Phil (JWT Admin)
Jan 5, 20213 min
Good morning everyone
Supper busy with real-life stuff today, but have a read of what happened 80 years ago and who Pilot Amy Johnson was.
Have a great day!
thanks
Phil
Above is Batterie Derfflinger (KAN.-ZUG AR.319) which had 8cm FK30(t) field guns in open positions above St Aubin's bay. They had a rough range of 8.3 miles.
Today would be the 189th day of the Islands Occupation with 1,585 days remaining.
80 years ago today the residence (Beauvoir, St. Saviour's) of the German Field Commander, Major Demmler, burned to the ground by a fire that could be seen for miles. A German investigation into the fire concluded that it happened due to insufficient insulation of a heating pipe in the attic of the property. The major wrote to the Fire Brigade to express his very great appreciation of the services they provided.
New rationing order is released to the public through the evening post.
Pilot Amy Johnson was killed when the Airspeed Oxford trainer came down in the Thames Estuary in southern England. She was travelling from Prestwick via RAF Squires Gate to RAF Kidlington near Oxford. Amy Johnson CBE was a pioneering English pilot who was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia. She also set many long-distance records during the 1930s. She flew in the Second World War as a part of the Air Transport Auxiliary
The January book recommendation is "A Hero Among Millions."
A touching story by a son of a quiet hero/ survivor of World War II who happened to be the commander of Squadron 34 who operated in the Channel Island waters.
Exploring bunkers
Always get permission from the owner
Take a torch, a spare and one more for luck
Don't go alone & tell someone where you will be and for how long
You will get dirty as most are often full of rubbish and may have been used as a public toilet
Anything you find still belongs to the person that owns the property
Unexploded ordnance is still found in Jersey if you see or find anything that looks like ordnance please call the bomb disposal officer on 01534 612 61
Sources of Information
German Documents are housed at The National Archived in Washington or Archive in Kew UK
T-78 Roll 317: OKH Coastal and Channel Defenses Files 1940-44 -
T-78 Roll 318: OKH Coastal and Channel Defenses Files 1941-43
T-315 Roll 1639: 216th Security Division War Diary
(Kriegstagebuch), Belgium, France & Russia 1939-42
T-1022 Roll 2423: Various War Diaries (Kriegstagebucher), Channel Islands 1941-44
Atlantic Wall Coastal Battery Lists: Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, & France 1944-45
T-312 Roll 1559: 7th Army War Diary (Kriegstagebuch), France 1941-43 & T-312 Roll 1558
T-315 Roll 1643: 216th Security Division War Diary
(Kriegstagebuch), Belgium, France & Russia 1939-41
T-311 Roll 16: Army Group D War Diary (Kriegstagebuch), Western Front Aug-Nov 1944
Operation Green Arrow - Occupation of the Channel Islands MOD 584
Allied Technical Intelligence Reports 1942-45
German Preparations for Invasion of the United Kingdom 1941-42
B-833, 319th Infantry Division (1941-45)
German Seacoast Defenses, European Theatre - prepared by the Artillery Evaluation Board
BBC News & Archives
The Britannica
Jersey Occupied by Michael Ginns - ISBN 978-1-905095-29-2
Operation Nestegg Plans
Operation Hardtack Plans
Operation Basalt Plans
RAF Photos care of The National Collection of Aerial Photography
The National Archive of Newspapers
Bundesarchiv - Multiple Photos - and Files
A Map of slave labour camps. Kindly Provided by Emilio Pérez
Photo's and information provided by fans
Onsite visits & internet research
After the Battle Multiple Magazines
Jersey Heritage Archive
CIOS Archive & Publications (become a member here)
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
American Battle Monuments Commission
If we have used any photos or information which you believe to posted without permission, please contact us at info@jerseywartours.com and we will resolve asap.
Jersey War Tours is Registered with the Jersey Financial Services Commission as a Non-Profit Organisation - NPO1207
Jargon Help
Widerstandsnest (WN) = Resistance Nest (RN)
A small pocket of resistance, these would be made up of small groups of up to 10 men with light weapons. They would man Anti-tank weapons, an observation post or a field gun.
Stützpunkt St.P = Strongpoint (STP)
Next level up from an RN and consisted of several RN's. STP areas would have a combination of weapons and different branches of the military used. Examples of this can be found with Strongpoint Greve de Lecq and Strongpoint Corbiere
Einsatzstellung = Operational Position or Action Post
Smaller MG type position generally it was only maned during an alert
Feldwache = Field Watch
Early resistance nest
Jägerstand
Jäger Casemate was a special design and name for bunkers designed to hold a 10.5cm field gun