The changing face of the Channel Islands occupation
The changing face of the Channel Islands occupation
Much has been written about the Channel Islands’ Occupation. The official history was published in 1975, and a relatively honourable wartime record then seemed to be assured. However, the climate soon changed dramatically as the progressive release of previously classified files by the Public Record Office in the 1990s, acted as a catalyst for various wide-ranging criticisms – not only of the conduct of the Islands’ wartime officials, but also of the civil population. Uncomfortable questions were raised about levels of collaboration and scornful remarks made about the perceived lack of any recognisable resistance movement. The accusations were further encouraged by Madeline Bunting’s publication in 1995, and in spite of the resultant, spirited defence of their honour by various survivor-witnesses and Island Officials, associated arguments continue.
This study identifies and tracks for the first time what seem to be several distinctly different periods in the evolution of the public face of the Islands’ collective memories of their ordeal. The study also seeks to remedy the claim of many survivor-witnesses: that the true story of the Occupation has never been told. New evidence from the Moscow Archives provides startling information concerning records of deaths and burials amongst the Islands’ forced workers. Previously untapped sources are also used to establish the sequence of events which culminated in the murder of three Jewish women in Auschwitz, and directly challenges accusations of the willing complicity of Island officials in precipitating their deaths. Other contentious areas discussed include: levels of privation experienced within the Islands; numbers of illegitimate children born of German fathers; and the degree of general co-operation between the Island Authorities and their foreign masters.
The present study often either disputes, or refutes the wilder claims of writers who have sought to hi-jack the historiography of the period with a main eye for controversy and scandal.
University of Southampton
Knowles Smith, Hazel R
6bdff607-f1f0-44fb-8753-38d901d90472
2004
Knowles Smith, Hazel R
6bdff607-f1f0-44fb-8753-38d901d90472
Knowles Smith, Hazel R
(2004)
The changing face of the Channel Islands occupation.
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
Much has been written about the Channel Islands’ Occupation. The official history was published in 1975, and a relatively honourable wartime record then seemed to be assured. However, the climate soon changed dramatically as the progressive release of previously classified files by the Public Record Office in the 1990s, acted as a catalyst for various wide-ranging criticisms – not only of the conduct of the Islands’ wartime officials, but also of the civil population. Uncomfortable questions were raised about levels of collaboration and scornful remarks made about the perceived lack of any recognisable resistance movement. The accusations were further encouraged by Madeline Bunting’s publication in 1995, and in spite of the resultant, spirited defence of their honour by various survivor-witnesses and Island Officials, associated arguments continue.
This study identifies and tracks for the first time what seem to be several distinctly different periods in the evolution of the public face of the Islands’ collective memories of their ordeal. The study also seeks to remedy the claim of many survivor-witnesses: that the true story of the Occupation has never been told. New evidence from the Moscow Archives provides startling information concerning records of deaths and burials amongst the Islands’ forced workers. Previously untapped sources are also used to establish the sequence of events which culminated in the murder of three Jewish women in Auschwitz, and directly challenges accusations of the willing complicity of Island officials in precipitating their deaths. Other contentious areas discussed include: levels of privation experienced within the Islands; numbers of illegitimate children born of German fathers; and the degree of general co-operation between the Island Authorities and their foreign masters.
The present study often either disputes, or refutes the wilder claims of writers who have sought to hi-jack the historiography of the period with a main eye for controversy and scandal.
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Published date: 2004
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Local EPrints ID: 466053
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/466053
PURE UUID: 92fef313-6fab-421d-a9e4-f225935c77a6
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Date deposited: 05 Jul 2022 04:10
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 20:29
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Author:
Hazel R Knowles Smith
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