When was jersey liberated

However, Mr Walker said the surrender was peaceful: "When we arrived we were mobbed by ecstatic crowds, girls were asking for our autographs. One of those girls was called Sheila and they later married. Mr Walker was a Sapper in the Royal Engineers and was tasked with helping clear the 50, mines left in the island by the Germans. Barbara Chiang was 12 years old when Jersey was liberated on 9 May and decided to watch the Allied ships in the harbour.

He was standing with his rifle at attention and watching the ships. The German soldier had come to attention, taken his rifle off and put it on the wall, took his hat off, clicked his heels and then stood at ease. Many islanders hid radio sets to listen to BBC broadcasts, including Jersey resident Donald Dolbel who "hid three in the rafters and the wardrobe" and said the "sound of Big Ben and Churchill's voice" got him through the war. On Liberation Day he said he carried out an act of defiance and took down the swastika flag on the Pomme D'or Hotel.

He said: "I had a chat with some of the boys and decided to take the flag down, so I got thrown up, down comes the flag and I wiped my feet on it. Werner Rang was a medical officer serving with the German forces in Sark during the occupation. However, he stayed on the islands after meeting his future wife Phyllis.

He said: "As we say in Germany, love takes very peculiar ways. I made the decision not to go back to Germany, I had everything I needed in my future life with you [Phyllis] as my partner. His wife said: "I committed the biggest crime I could possibly commit to go and marrying an enemy, but I didn't think of it like that.

During the occupation slave labour camps were setup on Alderney and it is estimated more than people died there. In Eileen Sykes was evacuated from the island to Scotland and returned home at the age of She said: "Seeing the houses that were partially demolished was distressing.

Nazi resistance plaque unveiled. Concentration camp may be protected. Liberation bank holiday rejected. Around 6, of a population of 47, evacuated from Jersey. Conversely, virtually all residents of Alderney were evacuated and the occupying forces arrived to an almost uninhabited Island. In contrast, no Sark residents left the Island. One family lived in Herm Island and Lihou was abandoned. Mainly used for hunting and training exercises, these smaller Islands remained largely unoccupied by German forces.

While the liberation was achieved without armed conflict, sadly both British and German soldiers went on to lose their lives clearing mines. The effects of the occupation were far reaching. Food shortages had emaciated the inhabitants of the Islands and German fortifications dotted the landscape. Many evacuated children suffered an inability to re-connect with their families, which would linger throughout their lives.

Peter Port. Guernsey Museum Object No. GUEMG : The castle was used by German forces to guard the harbour. The Islands were freed by Liberation Force from 9 to 16 May While the liberation was achieved without armed conflict, sadly both British and German soldiers went on to lose their lives clearing mines. The effects of the occupation were far reaching. Food shortages had emaciated the inhabitants of the Islands and German fortifications scarred the landscape. Many evacuated children suffered an inability to re-connect with their families, which would linger throughout their lives.

Bombing Liberation Occupation Victory and defeat. About Media.