It had no engine, so they converted an Austin 7 car engine to turn the prop shaft. Unfortunately he missed the last boat leaving Jersey before the Germans arrived and it was not until April 1941 that my mother, through the Red Cross, managed to find out what had happened to him.Īfter four and a half years living under occupation he decided to escape and with two friends, William Rumball and Edward (Snipe) Le Masurier, they planned an escape using a 13ft boat which hidden away in storage.
He married, in England, in March 1940, but in late June 1940 his mother died and he returned to Jersey for the funeral. My father was Jersey born but working in England when World War 2 broke out. My father, Max Edward Le Sueur, was one of those who managed, with two friends, to escape on 11th November 1944 - the same night as the former Bailiff, Sir Peter Crill escaped in another boat, and one night after my father’s cousin, Francis Le Sueur, escaped. 9 were drowned in the attempt, one was shot dead attempting to escape and 24 were captured and imprisoned. The escapees had to get past minefields along the sea shore, avoid detection by the frequent German patrols, and handle treacherous currents and often rough seas. There are 71 islanders documented as escaping to France following D day. After the Normandy landings, a group of islanders decided to risk escaping from what was a heavily guarded ”Island Fortress”.
But for some islanders, liberation came early. Every year, we celebrate the anniversary of the liberation of Jersey.