May 2025

#VEDay80 – coming soon – 8 May 2025 - marks eight decades since the Second World War was brought to a close in Europe.

To help you learn more about this important chapter in world history and the role your family had, our military experts are here to help you.

In the May issue - out now - you can:

• Learn about the timeline of events and pivotal history surrounding VE Day
• Discover the records to help you trace your heroes’ war years
• Get top advice to plan your own battlefield research tour.

So, research, remember and at this VE Day anniversary, you can do your WW2 ancestors proud and tell their story.

In the May issue you can read the following excellent articles:

Victory in Europe (VE)
Military family historian and author Graham Bandy takes us back to this momentous chapter of Second World War history

Planning a WW2 battlefield research trip
Dr Dean Kirby shows how you can use military records to plan a trip to Europe’s Second World War battlefields

PLUS

Family history news

The world’s 2nd largest DNA testing company for family history files for bankruptcy. What does this mean for you?

Finding our ancestors in the death records
Family Tree Academy tutor David Annal guides us through the range of sources that may record an ancestor’s death

Twiglets
Still trying to piece together the mysterious Tonges, Gill Shaw makes discoveries that hint at more family tragedy

mtDNA: ‘ugly duckling’ of DNA testing
What can we learn with an mtDNA test? John Cleary explains with a case study comparison

Tracing schoolchildren
Fiona Gray-Davies introduces us to the variety of old school records available, and demonstrates the wealth of detail they can give us

Illegitimate children in the parish records
Researcher Wayne Shepheard looks at the tragic stories of illegitimate and foundling children to be found in the parish registers and historic newspaper reports

DNA: Do you really need to test a sibling?
Karen Evans is going to show you why the answer is a big fat yes!

Photo Corner
Jayne Shrimpton shares advice to help you date your unidentified pictures

Book review
A Family History Manual by Mike Gould

Ancestry Tree Tips
Practical tips on frequently asked questions for building your family tree on the Ancestry website

Thoughts on…

Last but not least Diane Lindsay shares memories of her family’s experiences 80 years ago.

And reader letters, questions and key family history dates for your diary!