Achtung Militaria

We are a father and son team with a life long interest in the second World War. Principally this stems from the experiences shared by our family in Guernsey who were resident during the German occupation of the island and had a German officer billeted with them during this period.

In the sixties and seventies summer holidays were spent in the same house with what is believed to be a bullet hole in one of the walls. Apparently our family were told that although they could continue to live in the house it was in the firing line for one of the coastal batteries and they may need to vacate at any time. We have never been able to find out if this was the case but it does make it sound very exciting for young children.

My Grandpa was a commercial grower and so food was probably that bit easier than for city folk but I remember my mother saying how constantly hungry they were and how my Grandpa had once given her his slice of bread at dinner because she had complained of hunger. She also recounted only the second time she saw her mother reduced to tears was when returning home one day they saw German soldiers literally dragging the family dog away to eat as they were also going hungry. In the early years my Grandpa would go rabbit hunting on Lithou Island but this was later banned by the Germans.

After the war my Grandpa for a time rented space in one of the Batterie Mirus ammunition bunkers to keep his flower bulbs dark and cool and I think of visiting it with him every time I drive past it.

Our Achtung Collection began in 1991 with my Grandpa's identity card from the occupation and includes such things as a 1939 english edition of Mein Kampf sold by P R Rabey Bookseller and Stationer Guernsey, library books from the German officers reading library during the occupation and many items of literature and newspapers.

Over recent years vehicles have been added to the collection including a 1943 German Army Dispatch riders motorbike - a DKW NZ 350, a 1942 Jeep and a 1942 GMC ‘Deuce and a half’. We attended the 80th anniversaries of D-Day and the Liberation of Guernsey in our Jeep called Lizzie.

Over the years we have built a significant and growing collection of militaria specialising in German occupied Channel Islands and German items. We are regular visitors to the Islands and members of the Channel Islands Occupation Society. Over this time we have built up a network of trusted contacts in a market that can be synonymous with fake goods and poor reproductions, something that when we started collecting was much less prevalent.

Whilst we are primarily collectors as our collection has grown and our knowledge increased we have decided to offer items for sale and share our passion with other like minded individuals who also have an interest in ensuring we never forget.

You will find our stock in Cabinet 32 in The Guardroom.