GUERNSEY 2013

[Tiger1]

hello everyone,
I am sorry that i have not benn in touch with anyone for a while, this is partly due to a breakdown in comunication with the big island.

so guernsey 2013.
i understand that july is the prefered month so now i have reestablished connections things will be going ahead. when in july?? let me know. i will see when i can get a fixed date and post it asap.
for those who do not know i am a member of Guernsey Armouries, we are a small group who have restored a gun emplacement in Guernsey and over thw last 12 yrs have had open days for the public. part of the open day is to stage a simulated fireing of the 22cm gun.
pepperpot has been over twice now and would like to come again.
it will be best to to spend a week say wed to wed for ease of travel,
i can not promise anything but i will try to arrange accomidation for those that need it. the gun pit will sleep 10, first come blah blah blah!
transport while you are here......well if you come by boat you can bring your car. for them that fly there is avis car hire.
in the evenings i could arrange transport to go arround the island on a bunker tour this could be done on a thursday or friday.
there will also be a chance to display at castle cornet the commandants GHQ.
derss code..............no ss they were in alderney,
priority will be given to arttillery, next inf and we can allow 5 military police and 5 parras. lufft ground crew will be ok they did have a detachment at the head land manning ack ack.
weapons..............deacts must come with certs and make sure the numbers match our bobbies will take them.
no blank rounds/ammo.......we have enough here . blank firering weapons are treated the same as live over here so they have to be locked away in transit.
if you let me know what you intend bringing i can smooth things out at this end.
food, we have shops here so you wont go hungry.
night life .. we have some pubs dotted about the place.
if you have anyquestions, ask.
thats all for now.

[pepperpot]

ill be up for this, also gavin. ill also put this forward to the units i belong too, one of which has an agm this coming weekend at damyns hall MVT show.
i also know that there are a number of germans that are interested in doing this event next year, ill keep you informed. They are interested to come and see the location early next year. BTW they have been told NO SS, answer was no problems.
graham

[Reich Crispies]

Would love to attend, but July is just too busy for our group.
Mid August would have been perfect!

Good luck with the event and hope to attend sometime in the future.

[Oberleutnant Ulrich]

Very interested, what all will you guys do? What's the main idea of the event?

If anything early July for me, but first it would be nice to know more about the event please.

[Tiger1]

batterie dolmann is a group of 4 22cm feild guns on a coastal headland in guernsey.
after the war the guns were cut up for scrap and filled in.
in 1994 a small band of people where able to secure a leease on part of the headland and work began on restoring gun pit #3.
after 1000 lorry loads of back fill had been removed work could begin on the bunker itself, a grant was obtained and a local company was asked to build the gun carrage form the origional blueprints from the french MOD the cannon was a 1917 french feild gun, captured in 1939, sent to krupp, and was 1 of 15 sent to deffend guernsey in 1941/2.
D-Day 2001 the gun pit was open for the first time to the public.
the restoration was privately funded and carried out by voulenteers working 2-4 hrs per week when time and weather allowed.

the main function of the open days started out just showing the gun and bunker, then someone said that we could do with a german walking arround and it grew each year with not just one soldat but to a whole crew with simulated firing of the gun.

the ' event ' as it were now depicts ' a day in the life of ' a gun and its crew in guernsey during the occupation.
as people turn up they walk down the steps under ground into the crew quarters where if they are lucky they will see some of the crew off duty resting, cleaning kit etc, as they continue under ground there is the interpritation room that tells the story of the construction of the batterie and surrounding defences and how guernsey armouries were able to retrive the gun barrel from jersey and the restoration of the gun pit to how it looks to day.
then on the hour every hour the alarm is sounded and the gun crew run out to man the gun and the commands are givet to fire.
visiters are then free to wander arround the rest of the gun pit and talk to the crew etc.
on a few occasions the local MVT club turn up in thier green machines just to add a little somthing else to see.
and on the rare occasion we have a group from the UK come over and just in 2010 2 individuals poped over to see how things have been going on.
it is not an event like most of you are used to in the UK, like war and peace, its much smaller and low key.

we do however try to do something for the visiting groups to and go to see like the bunker tour, and since you were over pepperpot there are 8 more that have been opened up, or a different venue to display at.

if you have any spesific questions then please ask.

there is a short clip on youtube of the gun in action that a visiter has posted. and peppoerpot you are in this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISpablReDJY

[berlin1945]

i will attend as i go every year and Im just back from channel islands was staying in st martin so up for it as I know richard quite well.

[Tiger1]

If there ts enough interest then i may be able to arrange an event in august 2013 as well, but i can not promise.

[Hannibal Brooks]

If you want a Propagandakompanie photographer to come a long, let me know. As an ex-pat Guernseyman who played in the area around the battery as a kid, it will be good to see what it's like now - and my Mum is always saying I don't come and visit enough . Will be able to portray army or Luftwaffe.

Cheers!

[Botty]

Hopefully a 2 man PK team Mr Brooks?

[Hannibal Brooks]

Sure, why not - if you fancy it Mr. B . Just curious if there's any scope for uniformed activities on the south coast path, Tiger1 ? I used to do the walk from La Valette to Pleinmont quite a lot in my teens (including a lunch stop at the Petit Bot tea rooms) - a good day out with lots of fortifications to 'patrol' between. It's about a 13 miler with lots of steps! If the local authorities were happy, it might be a good side event for those with the time. Cheers!

[pepperpot]

i talking with a group from germany and the uk that will be doing a rekky in the new year, estimated number are approx 20 so far
graham