The Shadow
May 8, 1945 there was a massive celebration in France. U.S. Forces participated in the celebrations in France, a nation that had borne much of the brunt of the fightings. On V-E Day, Germany unconditionally surrendered its military forces to the Allied, incl troops, including the United States.
The war had been raging almost five years when the United States and Allied Forces landed on the beaches of Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. The total Allied casualties were approximately 10,250. This total includes killed, wounded and missing servicemen, a well as those casualties from the airborne assault under Operation Tonga. Of the 10,250 casualties, around 4,440 were killed. (AI Overview).
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 heatache, which today abides in th homes of so many of our neighbors – neighbors whose most
priceless possession has been rendered as a sacrifice to redeem our liberty”. (defense.gov).
Truman cautioned that Allies must “work to finish the war” by defeating the Japanese in the Pacific. On September 2, 1945, formal surrender documents were signed aboard the USS Missouri, designating the day as the official Victory over Japan Day (V-J Day).
We, as Americans, must take every opportunity to remember all the Allied forces who gave so much during World War II especially those soldiers from the United States.
