New trail in St Peter Port to commemorate Liberation Day
A new collection of displays has been designed to mark the 80th anniversary of Guernsey's Liberation Day.Nine exhibitions have been drawn together in the Liberation Trail around St Peter Port to mark the end of the island's Nazi occupation.The cultural and historical sites will feature personal stories, artefacts and photographs that illustrate the island's wartime experiences.The trail is the result of a collaboration between Guernsey Museum, Island Archives, the Guille-Allès Library, the Priaulx Library, Guernsey Arts, the Royal Court and local historian Marco Tersigni.
Organisers said people could start the trail at any display since each would stand alone.Some of the exhibitions were already open, with others opening in May and all would remain on display until 22 June, they said.At The Market Building there will be a timeline of German occupation made from newspaper extracts, photographs and historical documents.The Island Memories project in Guernsey Museum will be an oral archive featuring interviews with residents about their experiences during that point in time.Also in the museum will be an artistic interpretation about the evacuated islanders and an exploration of what happened to the German forces during Liberation.Island Archives will be home to an exhibition about the thousands of permits, licences and letters administrative clerks dealt with after the order for a photographic census of the island's population was made.
New freedom
The stories of those deported to internment camps in Europe will be shared at Guille-Allès Library, including the story of a librarian who was deported.At the Guernsey Visitor Information Centre there will be a display about how islanders have celebrated Liberation since the day itself in 1945 and what the port looked like then.A display in Priaulx Library will show Guernsey's journey from the German surrender of the Channel Island, through British rule until civil government was resumed.The ninth display at the Royal Court marks the German's handover of power and what islanders could do to enjoy their new freedom.Caitlyn Le Patourel of Island Archives said: "Eighty years on, I hope that these exhibitions will allow us to pause and reflect on the Liberation and freedom we have today, and what it meant to the people back then."
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