By: History.com Editors

1951

President Truman declares war with Germany is officially over

History.com Editors

Published: November 16, 2009

Last Updated: January 31, 2025

On October 24, 1951, President Harry Truman finally proclaims that the nation’s war with Germany, begun in 1941, is officially over. Fighting had ended in the spring of 1945.

Most Americans assumed that the war with Germany had ended with the cessation of hostilities six years earlier. In fact, a treaty with Germany had not been signed. Complicating the treaty process was the status of territory within what was formerly the German state. Following the Second World War, the major Western powers (U.S., Britain and France) and the Soviets agreed to divide the country, including the capital city of Berlin, into democratic and communist-controlled sectors. Both East and West Berlin ended up within the Soviet-controlled territory of East Germany and the capital became the epicenter of increasing tensions between the West and Soviet Russia. Each side claimed the other had violated post-war treaties regarding their respective spheres of influence in post-war Europe.

World War II Radios Got the Message Out

In this video clip of History's Mail Call, host R. Lee Ermey, along with Andy Miller of the Military Radio Collectors Club, takes a look at what kind of radios they used in World War II including the handie-talkie, walkie-talkie and TBX8 radio set.

The conflict over Berlin came to a head in June 1948 when Stalin ordered a blockade of the city. Truman did not want to abandon Berlin to the Soviets and ordered an airlift to supply the western sectors with food and fuel. The treaty process was put on hold until the Western powers could agree on what to do about Berlin. A Soviet atomic weapons test on October 3, 1951, increased the tension.

In his proclamation on this day, Truman stated that it had always been America’s hope to create a treaty of peace with the government of a united and free Germany, but that Soviet policy had “made it impossible.”

How Germany Was Divided After World War II

A temporary solution to organize Germany into four occupation zones led to a divided nation under the Cold War.

How Germany Was Divided After World War II

By: Dave Roos

Timeline

Also on This Day in History

Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on October 24th

1648

Thirty Years’ War ends

The Treaty of Westphalia is signed, ending the Thirty Years' War and radically shifting the balance of power in Europe.

1861

Western Union completes the first transcontinental telegraph line

On October 24, 1861, workers of the Western Union Telegraph Company link the eastern and western telegraph networks of the nation at Salt Lake City, Utah, completing a transcontinental line that for the first time allows instantaneous communication between Washington, D.C., and San Francisco. Stephen J. Field, chief justice of California, sent the first transcontinental telegram to President Abraham Lincoln, predicting that the new communication link would help ensure the loyalty of the western states to the Union during the Civil War.

1901

First barrel ride down Niagara Falls

On October 24, 1901, a 63-year-old schoolteacher named Annie Edson Taylor becomes the first person to successfully take the plunge over Niagara Falls in a barrel.

Horseshoe Falls

1916

French troops celebrate recapture of Fort Douaumont at Verdun

On October 24, 1916, French troops rejoice after recapturing Fort Douaumont, the preeminent fortress guarding the city of Verdun, under siege by the German army since the previous February.

1917

Battle of Caporetto

On October 24, 1917, the Battle of Caporetto (also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, or the Battle of Karfreit) begins. A combined German and Austro-Hungarian force scored one of the most crushing victories of World War I, decimating the Italian line along the northern stretch of the Isonzo River.

1921

Unknown Soldier is selected

On October 24, 1921, in the French town of Chalons-sur-Marne, an American sergeant selects the body of the first “Unknown Soldier” to be honored among the approximately 77,000 United States servicemen killed on the Western Front during World War I.

A helmet hangs on a makeshift wooden cross on the dirt grave of an unknown Canadian soldier, World War I.

1931

George Washington Bridge is dedicated

On October 24, 1931, eight months ahead of schedule, New York governor Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicates the George Washington Bridge over the Hudson River. The 4,760-foot–long suspension bridge, the longest in the world at the time, connected Fort Lee, New Jersey with Washington Heights in New York City. “This will be a highly successful enterprise,” FDR told the assembled crowd at the ceremony. “The great prosperity of the Holland Tunnel and the financial success of other bridges recently opened in this region have proven that not even the hardest times can lessen the tremendous volume of trade and traffic in the greatest of port districts.”

1945

The United Nations is born

On October 24, 1945, the United Nations Charter, which was adopted and signed on June 26, 1945, is now effective and ready to be enforced.

1962

James Brown records breakthrough “Live at the Apollo” album

On October 24, 1962, soul singer James Brown gives an electrifying performance on Black America’s most famous stage—a performance recorded and later released as Live at the Apollo (1963). It was the first breakthrough album of Brown’s career—a major step toward his eventual crossover and conquest of the mainstream pop music world.

1969

Richard Burton buys Elizabeth Taylor a diamond

Movie star Richard Burton dazzles wife Elizabeth Taylor—and their legions of fans—when he buys her a 69-carat Cartier diamond ring costing $1.5 million. It was just another chapter in a tempestuous marriage that began on the Ides of March and continued thereafter in the public eye.

1973

President Nixon vetoes War Powers Resolution

President Nixon vetoes the War Powers Resolution, which would limit presidential power to commit armed forces abroad without Congressional approval.

1997

Marv Albert faces sentencing in sexual assault case

Circuit Court Judge Benjamin Kendrick announces that he will dismiss the sexual assault case filed against Marv Albert by 42-year-old Vanessa Perhach if the sportscaster agrees to get counseling and stays out of trouble for a year. Albert faced up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.

2003

The Concorde makes its final commercial flight

The supersonic Concorde jet makes its last commercial passenger flight, traveling at twice the speed of sound from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to London’s Heathrow Airport on October 24, 2003. The British Airways jet carried 100 passengers, including actress Joan Collins, model Christie Brinkley and an Ohio couple who reportedly paid $60,000 on eBay for two tickets (a roundtrip trans-Atlantic fare typically cost about $9,000). A large crowd of spectators greeted the plane’s arrival in London, which coincided with two other final Concorde flights from Edinburgh and the Bay of Biscay.

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Citation Information

Article title
President Truman declares war with Germany is officially over
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 24, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
January 31, 2025
Original Published Date
November 16, 2009

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