Wednesday 8th May 2025 is VE Day, marking the eightieth anniversary of Allied victory over fascism in Europe in 1945, following six years of war. As a large port city of strategic importance, Bristol played a key role in the Second World War, providing imports and exports from across the Atlantic, serving as a major manufacturing base for the Royal Air Force and being an operations hub for garrisoned British, American, Polish and French forces based across the West of England.
On the Home Front, from September 1st 1939, to May 15 1944, Bristol faced a sustained campaign of aerial bombing attacks from German Luftwaffe bombers, with 1,299 people killed, 1,303 seriously injured from the Bristol Blitz, with large amounts of the old city destroyed or in flames with some unexploded bombs still being discovered to this day.
It is estimated that approximately a third of able-bodied men served in the armed forces by 1944, with conscription introduced for all British men between the ages of 18 and 41 from the outbreak of war many others serving in the Territorial Army, and with many women filling roles in industries, in voluntary organisations such as a the red cross, and military and intelligence roles.
“The eighth of May will live in the memories of liberty-loving people for centuries to come.”
Over a million people celebrated Victory in Europe across street parties in the UK, including in Bristol, as documented by Eugene Byrne in the Bristol Post. Whilst the war with Japan would continue until September 1945 on VJ Day, VE Day provided an opportunity for the British people to revel and begin to plan for building “a future shaped by peace, opportunity, high employment, and universal prosperity” (Bristol Chamber of Commerce, President Col Mark Whitwill, 1945).
Bristol Junior Chamber’s roots began with VE Day. Plans to establish BJC sprang to life in the buzz of post-war celebration and renewal. In their first monthly meeting after VE Day, members of Bristol Chamber of Commerce pledged their support to establishing a new Junior Chamber in recognition of the incredible contribution and sacrifices of younger generations towards the war effort. This would eventually be achieved in 1948 after the demobilisation of the armed forces.
After the war, Bristol looked outward in a spirit of peace and reconciliation, twinning with Bordeaux and Hannover in 1947, symbolising Bristol’s commitment to unity after conflict. Bristol Junior Chamber supports these efforts to this day through regular cultural exchange opportunities with Bordelais and Hannovarian friends.
Looking to commemorate VE Day?
- On Sunday 4th & Monday 5th May Berkeley Castle will be hosting VE Day Celebrations: https://www.berkeley-castle.com/event/celebrate-ve80/
- Also on the 4th Sunday – Monday 5th May, Aerospace Bristol will be hosting a Spirit of ’45: A VE Day 80 Celebration https://aerospacebristol.org/news/2025/4/16/spirit-of-45-aerospace-bristol-celebrates-80-years-since-ve-day
- On Monday 5th May, you can join Yanks in Bristol and Kingswood Heritage Museum with their VE Day Celebrations
- On Thursday, 8th May at 9:30 PM, Beacons will be lit across the UK, including in Bristol.
- On Thursday 8th May, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has ordered pubs and bars across the country to be able to keep serving until 1am to celebrate. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/victory-inn-europe-pubs-to-stay-open-later-as-part-of-ve-80-celebrations
- On Sun 11 May 15:30 – 16:30 at Bristol Cathedral, His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant, Mrs. Peaches Golding OBE CStJ will be leading a Special Evensong Service to Mark VE Day: https://bristol-cathedral.co.uk/event/ve-day-evensong/
- https://visitbristol.co.uk/event/ve-day-2025-celebrations-weekend-in-clifton-village/372429301/ On Saturday 10th – Sunday 11th May, Discover Clifton will be hosting VE Day events in Clifton Village: https://visitbristol.co.uk/event/ve-day-2025-celebrations-weekend-in-clifton-village/372429301/
- Arnolfini will be hosting Tapestry of Black Britons: World War II service https://arnolfini.org.uk/whatson/tapestryofblackbritons/
- You can also go on Yanks in Bristol’s self-guided tour on Americans in Bristol during the Second World War at any time
- Later in the year, BJC will be organising a Bristol Air Raid Walking Tour for members ahead of the 85th anniversary of the Bristol Blitz.
For more information on VE and VJ celebrations, go to: https://ve-vjday80.gov.uk/
Acknowledgements: This blog was written with the support of Kathryn Davis from Visit West, Duncan McKellar from the Bristol Blitz Experience, and the employees from Bristol Archives.
Resources Used:
- Blitz over Britain by Edwin Webb and John Duncan 1990, page 90
- Bristol Chamber of Commerce Annual Report 1944-45 (June 1945) – https://archives.bristol.gov.uk/records/38605/A/53
- Bristol Chamber of Commerce Journal, 1946-1947 https://archives.bristol.gov.uk/records/38605/Pu/11a-b
- Bristol Museums (2020) ‘Bristol VE Day Celebrations Bought to Life’ https://www.bristolmuseums.org.uk/blog/bristols-ve-day-celebrations-brought-to-life/
- Crang, Jeremy (2000). The British army and the People’s War, 1939–1945. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
- UK Parliament (2025) ‘Conscription: the Second World War’ https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/yourcountry/overview/conscriptionww2/