Towards the end of the Second World War, Monmouthshire man Vincent Leslie was one of the Allied troops who helped liberate the hell on Earth that was Bergen-Belsen. In 2010, his son kindly shared with Chronicle reporter Tim Butters, his father’s story. In honour of VE Day 80, we have chosen to reprint the article.

As the Second World War raged on, over two million American troops passed through the UK on their way to fight on the front. This ‘friendly invasion’ had a huge effect on small towns such as Abergavenny where many people got their first taste of Stateside cool, charm, and bluster. Chronicle reporter Tim Butters revisits an intriguing chapter in the town’s history.