Alderney

Alderney, most northerly of the Channel Islands. The island is about 8 sq km (3 sq mi) in area, and most of the population lives in the only urban centre, St Anne's. The island mostly comprises a plateau averaging about 60 m (200 ft) above sea level. Tourism and dairy farming are the main industries.

Remains have been found of Roman occupation as well as earlier, Bronze Age monuments. In the 11th century Alderney came under Norman control, and hence, after 1066 and the Norman Conquest, into the possession of the English Crown. It is now administered as a part of Guernsey. During World War II, German troops occupied the Channel Islands from June 1940 until May 1945; virtually all of the islanders were evacuated from Alderney during the war and many were only able to return in June 1946, after an extensive programme to repair and rebuild the damaged buildings had been completed. In the 1950s and early 1960s Alderney developed as an important centre for horticultural trade, exporting flowers and produce to markets across the British Isles. Population 2,130 (1986).