liberation

Liberation is the freeing of a place from occupying forces. The tanks leave, and the flags come out.

It belongs above all to the Second World War, and the liberation of Paris and of the camps are among the most photographed events of the century. The word carries celebration in a way that capture or occupation never could. There is a broader political sense, since a liberation movement seeks freedom for a people, and women's liberation named a whole moment in social history.