ALDERNEY - The Homecoming and the 1950s
The islanders returned to their beloved island of Alderney on the 15th December 1945 after being evacuated four years earlier due to the threat of invasion by Germany. During those four years the island was turned into a concrete fortress by the occupying forces.

Much has been written elsewhere detailing the destruction of houses and of the labour camps and also one concentration camp; this gallery in images concentrates on the Homecoming and the immediate few years after.

If anyone can help with images for the website, the author would be please to hear from them.
The Herivels Look out Over the Little Town of St Anne's
The Herivels Look out Over the Little Town of St Anne's

The Herivels Look out Over the Little Town of St Anne's, Now Silent and Deserted.

There is an eerie desolation in the streets, a desolation not of ruin but of emptiness - empty houses, empty shops, empty churches, with here and there a German prisoner standing by.

but soon there will be bustle and movement, for over a thousand islanders are moving into their homes.

copy: PICTURE POST

Location: Alderney

Photographer: Francis Reiss - Picture Post - January 1946

Buy this print online:

 
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The Herivels Look out Over the Little Town of St Anne's

The Herivels Look out Over the Little Town of St Anne's, Now Silent and Deserted.

There is an eerie desolation in the streets, a desolation not of ruin but of emptiness - empty houses, empty shops, empty churches, with here and there a German prisoner standing by.

but soon there will be bustle and movement, for over a thousand islanders are moving into their homes.

copy: PICTURE POST

Location: Alderney

Photographer: Francis Reiss - Picture Post - January 1946

Buy this print online:

 
Item added to cart