Evacuation of civilians from the Channel Islands in 1940 one suitcase. The Lieutenant Governor of Jersey and Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey left their islands on board ships on 21 June 1940, the day France surrendered. Ships urgently needed to evacuate soldiers from France in Operation Ariel, were diverted to help civilians in the Channel Islands. Marshal Philippe Pétain requested an armistice on 17 June and on 19 June nearby Cherbourg was captured by German forces. 25 ships took people from Guernsey on 21 June alone, ships like the SS "Viking", built 1905, served as HMS "Vindex" until 1918. Requisitioned in 1939 as a troopship, she transported 1,800 schoolchildren from
Parishes of Guernsey Parishes of Guernsey The Bailiwick of Guernsey includes the island of Guernsey and other islands such as Alderney, Sark, Herm, Jethou, Brecqhou, and Lihou. Each parish was established, probably in the 11th century, as a religious area, each having its parish church. Administratively each parish is now administered by an elected council known as a Douzaine. The island of Guernsey is divided into ten Parish (administrative division) (the Bailiwick of Guernsey also includes the parish of Saint Anne, Alderney and the parish of Saint Peter, Sark are not generally included in the enumeration of parishes as the names are not