The Military History of Portland

 

by John Pennington 

General

I have had an interest in Portland ever since arriving in Dorset in Oct 1966 to join a RN ship’s flight at the Naval Air Station. I was also lodged in MQs in Weston for about 6 months, over the winter, not that great an experience, due to the weather on the top.

Lester, who was born and bred on Portland will hopefully keep me on the right track.

I found and still find Portland, a very interesting place in military history terms, somewhat of lesser importance than the naval and military cities of Plymouth and Portsmouth. Both these were the major concentrations of military infrastructure in the UK, both Naval and Army. Both had large dockyards and surrounding fortifications. Portland as an island was different, a miniature version.

I have made some references to non-military places, but they are important to Portland as a military base, such as prisons and railways.

The German Occupation of the Channel Islands

 by Des Derrien

On the 28^th of June, 1940, the Bailiff of Guernsey, Sir Ambrose Sherwill, was telephoned by the Home Office.  “Our assessment,” he was told, “Is that any attack on the Channel Islands is unlikely in the near future.” As he spoke, German aircraft appeared over St Peter Port, bombing the harbour and machine-gunning trucks waiting to load vegetables on ships for export to England. He held the phone to the window as the sound of machine guns could be heard. The war had reached the Channel Islands.