Walking on Jersey. Paddy Dillon

during the next 500 million years are conjectural, and based on geological happenings elsewhere in Britain and France. Rocks from this span of time are absent, though they are known from the surrounding sea bed. On dry land, sediments date only from the past couple of million years; as this was a time of ice ages, indications are that the climate varied from sub-tropical to sub-arctic. Sea levels fluctuated so that both raised beaches and sunken forests and peat bogs can be discerned. For much of the time, the Channel Islands were part of one landmass with Britain and France, but rising sea levels formed the English Channel and, one by one, each of the Channel Islands. Guernsey became an island around 14,000 years ago while Jersey became an island around 7000 years ago.

      Jersey’s geology can be studied while walking around its rugged cliff coastline

      Exhibits relating to the geology of Jersey can be studied at the Jersey Museum and La Hougue Bie. The British Geological Survey publishes detailed geological maps of the Channel Islands and there are a number of publications dealing with the subject.

Turbulent history

      Little is known of the customs and traditions of nomadic Palaeolithic Man, but he hunted mammoth and woolly rhinoceros when Jersey was still part of the European mainland 200,000 years ago. Neolithic and Bronze Age people made many magnificent monuments which are dotted around the Channel Islands. Henges, mounds, tombs, and mysterious menhirs were raised by peoples whose origins are unclear and whose language is unknown. What is certain is that they had a reverence for their dead and were obviously living in well-ordered communities able to turn their hands to the construction of such mighty structures. The Romans knew of these islands, though whether they wholly colonised them or simply had an occupying presence and trading links is a matter of debate.

      The Channel Islands Occupation Society preserves some military sites as visitor attractions

      St Helier lived on a rocky islet, protecting Jersey by the power of prayer, until beheaded by pirates in the year 555. The basic parish structure of the Channel Islands, and most of the parish churches, date from around this period. No doubt the position of the Channel Islands made them a favourite spot for plundering by all and sundry on the open sea. The Norsemen were regular raiders in the 9th century, and by the 10th century they were well established in the territory of Normandy. It was from Normandy that Duke William I, ‘The Longsword’, claimed the islands as his own in the year 933, and they have been part of the Duchy of Normandy ever since.

      St Ouen’s Church may stand on the site of a church founded in the 6th century (Walk 6)

      Duke William II, ‘The Conqueror’, defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. When King John lost Normandy to France in 1204, the Channel Islands remained loyal and were granted special privileges and a measure of self-government that continues to this day. However, the islands were repeatedly attacked, invaded and partially occupied by French forces throughout the Hundred Years War. During the most turbulent times of strife, the Pope himself intervened and decreed in 1483 that the Channel Islands should be neutral in those conflicts. The islanders were able to turn the situation to their advantage, trading with both sides! Church control passed from the French Diocese of Coutances to the English Diocese of Winchester in 1568.

      During the English Civil War in the 17th century, the islands were divided against themselves, with Jersey for the Crown and Guernsey for Parliament. The French invaded the islands for the last time in 1781; stout defensive structures were raised against any further threats, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars, and in fact well into the 19th century. Queen Victoria visited the Channel Islands three times to inspect military developments.

      During the First World War the Channel Islands escaped virtually unscathed, though the local militia forces were disbanded, and many of those who joined the regular army were slaughtered elsewhere in Europe. In the Second World War, after the fall of France to the German army, the Channel Islands were declared indefensible and were demilitarised. Many islanders evacuated to England, particularly from Alderney, but others stayed behind and suffered for five years under the German Occupation. Massive fortifications made the Channel Islands the most heavily defended part of Hitler’s Atlantic Wall.

      Gerry built! One of several prominent concrete structures built during the German Occupation

      There were only token raids and reconnaissances by British forces, and the Channel Islands were completely by-passed during the D-Day landings in nearby Normandy. VE Day in Europe was 8th May 1945, but the Channel Islands weren’t liberated until 9th May, as it was unclear whether the German garrison would surrender without a fight. The Channel Islands Occupation Society, www.ciosjersey.org.uk, publishes a number of books and journals about the war years, including an annual review. Various military structures from the Occupation have been preserved as visitor attractions.

      The modern development of the Channel Islands has been in two directions. As a holiday destination it caters for a multitude of tastes, with an emphasis on sun, sea, fun, family, good food and the outdoors. In the financial services sector the low rate of taxation has brought in billions of pounds of investment and attracted a population of millionaires. The Channel Islands retain some quirky laws and customs, enjoy a low crime rate, issue their own currency and postage stamps and enjoy a unique history and heritage that is well interpreted at a number of interesting visitor sites.

      The best place to start enquiring into history is the Jersey Museum, The Weighbridge, St Helier, JE2 3NG, tel. [phone]. This is also the place to enquire about La Société Jersiaise, tel. [phone], societe-jersiaise.org/, and Jersey Heritage, www.jerseyheritage.org. The ‘Jersey Pass’ can be purchased, allowing entry to all the sites managed by Jersey Heritage. There are numerous publications available examining all aspects of Channel Islands history. Detail is often intense, and any historical building or site mentioned in this guidebook probably has one or more books dedicated entirely to it.

      Another organisation involved with heritage matters is the National Trust for Jersey, The Elms, La Chève Rue, St Mary, JE3 3EN, tel. [phone], www.nationaltrust.je. The Trust owns land and properties around Jersey, several of which are visited on walks throughout this guidebook. At the last count the trust owned 16 properties, cared for a number of others, and owned 1.6% of the land in Jersey, making it the biggest landowner after the States of Jersey. The National Trust for Jersey has reciprocal agreements with the National Trust of Guernsey, National Trust of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and National Trust for Scotland, allowing members free entry to properties that normally levy a charge.

Government

      The Channel Islands are a quirky little archipelago, with startling divisions among themselves. They are neither colonies nor dependencies. They are not part of the United Kingdom or the European Union. They have been described as ‘Peculiars of the Crown’ meaning that they are practically the property of the Crown, and they owe their allegiance to the Crown, and not to Parliament.

      Jersey is not part of the United Kingdom, but owes its allegiance to the British Crown

      There are actually two self-governing Bailiwicks whose law-making processes are quite separate from those of the United Kingdom’s Parliament. Furthermore, the Bailiwick of Jersey’s affairs are quite separate from the Bailiwick of Guernsey. A thorough investigation of Channel Islands government is an absorbing study, which anyone with political inclinations might like to investigate while walking around the islands. Check