WORLD War II veterans from across Northern Ireland gathered in Belfast yesterday to mark the 70th anniversary of the signing of the surrender document ending the conflict.
At a civic lunch at Belfast City Hall, the veterans - most who are now over 90 years old - told their stories of where they were on the day the document was signed.
With music from the 1940s playing and an exhibition of wartime documents and artefacts on display, the event was a way of remembering the formalisation of the end of the war on the deck of USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
Among those gathered was Morell Murphy from Bangor, who served in the Royal Navy in France.
Aboard the HMS Capel, the 92-year-old described how the ship was "torpedoed" on St Stephen's Day 1944 and how he was feared dead.
"I was standing up on the quarter-deck and with such an explosion up on the forward part of the ship I was blown clear of the ship with my clothes ripped and torn," he said.
"When I came to my senses I managed to get to a life raft and after a long two hours was picked up having hypothermia and taken to an American Hospital about three miles from Cherbourg and then discharged the next morning.
"With little clothes and little to eat I made my way to the harbour and managed to get onboard one of our sister ships and after a few days got to Belfast."
He also described how his parents received a telegram informing them he was "missing presumed killed on war service".
"When I arrived at my parents home, I was somewhat taken aback when my mother, in tears, opened the door," he said.
"My father was also in a mournful state. This was quickly changed to one of joy."
George Thompson (89) from Donaghdee was just 17 when he joined up to fight in World War Two, serving as a navy commando in Japan.
"I was on one of the islands near Japan when we heard of the end of the war. word came through on the wireless in morse code," he said.
"They had nothing to bring us home in as they had to get all the prisoners of war home first.
"They ended up using an old slinger and we made up a crew and it took us six weeks to get home."
Another war veteran at the event was Tom Long, who proudly wore his array of medals including the distinguished flying cross he received twice.
The 95-year-old former pilot from Jordanstown was squadron leader of bomber command serving in Egypt and India.
"I served the entire war, 87 RAF operations in total," he said.
"We were queuing up to go aboard an aeroplane to India when word came through," he said.
"By the time we reached India, the war was over."
Guy Spence, DUP deputy lord mayor of Belfast, said: "So to be able to pause, reflect and mark an occasion such as this in the company of those who know first hand and who played their part in our country's hour of need is indeed a privilege".
