Battle of Rhine
Montgomery & Rokossovsky join together at Wismar
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1945 in Great Britain — Page 3
Explore 332 historical events and records for Great Britain in 1945.
Historical records for Great Britain in 1945
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 40 of 332 unique records.
332Unique records
3 of 9Page
33Named events on this page
21Named people on this page
12Places on this page
May
Result of Surrender of German Armed Forces
The unconditional capitulation ends organised German military resistance.
Surrender of German Armed Forces
Unconditional surrender of all German forces to the Allies
Commonwealth
Broadcasts a victory message to the nation & commonwealth at 9.00 p.m
Result of Surrender of Germany
Victory in Europe Day publicly marks the end of the European war.
Surrender of Germany
Announces "Victory in Europe Day"
VE Day
Makes the announcement of Allied victory over the Axis powers in Europe at 3 p.m
VE Day
Attends the VE Day celebrations in her ATS uniform
VE Day
Broadcasts a victory message to the nation & commonwealth at 9.00 p.m
Result of Surrender of Germany
The Berlin instrument confirms the final military surrender of Germany.
Surrender of Germany
Present when Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel signs the final German Instrument of Surrender entering into force at 23:01 Central European Time
Birth of Alan James Ball Jr
Birth of Alan James Ball Jr
Birth of Ian McLagan
Birth of Ian McLagan
Coalition Government
Asks Attlee and Sinclair to remain in the Coalition until the defeat of Japan; the offer is rejected
Birth of Pete Townshend
Birth of Who guitarist Pete Townshend.
Birth of Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend
Birth of Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend
Resignation of Clement Richard Attlee
Rejects Churchill's offer to continue the Coalition Government
Prime Minister of Great Britain
Appointed Prime Minister of Great Britain, 2nd term
Resignation of Clement Richard Attlee
The Government resigns
Home Secretary of Great Britain
Appointed Home Secretary
Enigma Machine
Remains in Hut 8 through the end of the European war, continuing work on German Naval Enigma.
Military Rank
Ends wartime service with senior army experience that later shapes his public reputation.
Notes on Nationalism
Publishes Notes on Nationalism.
Twenty First Army Group Links with Soviet Forces
His forces establish contact with Soviet troops advancing from the east as the European war ends.
June
Constitution of Great Britain
Opening day of the Allied Control Commission for German administration
Opening of the Allied Control Commission by Churchill, Roosevelt & Stalin
Opening of the Allied Control Commission by Churchill, Roosevelt & Stalin
Rule of Germany
USA., Britain, Russia & France declare supreme authority over Germany
Armament
Completes the plan for the defense of Britain
Defence
Draws a line from Edinburgh to the Medway & Bristol to London of ditches & "pillboxes"
Birth of Kenneth Robert Ken Livingstone
Birth of Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone
United Nations
Signs the United Nations Charter on behalf of Britain
Election Manifesto
Promises a comprehensive health service in Labour's programme.
Invasion of Japan
The Allies prepare for the land invasion of Japan, the plan is scrapped
Operation Downfall
The Allies prepare for the land invasion of Japan, the plan is scrapped
Result of Surrender of Japan
Japan's capitulation ends organised Japanese resistance across the wider Allied command area.
Surrender of Japan
As COS to Mountbatten oversees the surrender of Japan
July
General Election
Retains Ebbw Vale as Labour wins nationally.
General Election
Wins the newly created Coventry East constituency at the Labour general election victory.
General Election
Retains Wakefield for Labour in the general election that brings Clement Attlee to power.
General Election - General Election
Wins the newly created Coventry East constituency at the Labour general election victory.
How these records were prepared
Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.