The Victory Book

6R Anonymous. Dedicated to all the peoples of the world who kept the flames of freedom burning in mankind's darkest hour. London: Odhams Press Ltd, 1945. First Edition. SIGNED by Winston Churchill, Clementine Churchill and eleven others including Field Marshall Montgomery, Arthur “Bomber” Harris, Lord Mountbatten.

Note

The Victory Book was dedicated to all the peoples of the world who kept the flames of freedom burning in mankind's darkest hour. It was published in 1945 in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War, at a moment when Europe had just experienced Victory in Europe (VE) Day and the wider conflict was drawing to a close. Produced for a mass audience, it was designed to capture the story of the war and its triumphant conclusion from the Allied perspective. Rather than being a later, reflective history, it reflects the emotions and understanding of the time: relief, pride, mourning, and optimism for peace. The book typically recounts the major stages of the war, the defeat of Nazi Germany, and the celebrations that marked the end of years of conflict and sacrifice.

The book was published by Odhams Press in London, a well-known mass-market publisher, and printed in large numbers despite the lingering paper shortages of wartime Britain. It was usually a substantial hardback volume, often heavily illustrated with photographs, maps, and bold headlines, drawing on the visual style of wartime newspapers and magazines. The emphasis was on accessibility and impact rather than luxury: clear layouts, dramatic images, and concise text made it suitable for ordinary households. As a result, many copies survived, though condition varies, and it is still relatively common on the second-hand market today.

The Victory Book is important less as a scholarly history and more as a historical artifact. It preserves how victory was presented and understood in 1945, before later debates, revelations, and reinterpretations of the war. The tone, choice of images, and emphasis on unity and sacrifice reveal much about post-war British identity and public memory at the moment peace returned. For historians and collectors, it offers a snapshot of contemporary attitudes and propaganda, making it valuable as a cultural record of how the end of the Second World War was commemorated and explained to the public.

Many of the photographs throughout were produced by British government units such as the Army Film and Photographic Unit, the Royal Air Force photographic service, and the Ministry of Information, alongside material supplied by international news agencies like Associated Press and Keystone. These photographers were embedded with troops, flew on operations, or documented the home front, liberation of Europe, and victory celebrations. Their importance lies in the fact that they created the visual record of the war as it was officially seen and remembered at the time. Working under dangerous conditions and often strict censorship, they shaped how millions of civilians understood the conflict, its sacrifices, and its outcome. In The Victory Book, their images give the volume its emotional weight and authority, turning it from a simple narrative into a powerful contemporary testimony of wartime experience and Allied victory.

Description

Original red synthetic, upper cover decorated, lettered gilt to spine. Extremities rubbed and bumped and head and foot of spine worn. Front free endpaper has been torn out. An extordinary collection and a unique book.