Victory Day (9 May)

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Victory Day
Victory Day Parade 2005-38.jpg
Victory Day celebrations in Moscow, 9 May 2005
Official name Russian: День Победы etc.[a 1]
Observed by Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Mongolia, Moldova, Montenegro, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan (also celebrated/commemorated in some places of Germany and United Kingdom)
Date 9 May
Next time 9 May 2025 (2025-05-09)
Frequency annual

Victory Day[a 1] or 9 May is a holiday that commemorates the capitulation of Nazi Germany to the Soviet Union at the end of Second World War, known in the Soviet Union as the Great Patriotic War. It was first inaugurated in the 16[1] republics of the Soviet Union, following the signing of the surrender document late in the evening on 8 May 1945 (after midnight, thus on 9 May Moscow Time). The Soviet government announced the victory early on 9 May after the signing ceremony in Berlin.[2] Though the official inauguration occurred in 1945 the holiday became a non-labour day only in 1965 and only in certain Soviet republics.

In East Germany, 8 May was observed as "Liberation Day" from 1950 to 1966, and was celebrated again on the 40th anniversary in 1985. In 1975, a Soviet-style "Victory Day" was celebrated on 9 May. Since 2002, the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern has observed a commemoration day known as the "Day of Liberation from National Socialism, and the End of the Second World War".[3]

In 1988, before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Victory Day ceased to be observed in Uzbekistan, but was partially restored in 1999 as Memorial/Remembrance Day.[4] After regaining their independence from the Soviet Union, the Baltic countries now commemorate the end of World War II on 8 May, the Victory in Europe Day.[5] Starting in 2015, Ukraine joined the Baltic states in commemorating the end of World War II and the Victory in Europe Day on 8 and 9 May.[6]

History

Marshal Zhukov reading the German capitulation. Seated on his right is Air Chief Marshal Arthur Tedder.
Field-Marshal Keitel signing the ratified surrender terms for the German military

Two separate capitulation events took place at the time. First, the capitulation to the Allied nations in Reims was signed on 7 May 1945, effective 23:01 CET 8 May. This date is commonly referred to as the V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day) in most western European countries. Joseph Stalin was displeased by this, believing that the German surrender should have been accepted only by the envoy of the USSR Supreme command and signed only in Berlin. Stalin insisted the Reims protocol be considered preliminary, with the main ceremony to be held in Berlin, where Marshal Zhukov was at the time, as the latter recounts in his memoirs:[7]

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[Quoting Stalin:] Today, in Reims, Germans signed the preliminary act on an unconditional surrender. The main contribution, however, was done by Soviet people and not by the Allies, therefore the capitulation must be signed in front of the Supreme Command of all countries of the anti-Hitler coalition, and not only in front of the Supreme Command of Allied Forces. Moreover, I disagree that the surrender was not signed in Berlin, which was the center of Nazi aggression. We agreed with the Allies to consider the Reims protocol as preliminary.

Therefore, another ceremony was organized in a surviving manor in the outskirts of Berlin late on 8 May, when it was already 9 May in Moscow due to the difference in time zones. Field-Marshal Wilhelm Keitel submitted the capitulation of the Wehrmacht to Marshal Georgy Zhukov in the Soviet Army headquarters in Berlin-Karlshorst. To commemorate the victory in the war, the ceremonial Moscow Victory Parade was held in the Soviet capital on 24 June 1945.

The other World War II victory day, the V-J day (Victory in Japan Day) is commemorated in August.

Celebration

During the Soviet Union's existence, 9 May was celebrated throughout the USSR and in the countries of the Eastern Bloc. Though the holiday was introduced in many Soviet republics between 1946 and 1950, it only became a non-labour day in the Ukrainian SSR in 1963 and the Russian SSR in 1965. In the Russian SSR a weekday off (usually a Monday) was given if 9 May fell on a Saturday or Sunday.

Victory Day 2013 in Donetsk, Ukraine

The celebration of Victory Day continued during subsequent years. The war became a topic of great importance in cinema, literature, history lessons at school, the mass media, and the arts. The ritual of the celebration gradually obtained a distinctive character with a number of similar elements: ceremonial meetings, speeches, lectures, receptions and fireworks.[8]

In Russia during the 1990s, the 9 May holiday was not celebrated with large Soviet-style mass demonstrations due to the policies of successive Russian governments. Following Vladimir Putin's rise to power, the Russian government began promoting the prestige of the governing regime and history, and national holidays and commemorations became a source of national self-esteem. Victory Day in Russia has increasingly become a celebration in which popular culture plays a central role. The 60th and 70th anniversaries of Victory Day in Russia (2005 and 2015) became the largest popular holidays since the collapse of the Soviet Union.[8]

In 2015 around 30 leaders, including those of China and India, attended the 2015 celebration, while Western leaders boycotted the ceremonies because of the Russian intervention in Ukraine.[9][10]

Countries Celebrating 9th of May

2005 Victory Day parade on Moscow's Red Square.
"Victory Banner #5", raised on the roof of the Reichstag building

Russophone populations in many countries celebrate the holiday regardless of its local status,[20] organize public gatherings and even parades on this day.[21] Some multilanguage broadcasting television chains translate the "Victory speech" of the Russian president and the parade on Red Square.[22]

Victory Day London

Victory Day London, 2011, HMS Belfast museum ship

Victory Day London is a ceremonial event held annually since 2007 in London on 9 May in commemoration of the victory in the Second World War and the Arctic Convoys 1941-1945. A ceremony is held aboard HMS Belfast which took part in the Arctic Convoys, moored as a museum ship on the Thames. The event serves as a reunion day for British and Russian veterans of the Arctic Convoys with members of the British Royal Family present. Other participants include Russian ambassador, ambassadors of other FSU countries, British and Russian dignitaries.[23][24]

Soviet and post-Soviet symbols associated with the Victory Day

Soviet Union

Order of Victory
Order of Victory
Medal For the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945
Medal For the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945
Medal For the Capture of Berlin
Medal For the Capture of Berlin
Medal For the Twentieth Anniversary of the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945
Medal for the 20th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Medal for the 30th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Medal for the 30th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Medal for the 40th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Medal for the 40th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945

Russia

Медаль «50 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.»
Medal for the 50th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Медаль 60 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.
Medal for the 60th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Медаль 70 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.
Medal for the 70th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945

Ukraine

Медаль 60 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.
Medal for the 60th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945

Kazakhstan

Медаль 60 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг. (Казахстан)
Medal for the 60th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945
Медаль 70 лет Победы в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.
Medal for the 70th Anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945
Soviet stamp, 1945. The inscription on the bottom written in cursive, below the Soviet soldier waving the red flag with Joseph Stalin on it, says, "Long live our victory!"

See also

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Russian: День Победы, Den' Pobedy; Ukrainian: День Перемоги, Den' Peremohy; Belarusian: Дзень Перамогі, Dzień Pieramohi; Kazakh: Жеңіс Күні, Jeñis Küni; Kyrgyz: Жеңиш майрамы, Jengish Mayramy; Uzbek: Gʻalaba kuni; Azerbaijani: Gələbə günü; Georgian: გამარჯვების დღე, gamarjvebis dghe; Armenian: Հաղթանակի օրը, Haght’anaki ory; Lithuanian: Pergalės diena; Moldovan: Ziua Victoriei; Latvian: Uzvaras diena; Tajik: Рӯзи Ғалаба, Rūzi Ghalaba; Estonian: Võidupäev; Tatar: Cyrillic Җиңү көне, Latin Ciñü köne

References

  1. There were 16 republics in the USSR on May 8, 1945. The Karelo-Finnish SSR was abolished in 1956 only.
  2. Ziemke Further readingCHAPTER XV:The Victory Sealed Page 258 last 2 paragraphs
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  14. "Mamy nowe święto państwowe. Po raz pierwszy obchodzimy Narodowy Dzień Zwycięstwa"
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  16. Lviv Oblast, however, does not recognize Victory Day, but rather recognizes the day as a memorial to all wartime victims of both the Soviet and Nazi regimes, as well as all of those caught in between.
  17. «Велику Вітчизняну війну» замінили на «Другу світову» — закон (Ukrainian). Fakty. ICTV. 09.04.2015
  18. Депутати врегулювали питання про відзначення в Україні перемоги над нацизмом (Ukrainian). The Ukrainian Week. 09.04.2015
  19. Poroshenko signed the laws about decomunization. Ukrayinska Pravda. 15 May 2015
    Poroshenko signs laws on denouncing Communist, Nazi regimes, Interfax-Ukraine. 15 May 2015
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External links