May 8 marks the 75th anniversary of VE Day, a day commemorating the conclusion of World War Two in Europe

Bringing the end to a six year conflict of unimaginable horror VE Day is a poignant celebration of the end of the bloodshed and those who lost their lives fighting against fascism

View email online

News   What's On   Lifestyle              May 8, 2020           Dear reader The Belfast News Letter is the oldest English language daily newspaper in the world. So not only did it extensively report Victory in Europe Day in 1945, but many wars and ceasefires before it. It was founded in 1737 but most of the first year of the paper is lost. The earliest surviving editions, from 1738 and 1739, are full of war. There are daily reports of the war between Russia and the infidels (the Turks), there is a civil war in Corsica, there are reports of violence across the Atlantic involving native Americans, and reports on the formal treaty to end of the Polish War of Succession, which had pulled in most of the major western European powers. There are endless reports on the looming War of Jenkins Ear (with Spain). This was all 200 years before World War Two began, and in the meantime the News Letter had reported on the American revolutionary war, the French revolution, the Napoleonic wars, the Crimean and the Boer wars, leading up to the catastrophic Great War. On this 75th anniversary of VE Day however there is so much for us all to be grateful for. The News Letter reported this week, and does again on Saturday (tomorrow), on survivors of the 1939-45 war who are a reminder of a generation that suffered much more than ours, and of the fact that there is much less global conflict now. A letter writer, Harry Stephenson, born in the 1930s, fondly remembers the sense of spirit during the WW2, and the joy at its end. We also report some good news in older survivors of Covid-19, including people aged in their 80s and 90s. There is less good news too from the crisis, sadly. Ongoing deaths in care homes, council staff being furloughed, ongoing economic carnage, and a reported republican paramilitary funeral which is the latest such funeral to breach social distancing. Stay safe Ben Lowry Deputy Editor           VE Day: Belfast erupted in joy with burning bonfires, band parades and frisky sailors           A pair of Belfast Blitz survivors have spoken of scenes of unbridled delight on the streets of Northern Ireland's capital as the official announcement came through in 1945: War in Europe is over.                 Danny Kinahan: It is the heroes of the war generation that we salute today on the 75th anniversary of VE Day   As I stand in remembrance on this 75th anniversary of the allies' remarkable Victory in Europe Day, I will be remembering a generation or should I say generations, the majority of whom are sadly no longer with us.           VE Day: NI veteran, 101, recalls the day the 'torture' ended   At the age of 25 Omagh man Dave Mullin fought his way up through Italy with the North Irish Horse and is one of the last men standing from the famous Battle of Monte Cassino.           A mental and physical wreck by the end of the war, Hitler had long lost contact with reality   Seventy-five years on, historian GORDON LUCY on the inevitable end of the Third Reich and the war in Europe:                 View more on Coronavirus

Please note Due to the unprecedented nature of the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic we have launched this new daily newsletter to keep you up to date with the latest official information and advice. How to opt out of these emails We are sending these daily Coronavirus email bulletins in addition to our daily newsletter emails. If you would like to opt out of only these additional Public Interest emails, and continue to receive your regular daily newsletters, please click here.         You have received this email as you have an account on the News Letter, published by JPIMedia Publishing Ltd. To manage your individual newsletter preferences with the with us, please click here and log in to your account.     Alternatively you can update your email preferences to choose the types of emails you receive from JPIMedia Publishing Ltd, or unsubscribe from all future emails.     JPIMedia Publishing Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales with registered number 11499982, having its registered address at Third Floor, 1 King William Street, London, England, EC4N 7AF, United Kingdom. We will process your personal data in accordance with our privacy policy.