Victory '45: The End of the War in Eight Surrenders

On the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, two acclaimed historians chronicle the remarkable stories behind the surrenders that ended the world's most catastrophic global conflict

In May 1945 and then again in August and early September, the seemingly endless World War II finally came to a close in eight dramatic surrender ceremonies, six in Europe and the last two in Japan. On the 80th anniversary of those historic events, celebrated historians James Holland and Al Murray chronicle them in turn, focusing especially on the human dramas behind each surrender and relating stories and perspectives on the end of the war that have not previously been told.

Germany's armies submitted to the Allies in six ceremonies between May 2 and May 9, the latter after considerable delays by the Germans and threats from General Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander. Japan then finally conceded only after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, initially on August 15th and then in a formal ceremony aboard the USS Missouri on September 2. Holland and Murray focus on specific characters participating in each of these world-changing events--from ordinary servicemen and women and civilians to generals and political leaders. The saga of the first German surrender, in Italy, revolves around senior SS general Karl Wolff's personal battle to save his own neck and involves VIP prisoners locked up in a resort in South Tyrol, art theft, money laundering, and the resistance of other German commanders to give up. The German surrender to the Americans on May 5 follows the fortunes of private Alan Moskin from New Jersey, whose 6th Infantry Regiment found themselves liberating Gunskirchen, one of Mauthausen's sub-concentration camps, the terrible reality of which affected the rest of his life.

The stories surrounding the war's end are in their own way as dramatic as the strategy and battles themselves. As Holland and Murray make clear, they add greatly to our understanding and appreciation of World War II and its legacy.

One of WWII's finest historians, JAMES HOLLAND is the author of Cassino '44, The Savage Storm, Brothers in Arms, Sicily '43, Normandy '44, Big Week, The Rise of Germany and The Allies Strike Back in the War in the West trilogy, Burma '44, and Dam Busters. He has written and presented the BAFTA shortlisted documentaries Battle of Britain and Dam Busters for the BBC.

AL MURRAY is the author of Arnhem: Black Tuesday and Command: How the Allies Learned to Win the Second World War. He is the co-host, with James Holland, of the popular World War II history podcast, We Have Ways of Making You Talk.