At A Glance

31 December 1945 at a glance

Day of the week
31 December 1945 was a Monday.
Top Film of 1945
One of the highest-grossing films worldwide released in 1945 was The Bells of St. Mary's.
Star sign
The star sign for 31 December is Capricorn.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 31 December 1945 fell in the Year of the Rooster.
Birthstone
The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 31 December 1945 was Waning Crescent.

On this day: 31 December

  • 1942 USS Essex, first aircraft carrier of a 24-ship class, is commissioned.
  • 1942 World War II: The Royal Navy defeats the Kriegsmarine at the Battle of the Barents Sea. This leads to the resignation of Grand Admiral Erich Raeder a month later.
  • 1944 World War II: Operation Nordwind, the last major Wehrmacht offensive on the Western Front, begins.
  • 1946 President Harry S. Truman officially proclaims the end of hostilities in World War II.
  • 1951 Cold War: The Marshall Plan expires after distributing more than US$13.3 billion in foreign aid to rebuild Western Europe.

Famous people born on 31 December

  • Val Kilmer, American actor (1959–2025)
  • Sophia Laforteza, Filipino-American singer (born 2002)
  • Alex Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager (born 1941)
  • Charles Edward Stuart, Scottish claimant to the throne of England (1720–1788)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.

Events of 1945 in the United Kingdom

A selection from Wikipedia's '1945 in the United Kingdom'. Not a complete list.

  • 4 February – Prime Minister Winston Churchill attends the Yalta Conference (ends 11 February).
  • 8 May – eight days after the suicide of Adolf Hitler in Berlin and the collapse of Nazi rule in Europe, V-E Day is celebrated throughout the UK.
  • 18 May – Operation Unthinkable: Churchill secretly requests his military chiefs of staff to consider a plan for British, American and reactivated German forces to attack the Soviet Red Army on July 1 to preserve the independence of Poland. The operation is ruled militarily unfeasible.
More events of 1945 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in 1945

Prime Minister

Clement Attlee

Monarch

George VI

Pint of Beer

4p

Loaf of Bread

2p

Average House

£700

Weekly Wage

£5.00

Or

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Famous Faces Born in the 1940s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Tim Curry19 April 1946ActorView their day →Charles III14 November 1948King of the United KingdomView their day →Freddie Mercury5 September 1946Singer & songwriterView their day →Paul McCartney18 June 1942Musician & member of the BeatlesView their day →David Bowie8 January 1947Musician & actorView their day →John Lennon9 October 1940MusicianView their day →Jeffrey Archer15 April 1940Author & politicianView their day →George Harrison25 February 1943Musician & member of the BeatlesView their day →

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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