Jersey Occupation records opened to the public
Records of political prisoners in Nazi-occupied Jersey have been revealed among collections opened to the public for the first time.
On New Year’s Day, Jersey Archive was able to officially open the Political Prisoners’ Register to the public under data-protection laws, because 75 years have passed.
The register was kept by HM Prison in St Helier from August 1940 to December 1944, and lists 506 individuals whose crimes were defined as political and therefore crimes against the Nazi authorities, who occupied Jersey and Guernsey from 30 June 1940 to 9 May 1945.
Linda Romeril, archives and collections director at Jersey Heritage, said: “In 2020, we celebrate 75 years since the island was liberated, and it is fitting that in this significant year the Political Prisoners’ Register from HM Prison is one of the documents that has been opened to the public.”
The register includes the name of the individual, and the date of their entrance to the prison. It also includes their offence, often just listed as “political”; their sentence; age; height; the colour of their hair; occupation; religion and birthplace; weight on entry and discharge; date of discharge; and any relevant remarks.
The crimes that individuals were convicted for include painting ‘V for Victory’ signs, spreading propaganda against the German forces, and listening to radios.
Many of those listed were sent to prison camps in France. In total, 22 islanders died in Nazi prison camps and concentration camps.
One of the most moving stories in the records is that of Louisa Gould, a shopkeeper who hid an escaped Russian slave labourer in her home for two years. When the deception was discovered, she was sent to Ravensbrück concentration camp, where she was killed in 1945.
Two of the youngest prisoners in the records are Beryl Wickings, aged 14, and Kathleen Duckworth, aged 15, who were imprisoned for a night for unspecified political offences.
The register is available to view at Jersey Archive on Clarence Road, St Helier ( jersey heritage.org/places-to-visit/jersey-archive).