We talk to a selection of Wiltshire Life readers who share their memories of that remarkable day in 1945 when Victory in Europe was declared
It is 75 years since VE Day took place in Wiltshire and the rest of the UK, and while this year’s celebrations are going to be muted – thanks to that virulent virus that is doing the rounds – it will not dim the spirit of Wiltshire residents who remember the day that Nazi Germany surrendered to the allies. To celebrate this historic event, we share some of our readers’ evocative and wonderful memories of those remarkable days.
A carter’s lad
Allen Chalk tells Wiltshire Life: “I was living in Broad Chalke where we were based in an old bungalow at the back of the farm where I worked. There was no electric; all we had was a lamp and candles with a toilet at the back of the garden. We lived for eight years in that house.”
Allen went on to recall he was 14-years-old in May 1945.
“I had just started working on a farm in March 1945. I was a carter’s lad working with heavy horses. We heard about the Germans’ capitulation through the old wireless – they were not called radios then. When we went to work on VE Day, the farmer said we should just do the necessary, feed the cattle and the animals, and then he gave us the rest of the day off.
“Even though there was not much food about, the farmer decided to give a party for the 40 people who worked on the farm. The wives all got together and found some food, and we all went to the park, which was a nice area with trees all around. There were bales to sit on and the wives made the food.
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