 7th May 1945, in London, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) leaves 10 Downing Street by the back entrance to avoid the large crowds awaiting his appearance. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) ( J89104301 )
Col. Gen. Gustaf Jodl (second from left) German chief of staff and his aide, Maj. Wilhelm Oxenius (second from right) arrive at SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force) forward headquarters at Reims, France on May 7, 1945, to discuss terms of German surrenders. Others in picture are not identified. (AP Photo/Pool/Life) ( WWII Germany Surrender )
German delegates, left, agree an unconditional surrender with Allied representatives, right, in an upstairs room at SHAEF, formerly the College Moderne de Garcons, in Reims, France, May 7, 1945. The German delegates, from left, are: Maj. Wilhelm Oxenius, an aide to Gen. Jodl; Gen. Alfred Jodl; and Adm. Hans-Georg von Friedeburg. Standing behind them is SHAEF's Gen. K. Strong. The Allied representatives, from the far end of the table, are: SHAEF's Gen. Morgan; France's Gen. Francois Sevez; Adm. Burrough; SHAEF's Gen. Walter Bedell Smith; Russia's Gen. Ivan Suslaparov; U. S. Gen. Carl Spaatz; SHAEF's Air Marshal Robb; SHAEF's Maj. Gen. Harold R. Bull; and Russia's Col. Zenkovitch. (AP Photo/Morse) ( WWII FRANCE REIMS SURRENDER )
General Alfred Jodl, center, signs the unconditional surrender of all armed German forces imposed by the Allied Powers, at Supreme Commander Eisenhowers headquarters in Rheims, France, on May 7, 1945. He is flanked by General Wilhelm Oxenius, Commander of the German Luftwaffe, left, and General Admiral and Commander in Chief of the German fleet, Hans-Georg von Friedeburg, right. (AP Photo) ( WWII NAZI GERMANY SURRENDERS )
General Dwight D. Eisenhower holds up a V-for-Victory gesture with the two pens used by high ranking German officers in signing the surrender document at the school house in Reims, France on May 7, 1945. Kay Summersby, background left, Eisenhower's chauffeur-secretary, is seen peeking over General Walter Bedell Smith's shoulder. Her face was censored from the official photo taken by T/Sgt. Al Meserlin, Ike's personal photographer. Other officers are not identified. (AP Photo/Al Meserlin) ( EISENHOWER VE DAY )
A large crowd of Utrecht citizens gathers in the streets of the Dutch city, on May 7, 1945, to welcome the liberating Allied troops in their hometown. (AP Photo) ( WWII UTRECHT LIBERATION )
7th May 1945: Mrs Pat Burgess of Palmer's Green, north London is thrilled to get the news that her husband will soon be home for good from Germany. (Photo by Reg Speller/Fox Photos/Getty Images) ( 97i/05/huch/6166/28 )
7th May 1945: German civilians at Ludwiglust, Germany prepare for burial, some of the 200 victims of starvation in the Nazi concentration camp near Wobbelin. The bodies were brought from the camp on the back of a lorry seen in the foreground. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) ( 98n/28/huty/10697/15 )
7th May 1945: A captured Wehrmacht soldier identifies an SS trooper as one those who shot US Army prisoners in Malmedy, Belgium, during the 'Battle of the Bulge'. These men were captured by the 3rd US Army near Passau, Germany. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) ( 97f/09/huty/6552/32 )
7th May 1945: German police and citizens of Ludwigslust file past bodies of inmates of nearby Wobbelin concentration camp. The bodies have been exhumed from a mass grave and are to be reburied in the town. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) ( 99n/13/huty/13162/11 )
Starved prisonerís, nearly dead from hunger, at one of the largest Nazi Concentration camps at Evensee Austria, in the Austrian Alps, May 7, 1945. Many were starving to death and inmates were dying at the rate of 2,000 per week. The camp was reputedly used for "Scientific" experiments. It was liberated by the 80th Division, U.S. Third Army. (AP Photo) ( WWII Austria )
7th May 1945: Liberated prisoners from Dachau, the German concentration camp wave in joy. Those wearing striped uniforms are political prisoners whose fate was cremation if they had not been liberated by the US 7th Army. (Photo by Horace Abrahams/Keystone/Getty Images) ( 97i/15/huty/6792/19 )
This is an aerial view of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on VE Day, May 7, 1945, shows thousands of French people celebrating the announcement of Germany's unconditional surrender to the Allies. British, American and French servicemen mingled with the crowds who sang and danced throughout the night. (AP Photo/Griffin) ( WWII FRANCE PARIS VE DAY )
This general view of Times Square, New York, was made at 11 a.m. on May 7, 1945, and shows New Yorkers jamming the streets to cheer the news of the unconditional surrender of Germany. (AP Photo/Harry Harris) ( VE DAY TIMES SQUARE )
British civilians and Allied service men and women gather, as part of a huge crowd, outside Rainbow Corner, the American Red Cross club, near Piccadilly Circus, London, May 7, 1945, to hear the final announcement of Germany's total surrender. (AP Photo) ( WWII BRITAIN LONDON VICTORY )
8th May 1945: A woman holding an American flag over her head during VE day celebrations in Piccadilly Circus, London. (Photo by John F. Stephenson/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images) ( 97l/20/huty/7030/21 )
British civilians and Allied service men and women gather, as part of a huge crowd, at London's Piccadilly Circus, May 7, 1945, to celebrate victory night. The revellers climbed lampposts, traffic lights and cars in their excitement. (AP Photo/Leslie Priest) ( WWII BRITAIN LONDON VICTORY )
British civilians and Allied service men and women gather, as part of a huge crowd, along Piccadilly, near London's Piccadilly Circus, May 7, 1945, to celebrate Germany's total surrender. (AP Photo/Leslie Priest) ( WWII BRITAIN LONDON VICTORY )
Two men climb a lamppost during nighttime VE Day celebrations in the West End of London, England, on May 7, 1945. (AP Photo) ( WWII VE DAY CELEBRATION LONDON )
British civilians and Allied service men and women gather, as part of a huge crowd, at London's Piccadilly Circus, May 7, 1945, to celebrate victory night. (AP Photo/Leslie Priest) ( WWII BRITAIN LONDON VICTORY )
The Andrews Sisters, radio and stage entertainers, go over a song together on May 7,1945. From left to right are: Maxene, Patti and LaVerne. (AP Photo) ( ANDREWS SISTERS )
Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal, left, and Jack S. McDowell of the San Francisco Call-Bulletin, both of whom won Pulitzer Prizes, congratulate each other in San Francisco, May 7, 1945. (AP Photo/Ernest K. Bennett) ( PULITZERS ROSENTHAL MCDOWELL 1945 )
The first British troops to land in Denmark were some of our airborne troops, fresh from their race across Germany to link up with the Russians. Welcome on the arrival of our airborne troops in the city in Copenhagen, May 7, 1945. (AP Photo) ( WWII Denmark )
British prisoners of war, foreground, bid farewell to fellow prisoners of war, a group of U.S. GIs, as the first U.S. truck leaves for Allied lines, at a camp at Altengrabow, Germany, May 7, 1945. About 19,000 Allied prisoners will be collected from the camp after consultations between U.S. and German officers revealed the captors could not sustain feeding the prisoners. (AP Photo/Henry L. Griffin) ( WWII GERMANY ALTENGRABOW CAMP )
In the bomb damaged Reichstag, hundreds of Russian soldiers have chalked their names among the stone pillars at the entrance. A newly arrived British Tommy is seen adding his name to the list, May 7, 1945 in Berlin. (AP Photo) ( WWII Germany Reichstag )
In this British Official Photo, taken by a low-flying Mosquito of the RAF Film Production Unit, a smashed bridge over the Spree in a heavily-damaged area in Berlin on May 7, 1945. (AP Photo/British Official Photo) ( WWII Germany Destruction )
Hamburg surrendered unconditionally on May 3rd 1945, and was occupied by elements of the 7th Armoured Division and 53rd Division. On the second day after the surrender, the British were in possession of a deserted city, the civilians having been ordered to keep off the streets for 48 hours. Streets wrecked by previous R.A.F. bomber Command Raids were found throughout the city. A view of R.A.F. bomb damage in the area known as New Hamburg, seen from St. Michael's Church on May 7, 1945. (AP Photo) ( WWII Germany )
Staff Sgt. Arthur Moore of Buffalo, N.Y., who was wounded in Belgium, stands on 42nd Street near Grand Central Station in New York Monday, May 7, 1945 as New Yorkers celebrate news of VE Day, victory over Nazi Germany. (AP Photo) ( WWII VE DAY )
With Japanese grenades exploding around them, U.S. Marines move up a hill on Skyline Ridge, during the invasion of Okinawa, May 7, 1945. (AP Photo) ( WWII BATTTLE OF OKINAWA )
( WAR NEWS SERVICE )
Parisians march through the Arc de Triomphe jubilantly waving flags of the Allied Nations as they celebrate the end of World War II on May 8, 1945. German military leaders signed an unconditional surrender in Reims, France, on May 7. (AP Photo) ( FRANCE END OF WWII )
8th May 1945: A victory tea party was given to children at Amber Road, Finsbury Park in London, to celebrate VE Day. (Photo by Topical Press Agency/Getty Images) ( decades/0745/066 )
British military leader Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery, Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, waving as his carriage passes through crowds in the street celebrating VE Day, May 8, 1945. (Photo by Express/Express/Getty Images) ( 97l/30/huty/7678/16 )
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) waving to crowds gathered in Whitehall on VE Day, 8th May 1945. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) ( 98l/09/huty/10782/18 )
8th May 1945: A van load of beer passing through Piccadilly Circus on VE Day. The statue of Eros, protected during the war by advertising hoardings, can be seen in the background. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) ( decades/1714/001 )
17th May 1945: Girls from Britain's Auxiliary Territorial Services girls flaunt the 'V for Victory' sign as they ride on camels during the V-Day celebrations in Cairo. (Photo by G. Packham/Fox Photos/Getty Images) ( 98s/03/huty/10137/04 )
A group of women wearing dresses representing flags of the Allied powers (left to right: the USA, France, Britain and the Soviet Union) outside the Eglise de la Madeleine on VE Day in Paris, 8th May 1945. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) ( J149133501 )
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