During World War II the Channel Islands were the only area of British soil to be invaded and occupied by German forces. 

The Germans held the Islands from 1940 to 1945 and left an indelible mark on their history and landscape.  

In 1941 Adolf Hitler decided that the Channel Islands were to become Germany's Gibralter, an impregnible fortress that would never be surrendered.  Work began at once on an underground fortress on Jersey which would protect an entire army division from attack by sea or air. 

Thousands of tons of rock was excavated and dumped in a nearby valley, while six thousand tonnes of concrete were pumped in to line the tunnels.  This great feat of engineering was created by slave and forced labourers, marched here from all parts of German occupied Europe. 

Close to the entrance a plaque reads, 'Under these conditions men of many nations laboured to construct this hospital.  Those who survived will never forget; those who did not will never be forgotten.' 

The amazing barracks complex was never finished and in 1944 was converted into a bomb-proof casulty receiving station when Allied invasion seemed in imminent.  However, the invasion near took place and the occupying forces surrendered without force on 9 May 1945, a day after the rest of Europe. 

Since the 1960s the complex has been carefully restored and now houses 'Captive Island', the definitive museum of the German Occupation of Jersey. 

Some rooms have been reconstructed as wards and treatment rooms.  On display are irreplaceable wartime archive films and one of the largest collections of Occupation memorabilia. 

Beside the War Tunnels is an area of anti-aircraft gun positions, barbed-wire entanglements, crawl trenches and personnel shelters.  Untouched since the Liberation this historic area (with well-defined and obligatory footpaths) is a haven for trees, plants and wildlife.  

Outside the museum is the evocative Garden of Reflection.  In this key area of peace and tranquility, visitors can reflect on the devasting consequences of  war.