Queen Elizabeth and the rest of the U.K. commemorated the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War on VE Day (Victory in Europe). On May 8, at 9:00 p.m. London time, the Queen addressed the nation in a pre-recorded speech to express her sentiment for this special day amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Queen said that 75 years ago on the same day and time, her father, King George VI, also addressed the nation to announce the end of the war and the defeat of the Nazi. She connected the sentiment of the WWII to the current crisis faced by the world with millions becoming affected by COVID-19.
As of late, some 30,000 have died from the viral disease in the U.K., the highest number in Europe. The nation is also one of five developed countries with the greatest number of infected cases.
"At the start, the outlook seemed bleak, the end distant, the outcome uncertain," Queen Elizabeth said in her speech. "But we kept faith that the cause was right and this belief, as my father noted in his broadcast, carried us through: Never give up, never despair. That was the message of VE Day."
Queen Elizabeth said that, while today may seem difficult to mark the VE Day anniversary because of the lockdown, she still takes pride in the fact that there are many brave people fighting against the coronavirus. She said that war time heroes will be proudly admiring of these new heroes and of how the U.K. is coming together to protect each other.
Incidentally, Queen Elizabeth is the only living British leader to remember the jubilation of the end of the Second World War because she was right there in London. She recalled that she and her sister, Princess Margaret, along with the Queen Mother and her father the King, stood at the Buckingham Palace balcony many times to cheer on the crowd. She said that seeing the massive crowd celebrating outside was so profound.
The Queen shared that she and Princess Margaret slipped out of the palace to join the people. She linked arms with people she didn't know and who, luckily, didn't recognize her while she walked down Whitehall. They were all swept with jubilation and relief.
Queen Elizabeth served the war as a mechanic for the British Armed Forces. She was the first female member of the royals to be on active duty.
