179. How did the Second World War officially end in Europe?

Answer options

1. with Adolf Hitler’s death
2. through Germany’s unconditional surrender
3. with the withdrawal of German forces from the occupied territories
4. through a revolution in Germany

Explanation

The war in Europe officially ended with Germany’s unconditional military surrender, signed at Reims on 7 May 1945 and effective 8 May 1945 (23:01 CET), with a second signing at Berlin‑Karlshorst on the night of 8/9 May. The surrender was a military instrument, not a peace treaty; the Allies assumed supreme governmental authority in the Berlin Declaration of 5 June 1945. Under international law, the German state did not cease to exist; the Federal Constitutional Court later held that the German Reich continued to exist, while the Federal Republic is identical with it as a subject of international law (e.g., 1952, 1973). A final settlement, effectively replacing a formal peace treaty, came only with the Two Plus Four Treaty in 1990.