Flag of Guernsey of England to give way to William. The new flag's design was to symbolise that the islanders were of Norman descent but loyal to the English (and later British) Crown. In 1985 Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of Normandy, granted a Royal Warrant for the flag to become the official flag of Guernsey. Unveiled on 15 February 1985, the flag was flown for the first time on Liberation Day on 9 May, the 40th anniversary of the Channel Islands' liberation from German occupation during the Second World War. Thereafter, the Guernsey flag was used in the Grosse Rocque ceremony, replacing the
German fortification of Guernsey Guernsey comprising: Commanding Officer of the German garrison, Lieutenant-General Graf von Schmettow, nephew of Gerd von Rundstedt commander of OB West (Commander-in-Chief West), ordered the writing of a 500-page book that described the fortifications in great detail, illustrated with maps, photographs and coloured drawings. A copy was destined for Hitler. The chapters from the original book have been reproduced in a set of ten paperbacks. "Festung Guernsey" (fortress Guernsey). Whether the Islands were impregnable was never tested, except for "Battery Bluecher" in Alderney. Alderney was considered too well-protected against aircraft attack so HMS Rodney was tasked with shelling it. "Rodney"