Royal Marine Richard D Emerson, sitting on his bunk bed, writes a letter home.
IWM (A 14276)
Royal Marine Richard D Emerson writes a letter home, January 1943.

IWM, in partnership with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, invites schoolchildren and young people across the UK to learn about the Second World War, by sharing letters sent to, and from, their relatives during the war.

During the Second World War, letters eased the pain of separation for both military personnel and civilians. If your relatives were part of the VE and VJ Day generation, we would love to hear from you. Photographs of the letters containing first-hand testimonies of the Second World War can be uploaded to the official UK government VE and VJ Day website.

These stories will be displayed in an online gallery, to shine a light on the personal accounts of those who were there — from soldiers, sailors and airmen on the front lines to the men, women and children on the home front. A live performance at IWM North will be held on 7 May 2025, featuring letters sent in by the public.

Submit your letter

Link will open the external UK Government 'Letters to Loved Ones' website.

Explore some of the letters submitted so far and uncover the stories people have been sharing on the Letters to Loved Ones website. 

Activities and experiences

Letters To Loved Ones: Presented by Imperial War Museums & National Theatre

Ratings on board a Corvette reading letters from home which awaited their arrival in a British port.
7 May 2025
IWM North

Join us at IWM North on the eve of the VE Day’s anniversary, as we commemorate eighty years since the end of the Second World War in Europe.

Produced in partnership with the National Theatre and local schools, this event showcases the extraordinary experiences of ordinary people through letters sent to their loved ones during the Second World War. 

Find out more

The End of the Second World War

VE Day colour photograph crowds on Whitehall by cenotaph 1945 Imperial War Museums archive licensing
©IWM

This year, IWM will mark the eightieth anniversaries of three significant moments at the end of the War: the liberation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp by British forces, VE Day, and VJ Day.

We invite you to join us for a season of reflection, commemoration, and celebration.

Find out more

Reflections on the end of the Second World War

IWM's collections include first-hand accounts of those that lived, fought and died during the most devastating conflict in history.

Explore some of these stories below. 

Jubilant Crowds, St Peter Port
Second World War

Letters from evacuated children of the Second World War

The Hill family from Guernsey were separated by the Second World War. They found there was one way of hearing news about their children and other family members who had left Guernsey. IWM curator Simon Offord discusses how brief letters kept this family connected through their wartime separation.

Room 60 in the Cabinet War Rooms. © IWM MH 531.
© IWM MH 531
Second World War

Women of the Cabinet War Rooms: Peggy Cochrane

A series of handwritten letters donated to IWM by the family of one of the women of the War Rooms shines a light on life, love, and historic events, like VE Day, that the women of the War Rooms were witness to.

Letters from Edith Florence Cochrane, known as 'Peggy', offer a fascinating insight into her work life and her experiences of the VE Day celebrations in Whitehall, encapsulating the joyous excitement and atmosphere of the momentous day. 

VE Day colour photograph crowds on Whitehall by cenotaph 1945 Imperial War Museums archive licensing
©IWM
Second World War

Reflections on Victory: Memories of VE Day

In Britain the end of the Second World War in Europe was announced by the BBC in the evening of 7th May 1945. The 8th May was designated Victory in Europe – or VE – Day, and together with the following day was declared a national holiday. Discover letters and diaries from IWM’s archives written by people who recorded their experiences of this momentous historical event.