1940 Deutsche Truppen auf der Kanal-Inseln

August 1940. The islands were the only part of the British Commonwealth occupied by Germany during the Second World War. The German occupation of 194045 was harsh: over 2,000 Islanders were deported by the Germans, Jews sent to concentration camps; partisan resistance and retribution; accusations of collaboration; and slave labour (primarily Russians and eastern Europeans) brought to the islands to build fortifications, with 65,718 landmines laid in Jersey alone.

The British government demilitarised the islands in June 1940 and the Lieutenant-Governors were withdrawn on 21 June, leaving the insular administrations to continue government as best they could under impending military occupation.

Before German troops landed 30 June-4 July 1940, evacuation took place (many young men had already left to join the Allied forces): 6,600 left Jersey (out of 50,000); 17,000 left Guernsey (out of 42,000); the population of Sark remained overwhelmingly; but in Alderney, the entire population, save for six persons, left. In Alderney, the occupying Germans built four concentration camps in which over 700 people died (out of a total inmate population of about 6,000). Due to the destruction of documents, it is impossible to state how many forced workers died in the other islands. These were the only Nazi concentration camps on British soil.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• German
• Troops
• Wehrmacht
• World
• War
• II
• Occupation
• Channel
• Islands
• Kanal
• Inseln
• Guernsey
• Jersey
• Sark
• 1940

[TheStgmp44]

some nice footage of Festung Jersey.

[haslingdenlad]

I don't undertsand the german language post as there are no references here to the islands being English. The Channel Islands have technically and constityutionally a British Crown Dependency since 1259! Personally I consider them as British as my native Lancashire!

[maxiboy666]

Filthy German troops on our Islands. Oh well, we kicked their arses back to Germany in the end.

[douglaswmsmith]

Gleich vom Anfang an falsch - Deutsche Truppen haben nie (im Einsatz) 'englischen' Boden betreten - in Jersey haette es hoechstens 'britischen' Boden heissen koennen. Jersey ist NIE ein Teil Englands gewesen. Zu Grossbritanien gehoert Jersey auch nicht -sondern zu den britischen Inseln ('British Isles'), also ist Jersey nur mittelbar britischer Boden.

[notaire2]

Sehr selten und informativ. Danke!

[SSreichsfuhrer1]

an excelent document, ¿what is the date of this Wochenschau? i am very interested in that chapter