The 80th anniversary of VE Day, marking the end of the Second World War in Europe, offers an opportunity to think about how – and why – we remember and commemorate the war in the ways we do. We’ll take a tour of countries – the United States, Britain, Russia, France, Poland, and Germany – to see how they have held onto differing national memories of a shared conflict. If we look at how others choose to remember the war, we may find that World War II offers meaning for us today as we debate history education, federal funding to cultural and research institutions, and what it means to be patriotic.

Host: Andrew J. Falk

Guest: Brian Puaca

Past is Prologue is a humanities podcast that provides the public with the background behind the day's headlines, and offers much-needed context to understand the significance of current events that people observe around them. It seeks to contribute to the public conversation in an engaging, informative, accessible, and constructive way. It's produced by the Department of History in the College of Arts & Humanities at Christopher Newport University in Virginia. We welcome your inquiries and feedback at pastpodcast@cnu.edu.