A poignant glimpse into the emotional weight of VE Day has emerged from the archives of Longleat, as the Wiltshire estate prepares to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day on 8th May 2025.
The extract, taken from a letter written by Lady Emma Thynn, daughter of the 5th Marquess of Bath, offers a deeply personal insight into how that day unfolded in 1945. Writing just days after the surrender of German forces, Lady Emma described lighting bonfires, children waving flags, and the surreal sense of disbelief that the war in Europe had ended.
“We opened the Victory case of Champagne which I have been keeping for this occasion and made a great hole in it.
All the same I cannot realise that the fighting in Europe is really over. It has been the most utter and complete defeat,” she wrote to her father.
Lady Emma’s letter, dated 12 May 1945, forms part of a wider collection recently uncovered by Longleat’s archivist, Emma Challinor, and released to the public to mark the milestone anniversary.
VE Day – 8th May 1945 – was celebrated with bonfires, street parties, and scenes of jubilation across the country. At Longleat, it was no different. The house, which had been repurposed during the war to accommodate the Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army (temporarily relocated from Bath), became a place of celebration and reflection.
Emma Challinor said: “Our current Lord Bath’s great grandfather, the 5th Marquess, shared Longleat House with the Royal School throughout the war. On VE Day, the pupils gathered around a bonfire in the park. They later sent a touching poem to the Marquess to commemorate the moment, beginning with the words: ‘Symbols of hope and aspiration high, the leaping flames challenged the darkening sky.’”
In addition to sheltering the school, Longleat also hosted an American military hospital capable of treating up to 750 patients and personnel, positioned near where the rhinos now roam. An RAF base, complete with munitions and equipment stores, operated close to the present-day main entrance.
Marking the 80th anniversary this year, Longleat will observe the national two-minute silence at midday on Thursday 8 May. The estate’s miniature railway, which coincidentally celebrates its 60th year, will signal the start of the silence.
Later in the year, Longleat’s Icons of the Sky event will honour VE Day with flypasts, including an appearance by the iconic Supermarine Spitfire – a stirring nod to the bravery and resilience of those who lived through the war.
Lady Emma’s reflections – filled with both joy and disbelief – are a reminder that while the celebrations on VE Day were filled with light and life, the shadow of what had been endured still lingered heavily in many hearts.
