Occupation experts join forces to preserve WW2 history

Expert groups on the Nazi Occupation of Jersey and Guernsey during World War Two are collaborating to preserve the history of the period, a museum has announced.

The Channel Islands, which is marking its 81st Liberation Day on Saturday, were the only part of the British Isles to be occupied by Nazi Germany during the war.

Jersey War Tunnels (JWT) said groups in Jersey collaborating with the project included the Fortress Study Group​, Unseen Jersey, the Channel Islands Occupation Society and the Channel Island Military Museum.

JWT said working together would provide strength and would "lead to improved sites, improved interpretation [and] improved visitor experience" in St Lawrence.

In March, JWT announced plans for the creation of a new exhibition space within the main museum car park and an extension to the existing visitor centre building.

Lance Trevellyan, who acquired the war tunnels last year, said the plans and collaborations would help provide "a wider experience" for locals and tourists.

"The tunnels are unique, they are full of occupation history. The new museum will reflect a different type of artefact, things which don't sit well in the tunnels," he said.

JWT said it was also also working internationally with Maison de la Normandie et de la Manche, Dartmouth Museum and the American Battle Monuments Commission.

Trevellyan said currently the tunnels focused on occupation history and that it was expanding by "acquiring a wide range of wider WW2 exhibits".

JWT said it had purchased artefacts including D-day landing maps and a range of fabric-based items.

Alexander Fearn, JWT partnership lead, said the organisation was encouraging all World War Two and occupation groups to collaborate together.

He said the groups involved had so far discussed common objectives, potential collaborations and had also identified "where they can work together, where the groups can enhance the visitor experience for the sites".

He added: "There's a lot of experts on the island and we're very grateful that we can tap into some of that knowledge to actually help share and break down some of the barriers of your understanding.

"So research really is the hook and it's the expertise that allows the doors to open, the conversations to start and then for the collaboration to begin."

Trevellyan said within the new exhibits, there would be the retelling of the stories of the war and occupation using "more modern technologies, in a manner which the younger generation would probably expect to see now".

"We'll retell existing stories, but we will preserve the integrity of everything that we represent here," he said.

Fearn said it was important for the museum to "tell the story" in "engaging and different ways".

"That's an integral part of the ability to tell stories, the memories, the diaries that those people kept, these are very important jewels in the crown for us as a group of enthusiasts.

"We want those stories to remain to be told, but we feel that there's a new way to tell them, particularly with the younger generation that feel and want instant and all-immersive experiences."

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