Only on 8 May? Days of Liberation in Europe

Ever since Richard von Weizsäcker’s famous speech in 1985, 8 May is usually celebrated as the Day of Liberation. What was liberated – over a much longer period that began in 1943 and did not end on 8 May 1945 – were the European countries occupied by Germany, the first concentration and extermination camps, and the victims of the Nazi regime. Images of the liberation emerged in Europe’s cities that provide insight into the contradictions inherent in the end of the war. A miniseries.

Part 1: Warsaw