Victory Day

Victory Day is observed on May 9, the date on which the German surrender took effect in Moscow time in 1945. It commemorates the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in what is known in Russia and several other post-Soviet countries as the Great Patriotic War. The anniversary is inseparable from the enormous military and civilian losses of the Second World War.

Official ceremonies may include memorials, concerts and military displays, while many families use the date to remember relatives whose lives were shaped or lost by the war. A careful account of the holiday makes space for both dimensions: public commemoration and the intimate work of remembrance, grief and family history.

The first large Moscow Victory Parade occurred on June 24, 1945, not May 9, and May 9 became a non-working holiday again in 1965. Contemporary state ceremonies include military elements, but family mourning is fundamental because the Soviet population suffered catastrophic losses. The conflict also encompassed many peoples and fronts beyond the Russian Federation. Neutral wording should commemorate the defeat of Nazi Germany and those who suffered without using the holiday guide to endorse present-day military policy or territorial claims.