Free The Channel Islands At War by Peter King Page B

soldiers as a young girl of thirteen. One day, however, she and her sister took a pram and shovel to a sawmill at Piette to collect wood shavings and sawdust for fuel, and, 'a young German soldier came over to me and offered a lar ge loaf. He could not speak any English and started jabbering in German. I must have looked surprised, not knowing what he was on about until she heard the word "belt" on the end of his jabber, with him pointing up the stairs."
    Schoolchildren were particularly vulnerable to the German presence. Gifts of food and sweets were handed out, and children were taken for rides in cars and military vehicles. Even officers indulged in this fraternization. But the closest link was forged by the introduction of German into schools. Begun voluntarily in 1941, this was made compulsory in primary schools in April 1942, and throughout all educational institutions in January 1943. The Island education authority on Guernsey objected, pointing out that children already learned French, but their letter of complaint was forwarded without support by Carey, and the Germans had their way. In Sark, Hathaway did her best to support the policy. She appealed for help with books, and said she was prepared to hav e the children in the Seigneurie for their German lessons when there were difficulties over heating at the school. Although the schoolmistress, Miss Howard, could not teach the subject, a local German speaker obliged instead. The language created a bond between the children and the German soldiers, and its teaching was a way of influencing them. Molly Finigan described how a German officer visited her intermediate school in St Peter Port, to check progress and question the children. At Molly's school, two Germans attended her prize-giving and the children had to learn a German song for the occasion. Although an internal minute on compulsory German had suggested people would not like it this did not prove to be the case. By July 1943 one observer heard 'quite little kids talking it in the shops and lanes'.
    Five years is a long time in a child's life, living under conditions of censorship and propaganda. The children learnt German marching songs. Boys were soon practising and playing at soldiers, doing the German drills, the goosestep, and marching four abreast, bowing from the waist, heel-clicking, and glorying in it!
    Most realized that it was pointless to blame the children, but such behaviour was evidence of the extent to which fraternization by adults gave the Germans the opportunity to influence the young. Older boys were invited to drink with the Germans particularly on occasions like Hitler's birthday. In April 1944 a witness saw boys who had been drinking brandy with the Germans rolling home drunk and 'heiling' Hitler as they went. A few of those indoctrinated in this way proved to be informers when other youths discussed escape or resistance; for example, in November 1944 the Jersey Physical Culture Club was closed after discussion of escape had taken place because someone had informed on them.
    From the beginning, fostering good relations was part of official policy. At the highest level officials were chosen to present the acceptable face of fascism, and consolidate good relations with the Island ruling class. But the policy applied to ordin ary Islanders, backed by the Führe r himself. He drew a distinction between British subjects living on the Islands, and the 'native' Islanders whom he curiously saw as 'French' and therefore opposed to being members of the British Empire. He believed they could be won over to support the Reich, 'if our occupation troops play their cards properly'.
    The Operation Hardtack report in December 1943 included the sentence: 'the population generally is not hostile to the Germans". The voices of those like Sherwill and Carey who praised the Germans saying 'the conduct of the German soldiers is exemplary', and 'the German authorities, both military and civil, have treated us with