Search the Site
| 1846 | Queen Victoria & Prince Albert visit the islands |
| 1855 | Victor Hugo arrives in Guernsey |
| 1864 | 656 ton tea clipper, Golden Spur launched at St Sampsons |
| 1879 | Guernsey's first steam railway gets underway |
| 1883 | Pierre Auguste Renoir spent a month’s vacation in Guernsey during the summer of 1883. During his stay he painted 15 painting, nearly all of which were of Moulin Huet Bay on the south coast. |
| 1892 | Electric tramway started in Guernsey |
| 1898 | First telephone service in Guernsey |
| 1910 | Export of Guernsey granite to UK peaked at 458,000 tons in 1910 |
| 1914 | Last witch trial in Guernsey |
| 1917 | Guernsey Light Infantry almost wiped out at Lys |
| 1920 | Guernsey and English currencies linked and Police force established. |
| 1921 | 1,737 tons of grapes & 4,000 tons of flowers exported from Guernsey. George V and Queen Mary visit the islands |
| 1925 | The British Government withdrew forces from Jersey saying that the island would be impossible to defend from air attack. Guernsey was not demilitiarised until 1939. |
| 1926 | The Guernsey currency was linked to the English Pound and the English language was adopted |
| 1928 | Over 188,000 tons of granite exported from Guernsey and New Jetty harbour extension completed |
| 1934 | Telephone link with England |
| 1935 | First land based air link to the UK from Guernsey |
| 1937 | Work starts on St Saviour's reservoir (completed 1947) |
| 1939 | Guernsey airport opens |
| 1940 | With the threat of German attack and the British Government upholding the 1925 decision, the Lieutenant Governors of both islands left for the UK and then began a mass exodus of residents. All 1100 people left Alderney and some 20,200 from Guernsey and Jersey. All 471 inhabitants of Sark under the leadership of Dame Sybil Hathaway opted to stay.The Luftwaffe began raids on 28th June unaware that the islands had been demilitarised and several people were killed. Guernsey was invaded on 30 June, Jersey and Alderney on 1st July and Sark on 3rd July |
| 1944 | The islands had become the most heavily fortified of the whole Atlantic wall with 484,000 cubic metres of concrete and 176,500 land mines. By contrast, the rest of the Atlantic Wall from Northern Germany to the Bay of Biscay had used 6,100,000 cubic metres. There were 37,000 troops stationed in the islands. By December, the islanders were near starvation and Red Cross food parcels were arranged and delivered by the ss Vega |
| 1945 | 9th May, the British forces land and free Guernsey and Jersey. Sark had to wait another two days |
| 1947 | Guernsey's reservoir completed |
| 1949 | Princess Elizabeth visits the islands |
| 1963 | The Beatles play in Guernsey |
| 1964 | The Rolling Stones visit Guernsey |
| 1967 | Guernsey ceases export of granite to UK after 150 years. Total exports amounted to 4,147,975 tons. Read more |