Young people ‘ignorant of the history of WW2’

The majority of young people have no idea what VE Day represents, new research has shown.

Findings commissioned on behalf of SSAFA – the armed forces charity revealed that more than half of 18-25 year olds (54 per cent) did not know that VE Day marks the anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

People in this demographic were quizzed on a range of questions about World War Two and VE Day.

The results highlighted a general lack of knowledge about both events.

Some 38 per cent of those polled revealed that they were unable to correctly identify Winston Churchill as the British Prime Minister who famously declared victory in Europe in 1945.

More than a third (38 per cent) believed the first moon landing, along with Britain’s entry into the European Union and the fall of the Berlin Wall had all happened before VE Day.

Over half (55 per cent) were unable to identify Poland as the country whose invasion led Britain to declare war on Germany in 1939.

One in five claimed it was France, with five per cent stating that it was the invasion of Britain which saw the beginning of the Second World War.

David Murray, chief executive of SSAFA, said: "It is a real shame that so many of our young people do not have a basic level of knowledge of the Second World War. Many of them probably have not too distant relatives who fought in what was by far the biggest world war we have seen, in terms of lives lost.

"Seventy years on and the nostalgic memory of VE Day is being played out across Britain and so it should be. As a nation we have a strong tradition of commending our Forces and we have much to be proud of."