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{{Further|[[Polish participation at the London Victory Parade of 1946]], [[Polish contribution to World War II]]}}
{{Further|[[Polish participation at the London Victory Parade of 1946]], [[Polish contribution to World War II]]}}


Of the internationally recognised governments sent invitations, the only ones which did not provide delegations were those of the USSR<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/page/687736 “No Soviet troops for London’s Victory Parade”] “The Canberra Times”, 29 May 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> (the largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe with 34.4 million troops<ref>See Г. Ф. Кривошеев, Россия и СССР в войнах XX века: потери вооруженных сил. Статистическое исследование (G. F. Krivosheev, Russia and the USSR in the wars of the 20th century: losses of the Armed Forces. A Statistical Study, in Russian)</ref> ), Yugoslavia<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2685569 “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note”] “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> (which contributed more than 800,000<ref>Perica, Vjekoslav (2004). Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States. Oxford University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0195174291.</ref> soldiers to the Allied victory in Europe), and [[Provisional Government of National Unity|Poland]]<ref>[[Norman Davies|Davies, Norman]], 1983. ''God's Playground''. Vol II. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN 0-231-05353-3 and ISBN 0-231-05351-7] p. 575</ref><ref name="The Victory Parade">Rudolf Falkowski, [http://www.polishsquadronsremembered.com/Victory_parade.html The Victory Parade]. Last accessed on 30 September 2009.</ref><ref> [[Władysław Anders]], “An Army in Exile” MacMillan & Co., London 1949. page 299</ref><ref>[http://books.google.ca/books?id=LkoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA32&lpg=PA32&dq=poland+1946+london+victory+parade&source=bl&ots=_GcCLqn9h6&sig=4ZLmpesnd8Kk2j_TZlWL2Ogj4zI&hl=en&ei=N-zgSpblAcKntgfMyvTwDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CCkQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=&f=false "London Victory Parade: Britain celebrates V-E holiday with pomp and fireworks."] ''Life'', 24 June 1946. Retrieved: 21 October 2009.</ref><ref>http://books.google.ca/books?id=LkoEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA32&ots=_GcCLqn9h6&dq=poland%201946%20london%20victory%20parade&pg=PA32#v=onepage&q=&f=false</ref>
Of the internationally recognised governments sent invitations, the only ones which did not provide delegations were those of the USSR<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/page/687736 “No Soviet troops for London’s Victory Parade”] “The Canberra Times”, 29 May 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> (the largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe with 34.4 million troops<ref>See Г. Ф. Кривошеев, Россия и СССР в войнах XX века: потери вооруженных сил. Статистическое исследование (G. F. Krivosheev, Russia and the USSR in the wars of the 20th century: losses of the Armed Forces. A Statistical Study, in Russian)</ref> ), Yugoslavia<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2685569 “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note”] “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> (which contributed more than 800,000<ref>Perica, Vjekoslav (2004). Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States. Oxford University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0195174291.</ref> soldiers to the Allied victory in Europe), and [[Provisional Government of National Unity|Poland]]<ref>[[Norman Davies|Davies, Norman]], 1983. ''God's Playground''. Vol II. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN 0-231-05353-3 and ISBN 0-231-05351-7] p. 575</ref><ref name="The Victory Parade">Rudolf Falkowski, [http://www.polishsquadronsremembered.com/Victory_parade.html The Victory Parade]. Last accessed on 30 September 2009.</ref><ref> [[Władysław Anders]], “An Army in Exile” MacMillan & Co., London 1949. page 299</ref><ref>[http://books.google.ca/books?id=LkoEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA32&lpg=PA32&dq=poland+1946+london+victory+parade&source=bl&ots=_GcCLqn9h6&sig=4ZLmpesnd8Kk2j_TZlWL2Ogj4zI&hl=en&ei=N-zgSpblAcKntgfMyvTwDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CCkQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=&f=false "London Victory Parade: Britain celebrates V-E holiday with pomp and fireworks."] ''Life'', 24 June 1946. Retrieved: 21 October 2009.</ref><ref>http://books.google.ca/books?id=LkoEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA32&ots=_GcCLqn9h6&dq=poland%201946%20london%20victory%20parade&pg=PA32#v=onepage&q=&f=false</ref><br /> the fourth largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe (contributing about 400,000 members of the [[Home Army|Armia Krajowa]] <ref>http://web.ku.edu/~eceurope/hist557/lect16.htm</ref> (of which 8,000 were full-time armed members<ref name="R. F. Leslie"> R. F. Leslie, The History of Poland since 1863 [http://books.google.com/books?id=0tYVKUsnw9IC&pg=PA234&dq=%22Armia+Krajowa%22+largest&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=NzzMR_mOIJGSzQSb7cSwCQ&sig=rLD9gO8sIve_RDxnvTLWfMeFlGg#v=onepage&q=%22Armia%20Krajowa%22%20largest&f=false]</ref>),
the fourth largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe (contributing about 400,000 partisans,<ref>http://web.ku.edu/~eceurope/hist557/lect16.htm</ref> 200,000 soldiers in the east <ref name="ZalogaLWP">{{cite book | author =Steven J Zaloga | coauthors = | title =Polish Army, 1939-1945 | year =1982 | editor = | pages = | chapter = The Polish People's Army| chapterurl = http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&vid=ISBN0850454174&id=AAdYFeW2fnoC&pg=PA26&lpg=PA26&dq=first+polish+army&vq=counter-government&sig=qPA6i-Gms1D-8JEiRw58CNeDmvc| publisher =Osprey Publishing| location = Oxford | id =ISBN 0-85045-417-4| url =http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&vid=ISBN0850454174&id=AAdYFeW2fnoC&dq=isbn+0850454174&pg=PP1&printsec=0&lpg=PP1&sig=ajafnskh3BRg59sdnerIgirmLBc| format = | accessdate = }}</ref> and 228,000 in the west).
200,000 soldiers in the east <ref name="ZalogaLWP">{{cite book | author =Steven J Zaloga | coauthors = | title =Polish Army, 1939-1945 | year =1982 | editor = | pages = | chapter = The Polish People's Army| chapterurl = http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&vid=ISBN0850454174&id=AAdYFeW2fnoC&pg=PA26&lpg=PA26&dq=first+polish+army&vq=counter-government&sig=qPA6i-Gms1D-8JEiRw58CNeDmvc| publisher =Osprey Publishing| location = Oxford | id =ISBN 0-85045-417-4| url =http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&vid=ISBN0850454174&id=AAdYFeW2fnoC&dq=isbn+0850454174&pg=PP1&printsec=0&lpg=PP1&sig=ajafnskh3BRg59sdnerIgirmLBc| format = | accessdate = }}</ref> and 228,000 in the west).
The Yugoslav government did not send a delegation, in protest about rising tension with British and Italian troops around the [[Istrian Peninsula]],<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2685569 “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note”] “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> which later became known as the [[Julian_March#The_contested_region_.281945-1954.29|Trieste Crisis]] and the [[Istrian exodus]].
The Yugoslav government did not send a delegation, in protest about rising tension with British and Italian troops around the [[Istrian Peninsula]],<ref>[http://newspapers.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2685569 “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note”] “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.</ref> which later became known as the [[Julian_March#The_contested_region_.281945-1954.29|Trieste Crisis]] and the [[Istrian exodus]].


Revision as of 08:23, 7 April 2010

The Official Programme of the Victory Celebrations.

The London Victory Celebrations of 1946 were British Commonwealth & Empire[1] victory celebrations held after the defeat of Nazi Germany and Empire of Japan in World War II. It took place in the United Kingdom capital of London, on June 8, 1946,[2] mainly encompassing a military parade through the city and a night time fireworks display.[1]

Victory parade

The first part of the parade was the Chiefs of Staff's procession, featuring the British Chiefs of Staff together with the Supreme Allied Commanders. This was followed by a mechanised column which went from Regent’s Park to Tower Hill to The Mall (where the saluting base was)[5][2][3][4]and then back to Regent’s park. It was more than four miles long and contained more than 500 vehicles from the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, British Civilian Services and the British Army (in that order).[5][2]

Representatives of the Greek armed forces in their traditional fustanella, including the Royal Hellenic Navy.

Next came a Marching Column, which went from Marble Arch to The Mall to Hyde Park Corner[6][2]. This was headed by the flags of the Allied nations which took part in the parade, each with an honour guard (see photo on right of Greek honour guard). Next came units of Navies, the air forces, Civilian Services and armies of the nations of the British Empire. They were followed by units from the Royal Navy, followed by British Civilian Services, the British Army, more of the British Civilian Services, representatives of certain Allied air forces and then the Royal Air Force. This was then followed by a fly-past of RAF planes. The parade was 9 miles long and stretched from Trafalgar Square to Buckingham Palace.[citation needed] In the aftermath, 4,127 persons needed medical attention and 65 were taken to hospital. [1]

Though mainly a Commonwealth affair, most of the allies were represented, parading their national flag with an honour guard. The parade also included representatives from the USA, France, Belgium, Brazil, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, Ethiopia, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Luxembourg, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway and Transjordan.[6]

Political Controversy

Further information: [[:Polish participation at the London Victory Parade of 1946, Polish contribution to World War II]]

Of the internationally recognised governments sent invitations, the only ones which did not provide delegations were those of the USSR[7] (the largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe with 34.4 million troops[8] ), Yugoslavia[9] (which contributed more than 800,000[10] soldiers to the Allied victory in Europe), and Poland[11][3][12][13][14]
the fourth largest contributor to the Allied victory in Europe (contributing about 400,000 members of the Armia Krajowa [15] (of which 8,000 were full-time armed members[16]), 200,000 soldiers in the east [17] and 228,000 in the west). The Yugoslav government did not send a delegation, in protest about rising tension with British and Italian troops around the Istrian Peninsula,[18] which later became known as the Trieste Crisis and the Istrian exodus.

Poland was the only foreign nation to participate in the the USSR's Moscow Victory Parade of 1945.[19] Although the internally recognised government of Poland was invited to send a delegation to the London parade, the absence of circa 228,000 Polish Armed Forces in the West who had served under British High Command has proven controversial.[20] After British newspapers and public figures put pressure on their government, only the RAF's Polish veterans were invited, but refused to attend, out of solidarity with the other Polish forces.[20] Despite the fact that the remainder of the Army and Navy of the USA were excluded from the parade and only representatives of aviators from both services were invited,[21] the invited representatives of the United States did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other American forces and the USA was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of France, along with all units from the French empire, were excluded from the parade while representatives of the nation's aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of France did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other French forces and France was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of Belgium were excluded from the parade, along with all representatives of the Belgian empire, while representatives of the nation's aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of Belgium did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Belgian forces and Belgium was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of Czechoslovakia were excluded from the parade while representatives of their aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of Czechoslovakia did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Czechoslovakian forces and Czechoslovakia was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of Greece were excluded from the parade while representatives of their aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of Greece did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Greek forces and Greece was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of the Netherlands, along with all units from the Dutch empire, were excluded from the parade while representatives of of the nation's aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of the Netherlands did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Dutch forces and the Netherlands was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of Norway were excluded from the parade while representatives of their aviators were invited,[21], the invited representatives of Norway did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Norwegian forces and Norway was represented. [3] Despite the fact that the Army and Navy of Yugoslavia were excluded from the parade while representatives of their aviators were invited,[21] the invited representatives of Yugoslavia did not refuse to attend out of solidarity with the other Yugoslav forces: Yugoslav forces did not attend because the Yugoslav government objected to a strong British note which protested against Yugoslav obstruction of the Allied military government in Venezia Guilia.[22] Only representatives from Poland refused to attend out of solidarity with persons who had not been invited.

Britain's Labour government argued that the invitation to the RAF's Polish veterans was not being extended to other Polish armed forces in the West as a necessary compromise due to the political circumstances of the day.[23] Britain's Conservative opposition criticised the decision, and spoke of British "shame".[20] According to a single source, Labour Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin apologized to General Anders about the affair[24]; however, that source refers to "Britain's 1945 victory parade", not the parade in London in 1946, and General Anders made no mention of this apology in his memoirs, despite writing there about the invitation which in 1946 was extended to Poles which had been under his command[25] , or elsewhere. Many Polish troops, particularly those among Anders' Polish II Corps, publicly opposed the postwar peace treaties, which entailed their homes in the Kresy region being ceded to the USSR.[26] The Polish government in exile had lost international recognition, but continued to lobby public opinion from London, including protests about the Trial of the Sixteen and the treatment of the Katyn massacre at the Nuremberg Trials.[citation needed][26] Commentators have said larger public issues contributed to the Victory Parade controversy, including the hope that Polish troops would return to Poland rather than gain British citizenship[citation needed]; the hope that the Yalta and Potsdam conferences would be respected[citation needed]; divergent British interpretations of Soviet influence in Central and Eastern Europe including the hope for fairness at coming referenda such as the 3xTAK[citation needed]; and the onset of the Cold War[citation needed].[27][26][28]

Associated festivities

After sunset of the same day, the principal buildings of London were lit by floodlights, and crowds thronged the banks of the Thames and Westminster Bridge to watch King George VI and his family proceed down the river in the Royal barge. The planned festivities ended with a fireworks display over Central London. However, crowds continued to throng London and surrounded Buckingham Palace even after the Royal family had retired from the festivities. Many festival goers could not return home that night and spent the rest of the night in public parks and other public areas around London.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d “Colourful London Victory Parade” “The Canberra Times”, 10 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d The Official Programme of the Victory Celebrations on 8th June 1946 in London, England Part 1 Published by His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1946
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rudolf Falkowski, The Victory Parade. Last accessed on 30 September 2009.
  4. ^ "London Victory Parade: Britain celebrates V-E holiday with pomp and fireworks." Life, 24 June 1946. Retrieved: 21 October 2009.
  5. ^ Gaumont British Newsreel Last accessed on 23 October 2009.
  6. ^ http://www.polishsquadronsremembered.com/Victory_parade.html
  7. ^ “No Soviet troops for London’s Victory Parade” “The Canberra Times”, 29 May 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.
  8. ^ See Г. Ф. Кривошеев, Россия и СССР в войнах XX века: потери вооруженных сил. Статистическое исследование (G. F. Krivosheev, Russia and the USSR in the wars of the 20th century: losses of the Armed Forces. A Statistical Study, in Russian)
  9. ^ “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note” “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.
  10. ^ Perica, Vjekoslav (2004). Balkan Idols: Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States. Oxford University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0195174291.
  11. ^ Davies, Norman, 1983. God's Playground. Vol II. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN 0-231-05353-3 and ISBN 0-231-05351-7] p. 575
  12. ^ Władysław Anders, “An Army in Exile” MacMillan & Co., London 1949. page 299
  13. ^ "London Victory Parade: Britain celebrates V-E holiday with pomp and fireworks." Life, 24 June 1946. Retrieved: 21 October 2009.
  14. ^ http://books.google.ca/books?id=LkoEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA32&ots=_GcCLqn9h6&dq=poland%201946%20london%20victory%20parade&pg=PA32#v=onepage&q=&f=false
  15. ^ http://web.ku.edu/~eceurope/hist557/lect16.htm
  16. ^ R. F. Leslie, The History of Poland since 1863 [1]
  17. ^ Steven J Zaloga (1982). "The Polish People's Army". Polish Army, 1939-1945. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 0-85045-417-4. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note” “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.
  19. ^ [2]
  20. ^ a b c Dr Mark Ostrowski [3]
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h The Official Programme of the Victory Celebrations on 8th June 1946 in London, England Part 2 Published by His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1946
  22. ^ “Yugoslavia annoyed at British Note” “The Canberra Times”, 7 June 1946. Retrieved: 23 October 2009.
  23. ^ Statement to Parliament by British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs [4] 5 June 1946. Hansard
  24. ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2003/nov/08/featuresreviews.guardianreview2
  25. ^ Władysław Anders, “An Army in Exile” MacMillan & Co., London 1949. page 299
  26. ^ a b c Lynne Olson, Stanley Cloud, A Question of Honor: The Kosciuszko Squadron: Forgotten Heroes of World War II , Knopf, 2003, ISBN 0-375-41197-6, Excerpt (prologue).
  27. ^ Rudolf Falkowski, THE VICTORY PARADE. Last accessed on 31 March 2007.
  28. ^ Kwan Yuk Pan, Polish veterans to take pride of place in victory parade, Financial Times, July 5 2005. Last accessed on 31 March 2006.

External links

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