Guernsey Liberation May 8th 1945 - Large cloth map depicting the removal of the Germans from the Bailiwick of Guernsey Channel Islands - A goat kicking a frightened German Wehrmacht soldier with her legs, the letter V (Victory) and the text: "Liberation May 8th 1945". England, design: Bert Hill 1945.
The German occupation of the Channel Islands lasted for most of World War II, from June 30, 1940 until the islands' liberation on May 9, 1945. The Bailiwick of Jersey and the Bailiwick of Guernsey are two British Crown dependencies located in the Channel Islands near the coast of Normandy. The Channel Islands were the only part of the British Empire to be occupied by the Wehrmacht during the war.
The German authorities changed the islands' time zone from Greenwich Mean Time to Central European Time and also changed the direction of traffic from left-hand drive in Britain to right-hand drive in European countries. To keep the islands' economy running, occupation currency notes were issued. These notes were used by German military forces to pay for goods and services. The locals employed by the Germans were also paid in this currency. The Germans built many camps in Jersey, Guernsey and four camps in Alderney. The Nazi Todt Organization operated all the camps and used forced labor to build bunkers, gun emplacements, air raid shelters and concrete fortifications.
On the morning of May 9, 1945, the HMS Bulldog destroyer arrived at St Peter Port in Guernsey and the German forces surrendered unconditionally on board the ship at dawn, marking the liberation of the Channel Islands.
Size: 74x46 cm. Stains. Good condition.
