German Artillery unit on Jersey.

Discussion in 'Axis Units' started by Pete Keane, Aug 27, 2013.

  1. Pete Keane

    Pete Keane Senior Member

    I have been asked to help a friend find out about his dads wartime service.

    Normally I know where to start, but his dad was a German artilleryman, captured in Jersey in May 1945 when the island was liberated.

    Do we have anyone here with a knowledge of German units on Jersey?

    I am looking for 9 Battery, 319 Field Artillery Regiment.

    I have his grey service book, not a lot of info tbh, which is where the unit details come from.

    I have emailed the CIOS as the list some maps on their website.

    Cheers

    Pete
     
  2. steelers708

    steelers708 Junior Member

    That unit belonged to the 319th Infantry division which was used to occupy the Channel Islands, the CO at the time of surrender was Maj-Gen Rudolf Wulf. Due to Hitlers fear that the Allies would retake the Islands it had at one time a strength of 40,000 men making it the largest division in the German army in WWII. Prior to the Normandy landings some elements were moved back to the continent and fought in the Cotentin Peninsula battles of mid-1944.
     
  3. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Quite a bit of info & photos in ATB's 'The War In The Channel Islands Then & Now',
    319 arrived mid-July '41.
    Under Majorgeneral Erich Meuller.
    Spread over all three islands.
    Disgruntlement at proposal to make 319 a Festung Division.
    etc.
    But... my edition commits the sin of having no index.
     
  4. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

  5. Pete Keane

    Pete Keane Senior Member

    Thanks guys.

    We believed he was captured on Jersey, but his battery were in fact on Guernsey.

    I have made contact with a historian there who has some info, but I suspect its one of 'those' units who exist but records are scant.

    Thanks so far.

    Google translate doesnt show up anymore, so the page isnt entirely clear but looks to be formation details.

    Cheers

    Pete
     
  6. Pete Keane

    Pete Keane Senior Member

    Well, this has gone very well.

    Ive managed to identify his battery, and their location on guernsey, together with some general photos of the location taken by a German soldier.

    Apparently the main location has been quarried away, but there may still be remains of the site in adjoining scrubland.

    Next step will be a visit.

    My mate is also pleased to discover his old man never fired a gun in anger !

    Cheers

    Pete
     
  7. ducatim901

    ducatim901 Junior Member

    If you want more information about the battery or other information try to contact the guys (and girls?) of this site.
    http://www.festungguernsey.supanet.com/
    However i have not met them their site is a real piece of candy for the fortification enthousiast.
    And most battery's on the Channel Island were fortified in at least some way there could a chance the fortifications are still there.
    So maybe you can visit it and walk in the footsteps of your father!
    Greetings from a rainy Holland,
    Jack.
     
  8. Lindele

    Lindele formerly HA96

    Pete,

    I am also a member on the forum "Forum der Wehrmacht". Do you want me to pass on your questions in German to there members?

    Stefan.
     
  9. Ramiles

    Ramiles Researching 9th Lancers, 24th L and SRY

    Remembering today etc. and the liberation of the Channel Islands I came across this on the BBC:

    Rare Guernsey occupation footage uncovered in Jersey (BBC: 8 May 2015)
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-guernsey-32623971

    The video is about seven minutes long, which Mr Lewis said could make up a significant part of all available footage of the occupation due to restrictions on filming put in place by the German authorities.

    The 16mm films were discovered in Jersey amongst Mr Davies personal effects after his death. It is believed the footage was "liberated" from German soldiers in Guernsey. It depicts aspects of ordinary life and training for the German soldiers, including firing anti-aircraft guns and driving tanks.

    The film is being offered to the Imperial War Museum to be re-printed and fully restored before being put into the Jersey Archive.

    Channel Islands occupation
    • Only British soil to be occupied during the war
    • After the German offensive raced through France, the British government decided the islands were not strategically important and left them undefended
    • This was not communicated to the Germans who bombed St Peter Port Harbour and targets in neighbouring Jersey, killing 44 people
    • German troops landed in Guernsey by plane on 30 June 1940 - the start of five years of occupation
    • The islands were turned into an "impregnable fortress" on the express orders of Adolf Hitler
    • A fifth of all the defence works in the Atlantic Wall - a defensive line stretching from the Baltic to the Spanish Frontier - were built on the islands
    • The island's government continued under German rule, which some regarded as collaboration
    Rm.
     

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