You need this. A weekend of history talks, including by your humble scribe. Hosted by @BBCHistoryMag & @warner_hotels , all the while staying in a country house. A few tickets are left for Nidd Hall (N Yorks), over 19-22 June.

Berlin, 2 May 1945: photographer Yevgeny Khaldei (1917-97) snaps soldiers flying a Soviet flag from the Reichstag. This carefully planned image, which came to represent the defeat of Nazi Germany, used a giant banner that Khaldei prepared beforehand from 3 red tablecloths. Other soldiers had already raised smaller flags over 30 April-1 May from lower windows, but few were photographed & none well. Inspired by Joe Rosenthal's 23 Feb 45 flag-raising image on Iwo Jima, the Kremlin directed Khaldei to compose, take & edit an appropriate image with his Leica. Sgt Abdulkhakim Ismailov's looted 2nd watch was edited out & background smoke added. Accessible, it is now the site of the skyline restaurant. (3rd image is Khaldei atop the Brandenberg Gate).

Here is Yevgeny Khaldei's 2 May 1945 sequence of images atop the Berlin Reichstag. Note the various different compositions, & that only one has the smoke in the background, which was later added by Khaldei in Moscow.