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What is VE day and how will the King and Queen celebrate it?

What is VE day and how will the King and Queen celebrate it?

Independent25-04-2025

The King and Queen will be leading the nation in marking 80 years since the end of the Second World War in Europe.
The VE Day events will pay tribute to the millions of people across the UK and Commonwealth who served in the Second World War.
It is set to kick off on Monday May 5, with a military procession starting in Parliament Square at midday featuring 1,300 members of the armed forces.
An actor will also recite extracts from Winston Churchill's famous VE Day speech.
The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery will then lead the procession from Parliament Square, down Whitehall and past the Cenotaph, through Admiralty Arch and up The Mall through to Buckingham Palace, where the procession will finish.
The Royal Family is set to be front and centre of the commemorations, with Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Princess Anne and her husband Sir Tim Laurence and the Duke of Kent also set to join prime minister Sir Keir Starmer on the Queen Victoria Memorial outside Buckingham Palace.
The Royals will then return to Buckingham Palace to watch a fly-past from the balcony, featuring the Red Arrows and 23 current and historic military aircraft.
The King and Queen will later host a tea party for around 50 veterans and people who lived through the war – this includes British and Commonwealth Armed Forces and those who contributed to the war effort on the home front.
Mark Atkinson, firector general of the Royal British Legion, said: 'The 80th anniversary of VE Day is a special moment for the country and the Royal British Legion is incredibly proud to put Second World War veterans at the heart of the commemorations.
'It's important we remember those who went to war, who fought for the freedom of not just Europe but everywhere, and those who risked their lives and never made it back.'
The commemorations will continue to May 6, where Queen Camilla will view a display of 30,000 ceremonial poppies at the Tower of London.
Then on May 8, the entire Royal Family will gather at Westminster Abbey for a Service of Thanksgiving, where they will lay flowers at the Innocent Victims' Memorial.
Later that evening, the King and Queen will attend a celebratory concert from Horse Guards Parade.

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