VE Day
Address - 8 May 2023
By FOTOBAI President, Sqn Ldr Bruce P Waxman OAM RAAF
Shrine of Remembrance,
Melbourne
Pressing on …remembering, our motto, encapsulates that pressing on to the target, completing the mission and returningsafely, and remembering their colleagues who were not so fortunate was as important to the aircrew in WWII as it is for those of us trusted with the task of remembering the Australian aircrew that served in Europe and the Middle East, and the over 5,000 who were killed in action, on those missions.
The Friends of the Odd Bods Association acknowledges that huge sacrifice today as we commemorate the 78thanniversary of Victory in Europe on May 8, 1945, VE Day.
But what was VE Day all about and why so special to the Odd Bods?
With Berlin surrounded,Adolf Hitler committed suicide on 30 April 1945 and his successor Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, negotiated an end to the war with the Allies – to save as many Germans as possible from falling into Soviet hands, and one could add stop the killing of Australian aircrew, though I suspect that was far from Donitz’s mind.
A German delegation met with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery at Lüneburg Heath, east of Hamburg, on 4 May. Montgomery accepted the unconditional surrender of German forces in the Netherlands, northwest Germany, and Denmark and on 7 May, at his headquarters in Reims, France, General Eisenhower accepted the unconditional surrender of all German forces. The document of surrender was signed on behalf of Germany by General Alfred Jodl and came into effect on 8 May. However, the news had leaked and celebrations in the UK started on the evening of 7 May.
A national holiday was declared in Britain for 8 May 1945,and Churchill had gained assurances from the Ministry of Food that there were enough beer suppliesand announced that people could purchase red, white and blue bunting without using ration coupons.
The British Royal Family, a very topical subject with the recent coronation of King Charles III, also played a central role in London's victory celebrations. Huge numbers of people surged down The Mall to Buckingham Palace, where King George VI, Queen Elizabeth and their daughters, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, soon appeared on the balcony to wave to the cheering crowds.
Princess Elizabeth, and her sister Margaret were allowed to leave the palace and take part – anonymously – in the party-like atmosphere. Princess Elizabeth later recalled… I think it was one of the most memorable nights of my life.
While in the major Australian cities there were similar outbursts of rejoicingthough sombre as Australians was still at war in the Pacific. Churches held thanksgiving services, and on 9 May 100,000 people attended the service at this Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne.
But why was VE Day so special for our Odd Bods?
The last words of Edmund Blunden’s1945 V Day poem may summarize part of the answer.
‘Hence shall the final victory ever new.
Sing in the lives of all that live.
We have … come through!
https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/edmund-blunden-a-victory-poem
Indeed, they had come through so much during their deployment in the skies over Europe, never sure that they would return.
But now that mayhem was over, and they could think of coming home.
However, coming home would have its challenges as Odd Bod John Ireland points out in his 2022 book ‘A Blue Orchid, Cook’s Tour’.
https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/blog/second-world-war-veteran-john-ireland
In his own words:
“What motivated me above all was to tell
the stories of friends who cannot tellit themselves’.
“We were called ‘blue orchids’ when we
came home – fancy pants – because we went over to England to ‘get away from the
war’. As ‘blue orchids’ we were seen as
having taken the easy way out and scoring a ‘Cook’s tour’ of the world. No one
heard or read about our experiences … Indeed, it was common to be told I had no
right to be a member of the RSL as I hadn’t fought for my country.”
This I suspect this was one of the motivating factors for the camaraderie and the glue that helped to bind the members of the Odd Bods (UK) Association together.
Furthermore, VE day was important because it was a tangible justification that they we very much part of WWII and it was anything but a Cook’s tour!
The RAAF served in every theatre of that war, including Russia. 5036 were killed in action in Europe and the Middle East alone – and another one third were killed in training accidents. Indeed, of the total Australian battle fatalities, Army, Navy, Airforce, in all theatres of that war, over 30 percent were RAAF in Europe and the Middle East. 3 percent of the RAAF served in Europe but suffered 30 percent of the casualties.
So, on this 78th Anniversary of VE Day we continue to be pressing on, remembering all those RAAF aircrew who served in Europe and those who did not return.
Lest we forget.
Bruce P Waxman
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