20th September 1945
Jersey man gives evidence at Belsen concentration camp trial
Jerseyman Harold le Druillenec was the only British survivor of the Belsen concentration camp, to which he was sent towards the end of the Second World War. He had already spent time in several other camps over the previous year. He had been arrested, along with 17 members of his family, for helping his sister Louisa Gould to shelter an escaped Russian officer.
Following the war, he gave testimony at the trial of those who had run the camp, describing an intolerable regime in which cannibalism was rampant and where he was tasked with placing bodies in mass graves.
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Other events that occured in September
Writer Philippe Langlois is born
- Philippe Langlois was a qualified doctor and a medical officer in the Royal Jersey Militia, as well as an author and poet.
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The BBC broadcasts first edition of Spotlight
- The launch of Spotlight, the BBC’s local news bulletin for the Channel Islands, was more of a name change than anything else.
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The first grower of Jersey Royal potatoes dies
- Jersey owes a great debt to Hugh de la Haye, who first grew Jersey Royal potatoes at Bushy Farm, Mont Cochon.
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Jersey is struck by a hurricane
- Jersey and its neighbouring islands were struck by violent storms, causing widespread damage, wrecking ships and resulting in some deaths.
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