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The diaries kept by Violet Carey during the occupation of Guernsey show precisely how the German invasion affected the lifestyle of an upper middle class woman. Whilst never indulging in self-pity, she captures the misery caused by imprisonment and the lethargy and depression that many, including herself, suffered, a feeling intensified by fear of the unknown and the sense of isolation from England and from relatives and the rest of the war. In her remarkably down to earth style, the diarist provides an honest account of events and does not attempt to disguise incidents of scandal or misconduct on the part of her countrymen, or of humanity on the part of the Germans. More lighthearted entries illustrate the delight that she and many of her friends took in defying the invader simply by sticking to firmly held principles. The diaries depict both the hardships imposed upon the native population by the occupying forces and the ways in which Guernsey people reacted towards the enemy. What comes through most vividly is a valiant acceptance on the part of the islanders of their circumstances, together with optimism that all would turn out well. Hope is never entirely lost, even after life becomes simply a matter of survival. The diaries also indicate the pressures experienced by the island's leaders as the writer is related to Bailiff Victor Carey and husband is Jurat of the Royal Court. Following the island's liberation it was claimed that tales of their heroic endurance and indefatigable humour were covering up a deeper scandal. An introductory section examines the language and content of the diaries and shows how, as the occupation lengthened and shortages became more acute, the veneer of civilisation could be stripped away and the privileges afforded by wealth, education and class rendered irrelevant.
Captured by German forces shortly after Dunkirk, and not relinquished until May of 1945, nearly a year after the Normandy invasion, the British Channel Islands (Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, and Herm) were characterized during their occupation by severe deprivation and powerlessness. The Islanders, with few resources to stage an armed resistance, constructed a rhetorical resistance based upon the manipulation of discourse, construction of new symbols, and defiance of German restrictions on information. Though much of modern history has focused on the possibility that Islanders may have collaborated with the Germans, this eye-opening history turns to secret war diaries kept in Guernsey. A close reading of these private accounts, written at great risk to the diarists, allows those who actually experienced the Occupation to reclaim their voice and reveals new understandings of Island resistance. What emerges is a stirring account of the unquenchable spirit and deft improvisation of otherwise ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. Under the most dangerous of conditions, Guernsey civilians used imaginative methods in reacting to their position as a subjugated population, devising a covert resistance of nuance and sustainability. Violence, this book and the people of Guernsey demonstrate, is not at all the only means with which to confront evil.
On 30 April 1945, Adolf Hitler committed suicide. The following day, his propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels also killed himself and the crumbling Third Reich passed to Admiral Karl Dönitz. The Nazis' position seemed hopeless. Yet remarkably, the war in the rest of Europe went on for another ten days. After Hitler looks at these days as a narrative day-by-day countdown but also as a broader global history of a European war that had seen some of the most savage battles in history. Relations between the 'Big Three' - the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union - suddenly plunged to near breaking point. This book reveals that tumultuous story. After Hitler also looks at the wider canvas of the war and the terrible humanitarian catastrophe uncovered in Europe. It describes those who felt the joy of freedom, but also those who faced a highly uncertain future. As Red Army soldiers joined forces with their British and American allies, Stalin's East finally came face to face with Churchill's and Truman's West. After Hitler tells of their growing mistrust, but also of moments of remarkable goodwill and co-operation - the brief but poignant hope that these great nations could together fashion a new and safer future. This is a fascinating exploration of the brief but crucial period that shaped the emerging post-war world.
The Nazi occupation of Europe of World War Two is acknowledged as a defining juncture and an important identity-building experience throughout contemporary Europe. Resistance is what 'saves' European societies from an otherwise chequered record of collaboration on the part of their economic, political, cultural and religious elites. Opposition took pride of place as a legitimizing device in the post-war order and has since become an indelible part of the collective consciousness. Yet there is one exception to this trend among previously occupied territories: the British Channel Islands. Collective identity construction in the islands still relies on the notion of 'orderly and correct relations' with the Germans, while talk of 'resistance' earns raised eyebrows. The general attitude to the many witnesses of conscience who existed in the islands remains ambiguous. This book conversely and expertly argues that there was in fact resistance against the Germans in the Channel Islands and is the first text to fully explore the complex relationship that existed between the Germans and the people of the only part of the British Isles to experience occupation.
Archaeologies of Cultural Contact undertakes an exploration of cultural transfer, with a particular focus on the combination and modification of both material and behavioural attributes under conditions of contact. From globalization and displacement to cultural legitimization and identity politics, the modern world is characterised by, and articulated through, dynamics of contact and transfer. This book recognises that creolization, ethnogenesis, hybridity, and syncretism are analytical concepts and social processes, relevant not only to the postcolonial contexts of the twentieth century but also to wide-ranging instances where contact is made between cultural groups. Indeed, in representing the re-working of pre-existing cultural elements, they were crucial and ever-present features of the human past. Ranging in their analytical frame, scale, and geographical and temporal location, the chapters in this volume demonstrate the diverse understandings that can be gained from explorations into the material remains of past contact, exposing and overcoming various limitations of competing models of cultural change. They permit insights into not only cultural change and difference but also the processes of appropriation, resistance, redefinition, and incorporation. Together, the contributions articulate the perspectives that concern practices in relations to people, places, and things, and note how power dynamics mediate social interactions and sustain and constrain forms of cultural contact. This book will be of interest to researchers and students in archaeology as well those from cognate disciplines, particularly anthropology and history.
The Channel Islands were what could have happened to all of us: a test-run of German occupation. That was certainly Hitler’s plan. Once Britain had demilitarised the idyllic, unspoilt holiday islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark in 1940 their fate was sealed: in July the Germans invaded. The following five years in their history offer an intriguing, and often uncomfortable, virtual history of how Britain might have looked under Nazi rule – and how British people, more to the point, might have responded to it, whether through submission, courageous resistance or even collaboration. Barry Turner’s is the first history of the Occupation since Madeleine Bunting’s acclaimed but controversial A Model Occupation in 1995. It is an extremely readable and above all fair-minded account, rich in personal testimonies, showing the extreme privations suffered by the Channel Islanders, so utterly cut adrift by Britain – even if for defensible reasons of wartime expediency –, and above all the huge moral and civic task required of their pre-war governing class, several of whom could hardly have been expected to rise to the occasion. It also draws on newly released documents in the Public Record Office to reveal the messy confusion of Britain’s postwar attitude to the Channel Islands, a source of enduring resentment there.
'I absolutely loved this powerful and sweeping story. I was completely immersed in the lives of these characters, with them at every heart-pounding moment, and felt the tears running down my cheeks at the end' Reader review ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ In Nazi-occupied Guernsey, the wrong decision can destroy a life... Left profoundly deaf after an accident, Émile is no stranger to isolation - or heartbreak. Now, as Nazi planes loom over Guernsey, he senses life is about to change forever. Trapped in a tense, fearful marriage, Isabelle doesn't know what has become of Émile and the future she hoped for. But when she glimpses him from the window of the French House, their lives collide once more. Leutnant Schreiber is more comfortable wielding a paintbrush than a pistol. But he has little choice in the role he is forced to play in the occupying forces - or in his own forbidden desires. As their paths entwine, loyalties are blurred and dangerous secrets forged. But on an island under occupation, courage can have deadly consequences... Lyrical, moving and compelling, this is a novel about the price we pay for love and the courage of individuals in the face of war. Perfect for fans The Nightingale, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and All the Light We Cannot See. Everyone is falling in love with The French House: 'I cannot put into words how good this book is... A gripping and emotive storyline and well-developed characters that all brought something different to the page and that I have taken to my heart. I loved it' Reader review ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'A raw and honest love story, filled with a wealth of historical detail. The French House is a powerful depiction of the brutal intricacies of island relationships and loyalties in a time of war' Fiona Valpy 'Deeply involving . . . A fantastic debut by a gifted storyteller' Jill Mansell 'Quite simply wonderful. From the moment I started reading I knew I was unwrapping a big story. The writing is so gorgeous, so evocative and so wonderfully paced' Reader review ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'An absolutely stunning, beautifully original novel' Jenny Ashcroft 'A beautifully wrought exploration of love of all kinds. It's utterly gorgeous, convincingly written and completely captivating. Make sure you read it' My Weekly 'A very moving read... The underlying love story is moving as is the loyalty and bravery of the people. A brilliant read that I can highly recommend 5* doesn't seem enough' Reader review ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'A story of fraught secrets and tested loyalties . . . I found this beautifully told tale hard to put down' Anita Frank 'Heart-wrenching . . . A truly special novel' Louise Fein 'A fabulous, emotional love story set against the backdrop of the German Occupation of Guernsey during World War Two... I absolutely loved it!' Reader review ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Taking you through the year day by day, The Channel Islands Book of Days contains quirky, eccentric, amusing and important events and facts from different periods in the history of the islands. Ideal for dipping into, this addictive little book will keep you entertained and informed. Featuring hundreds of snippets of information gleaned from the vaults of the Channel Island's archives and covering the social, criminal, political, religious, industrial and sporting history of the region, it will delight residents and visitors alike.
Flexibility is usually seen as a virtue in today's world. Even the dictionary seems to dislike those who stick too hard to their own positions. The thesaurus links intransigence to a whole host of words signifying a distaste for loyalty to fixed positions: intractable, stubborn, Pharisaic, close-minded, and stiff-necked, to name a few. In this short and provocative book, constitutional law professor Richard H. Weisberg asks us to reexamine our collective cultural bias toward flexibility, open-mindedness, and compromise. He argues that flexibility has not fared well over the course of history. Indeed, emergencies both real and imagined have led people to betray their soundest traditions. Weisberg explores the rise of flexibility, which he traces not only to the Enlightenment but further back to early Christian reinterpretation of Jewish sacred texts. He illustrates his argument with historical examples from Vichy France and the occupation of the British Channel Islands during World War II as well as post-9/11 betrayals of sound American traditions against torture, eavesdropping, unlimited detention, and drone killings. Despite the damage wrought by Western society's incautious embrace of flexibility over the past two millennia, Weisberg does not make the case for unthinking rigidity. Rather, he argues that a willingness to embrace intransigence allows us to recognize that we have beliefs worth holding on to -- without compromise.
In the summer of 1940 the British Isles stood isolated and alone facing the might of a seemingly unstoppable German war machine. Never before had the United Kingdom been in a state of such uncertainty and possible peril. Fortunately the full breadth of the English Channel held back Hitler's armies, and his ambition. Not so for the Channel Islands which stand just a few miles from the French coast. To abandon British territory to the enemy was unthinkable, yet the defence of the Channel Islands was impracticable, if not impossible. It was decided, therefore, to evacuate as many as wished to leave. This is the story of the muddled evacuation, of homes, animals and families left behind, of the German bombing of the islands, the fear of those left behind, and of those first days of German Occupation, told by the Islanders themselves through memoirs and letters, the local newspapers, and the politicians who decided the fate of tens of thousands of men women and children.