The day the British entered Berlin

Have you seen this incredible footage?

As World War II came to a close and British and Russian forces descended on the streets of Berlin, the world was about to change forever.

The streets of Berlin had been completely ravaged by a war that had been fought on land, sea, and in the air.

German forces were forced to surrender as they succumbed to the pressure placed on them by the Allied Forces in what had been a long and terrible war.

The Battle of Berlin had been won largely due to the ferocity and ruthlessness of the Soviet Army's attacks on the Germans.

Soviet artillery had Berlin under siege for weeks, meaning that what was the last bastion of hope for the German Army became untenable.

Now, thanks to British Pathe, we can see some real-life footage of British forces marching into Berlin. The city can be seen in disarray, with destroyed buildings and smoke billowing from them.

Ruins of the Reichstag, the Brandenburg Gate and the Chancellory are on show. Soldiers uncover Hitler's bunker, the place where he and Eva Braun died after the German leader realised that his time was running out and the war had been lost.

German citizens can be seen clearing the mountains of debris that are all over the city following the fighting.

Allied soldiers can be seen mocking Hitler's speeches, as they re-enact his salutes from a mound close to where his body was found.

On the 6th of July, 1945, a Union Jack was raised by British soldiers in their area of Berlin, which can be seen in the footage.

Take a look below.

Before television, people came to movie theatres to watch the news. British Pathé was at the forefront of cinematic journalism, blending information with entertainment to popular effect.

Over the course of a century, it documented everything from major armed conflicts and seismic political crises to the curious hobbies and eccentric lives of ordinary people. If it happened, British Pathé filmed it.