Guernsey Had Already Been Left Undefended - But 33 Civilians Were
About to Die
On the 28th of June 1940, tomato lorries stood around St Peter Port harbour,
connected with the island’s important export trade. Then German aircraft
appeared overhead.
By the 19th of June, Guernsey had been left without British military
defence. The British Government had decided several days earlier that the
Channel Islands would not be defended, and the withdrawal of military personnel
followed. Thousands of islanders then left, including many of Guernsey’s
schoolchildren.
German forces, however, were not yet aware that the islands had been
demilitarised.
From the air, the vehicles gathered around St Peter Port harbour were
mistaken for military transport. They were actually connected with Guernsey’s
important tomato trade, with produce being prepared for export.
Bombs struck the harbour area and fruit export sheds, while vehicles around
the White Rock were hit and set ablaze. Thirty-three civilians were killed and
another 67 were injured.
It is the timing that stays with me. The occupation had not even begun when
those 33 civilians lost their lives. There were no British troops waiting to
defend St Peter Port and no battle taking place around the harbour. The people
caught in the attack were civilians living through the uncertain days between
evacuation and occupation.
Only two days later, on the 30th of June, German officers arrived in
Guernsey to accept the island’s surrender. Once it was clear that Guernsey was
undefended, the occupation began without a battle for the island.
Guernsey was about to endure almost five years of occupation. But before the
first occupying troops had even arrived, 33 islanders had already lost their
lives.
Had you heard about the bombing of St Peter Port before?
