ABSTRACT

A few years ago the author visited the German Underground Hospital. Dug by forced and slave labourers during the German Occupation, this labyrinthine tunnel structure was constructed for the purpose of looking after German soldiers injured in the event of an Allied invasion. After enquiries in four different Channel Islands, including among members of the Channel Islands Occupation Society and other similar groups who restore bunkers, the author soon realized that an acceptance of the continued spiritual presence of German soldiers and, sometimes, slave and forced labourers, was a relatively widespread phenomenon, experienced equally in Guernsey, Jersey, Sark and even Alderney. Their closeness to the coast of Normandy means that indigenous Channel Islanders are culturally and historically Norman first and British second. Concrete German fortifications can be seen as the focal point of activity for German soldiers, both during the Occupation and today, in mannequin form. The phenomenon of Occupation ghosts is an interesting one, and takes many forms.