ROMANBY REMEMBERS - THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE END OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

Friday 15th August 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.

In Romanby we held a large community event earlier this year, including readings, music and a beacon-lighting commemoration to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day on the 8th May.  As we explained during that event, we would not be holding another event to mark Victory over Japan (VJ) Day on the 15th August – we will of course be holding our annual commemoration event on Remembrance Sunday in November 2025.

VJ Day is not as widely celebrated/commemorated as VE Day due to a number of factors, including the complex legacy of the war against Japan with the use of atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which resulted in immense human suffering and destruction.  In some countries, including the UK, the focus has shifted to commemorating the sacrifices and experiences of those who fought in the Far East, rather than large-scale public celebrations. 

So here in Romanby we quietly and respectfully remember the Greatest Generation who lived, served, died and survived across all six years of the Second World War which finally drew to a close 80 years ago.  We particularly remember those men and women from our village – many of them now our ancestors – whose legacy and sacrifice allow us to live our lives as we do.

And from our Parish Council Romanby Remembers Project……..

From the WWII men on our Memorial Clock Tower in Romanby, we especially remember on VJDay80, Gunner William Leslie Lisle (14710628) from Romanby, who served in the Far East through the end of the war with 18 Field Regiment Royal Artillery, and who died some months after the war on 27th May 1946.  He is buried in plot 7A5 in Chennai cemetery, India (see photo). SB.

Respectfully,

Your Parish Council Team.

The Kohima Epitaph is the epitaph engraved on the Memorial of the 2nd British Division in the cemetery of Kohima (North-East India). It reads:

'When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today.'