Another great 'Fortress' book is #41 of the series on the Channel Islands. During WWII, these small islands off the coast of France were the only British home territory taken by the Germans. As a result, Hitler wanted to make sure it was never regained by the British so made it a showcase for his 'Fortress Europe'.

In reality, the islands held little strategic importance and the men and materials dumped into these small islands would have been much better used elsewhere. Yet, Hitler was obsessed by keeping these in his hands and they basically were until the last days of the war. By that time the large garrison had been cut off from supplies since the Allies had taken over the nearby coastal areas and both they and the remaining islanders were in a pitiful state.

Nevertheless, it was here that one can find nearly every type of permanent fortification used elsewhere by the Germans. Not only that, but more of these still survive today than anywhere else, a real boon for historians and those who are interested in fortifications that have been destroyed in other locales.

The book is divided into several sections:

• The WWII history of the island's occupation

• The anatomy of an 'impregnable fortress'

• The principles of defense

• The living site (where everyone lived)

• A finale and what the sites are like today

All of this is told in a competent and interesting way by author Charles Stephenson. I found it fascinating as the Channel Islands are not what one normally thinks of when thinking about WWII. There are a surprising number of period photos intermingled with those of restored and extant sites today. The illustrations of Chris Taylor are absolutely superb and along with his maps, give one a real sense of how intensive the fortifications really were. I'd have to say that these islands were the most heavily fortified piece of the Third Reich that was built.

A truly interesting book on a sidelight of the war. One I found engrossing and I'm sure you will as well.

August 2006

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