Obverse. Photo © Monetnik.ru
  • 2 Pounds 2005, KM# 1056, United Kingdom (Great Britain), Elizabeth II, 60th Anniversary of WWII Victory
  • 2 Pounds 2005, KM# 1056, United Kingdom (Great Britain), Elizabeth II, 60th Anniversary of WWII Victory
Description

Victory in Europe Day, generally known as V-E Day, VE Day or simply V Day, was the public holiday celebrated on 8 May 1945 to mark the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces. It thus marked the end of World War II in Europe.

The term VE Day existed as early as September 1944, in anticipation of victory. On 30 April 1945, Adolf Hitler, the Nazi leader, committed suicide during the Battle of Berlin. Germany's surrender, therefore, was authorised by his successor, Reichspräsident Karl Dönitz. The administration headed by Dönitz was known as the Flensburg Government. The act of military surrender was signed on 7 May in Reims, France and on 8 May in Berlin, Germany.

The former Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries have historically celebrated the end of World War II on 9 May.

Obverse

Fourth crowned portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II facing right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara.

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara was a wedding present in 1947 from her grandmother, Queen Mary, who received it as a gift from the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland in 1893 on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of York, later George V. Made by E. Wolfe & Co., it was purchased from Garrard & Co. by a committee organised by Lady Eve Greville. In 1914, Mary adapted the tiara to take 13 diamonds in place of the large oriental pearls surmounting the tiara. At first, Elizabeth wore the tiara without its base and pearls but the base was reattached in 1969. The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara is one of Elizabeth's most recognisable pieces of jewellery due to its widespread use on British banknotes and coinage.

ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATRIX means Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith.

Engraver: Ian Rank-Broadley

ELIZABETH·II·DEI·GRA·REG·FID·DEF ·
IRB

Reverse

The design depicts St Paul's Cathedral illuminated by searchlights and the value 'TWO POUNDS' above and the dates 1945-2005 below.

The Second World War brought devastation to British cities, but while London burned St Paul’s miraculously escaped destruction, its Dome according to The Times seeming to ‘ride the sea of fire like a great ship’. Serene and comparatively unscathed amid a city in flames, the great cathedral survived to become a symbol of hope to a beleaguered nation.

St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the mother church of the Diocese of London. It sits on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grade 1 listed building. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. The present cathedral, dating from the late 17th century, was designed in the English Baroque style by Sir Christopher Wren. Its construction, completed in Wren's lifetime, was part of a major rebuilding programme in the City after the Great Fire of London.

The cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London. Its dome, framed by the spires of Wren's City churches, has dominated the skyline for over 300 years. At 365 feet (111 m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1967.

Services held at St Paul's have included the funerals of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington, Sir Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher; jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria; peace services marking the end of the First and Second World Wars; the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer; the launch of the Festival of Britain; and the thanksgiving services for the Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees and the 80th and 90th birthdays of Elizabeth II.

St Paul's Cathedral is a working church with hourly prayer and daily services.

Engraver: Robert Elderton

TWO POUNDS
1945-2005

Edge

The edge inscription is an excerpt taken from the famous ‘moral’ which prefaces Churchill’s history of the Second World War.

IN VICTORY MAGNANIMITY IN PEACE GOODWILL

Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Circulating)
Material Bi-Metallic
Ring Nickel Brass
Center Cupronickel
Weight 12 g
Diameter 28.4 mm
Thickness 2.5 mm
Shape round
Alignment Medal
Mint
Royal Mint

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