Clue to only Brits 'killed by Nazis on British soil' as archive unearthed

The killings were documented by Obergefreiter (Private) Kraus who was stationed astatine a forced labour campy connected Alderney, the astir bluish Channel Island, aft Germany invaded

A Nazi murdered 2 English prisoners connected British ungraded during the Second World War, recently unearthed documents person revealed.

The killings were documented by Obergefreiter (Private) Kraus who was stationed astatine a forced labour campy connected Alderney, the astir bluish Channel Island, aft Germany invaded. His account, precocious recovered successful the National Archives, says helium witnessed the murders by Sonderführer (Special Commander) Richter successful 1944.

Richter was person of the Alderney Outpost of Military Administration of Field Command. Kraus wrote: “Richter had beaten 2 Englishmen and had ordered them to beryllium fired upon.” He added that Richter aboriginal ordered his men to level their burial tract and region the crosses marking it.

Speaking successful a Sky History documentary astir the revelation, historiographer Dr Helen Fry says: “If this incidental is true, past it does correspond the lone known incidental of British dying astatine the hands of Nazis connected British soil.” But the killings revealed successful the show, Hitler’s British Island, are acold from the lone wartime atrocities the Germans committed connected Alderney.

The Nazis built 4 attraction camps connected the island, utilizing thousands of enslaved labourers, arsenic Alderney became portion of Hitler’s Atlantic Wall task – a concatenation of fortresses connected coastal positions. Alderney became location to much than 4,000 prisoners from 27 countries, hidden successful camps retired of show of the planetary community.

Among them was Spaniard Francisco Font, who recalled successful 1976: “If atrocities mean sidesplitting radical for nary crushed whatsoever, we saw immoderate of that. We saw a Russian who seemingly stole breadstuff from idiosyncratic else. Soon afterwards, helium was hanging.”

His lad Gary says: “The prisoners were emaciated... the Nazis were virtually moving them to death.” The Soviet Union led post-war investigations into warfare crimes connected the island.

But, preoccupied with repatriating their ain citizens, the Soviets did thing with the grounds of Nazi atrocities. So it is thought that Richter, and galore of his chap warfare criminals, were ne'er brought to justice.

Hitler’s British Island is connected Sky History astatine 9pm connected Tuesday, October 15.