Framedlight

Of all the fortifications we had seen on Guernsey that day, the ones at Pleinmont were the most interesting. We drove there straight from Saumarez but it was nearly 5.00pm by the time we arrived and, being October, the light was going. But as it drew towards sunset the grey skies made way for some lovely light and a rainbow. Fort Pleinmont is on the Torteval peninsula at the extreme south east of the island. Here there are various structures built by the Germans when they occupied Guernsey in World War II. Building Hitler's wall on Guernsey took thousands of men drafted in as slave labour, mainly from France, and an enormous amount of concrete. The number of German soldiers brought onto the island was also extreme, one soldier for every two members of the native population. We first went into an underground bunker which had a base for a 22cm cannon. It was quite eerie going into these confined spaces. Next we had a look at a command post that has a scenic v...

Still working on a military theme, after lunch we drove down to Vazon Bay, a little south of Cobo Bay. On the headland between the two bays lies Fort Hommet, yet another German military outpost. Fort Hommet is built around an old brick fort originating from 1680 which has a Martello Tower, constructed in 1804, and other Victorian additions. The Germans regarded the whole promontory as a stronghold and included casemates, bunkers and a minefield to protect the headland. Following this visit we made our way a little further south to see Fort Saumarez. The last two photographs are double exposures.

The very northern part of Guernsey, around L'Ancresse and Pembroke Bays was very well fortified by the Germans during World War II. The bay was also protected by a long anti-tank wall which is still there. There has been a fort standing on the headland since 1680 but Fort le Marchant was repurposed by the Nazi's and is now used as a firing range, although you can still look inside if the range is not being used. Some of the fortifications inland were quite overgrown and a little difficult to access. We went back to the hotel on Cobo Bay for lunch, first stopping to take some photographs of some abandoned greenhouses. After lunch we drove down to Fort Hommet, another German fortification on Vazon Bay, just south of Cobo Bay. The Germans had again constructed this fort on the site of a previous Napoleonic one and had built a railway between Vazon and St Peter Port in order to ship the vast amounts of concrete ne...