JERSEY (ISLE-of), an island, the largest of a cluster of
islands in the English channel, dependent on the British
crown, ten leagues (S.S.W.) from Cape de la Hogue, and
7 (S. W.) from the Isle of Guernsey, containing 28,600
inhabitants. This island, the Caesarea of Antoninus, is
supposed to retain its ancient name in the modern
appellation into which it has
been corrupted. That it was occupied by the Romans,
at least as a military station, seems more than probable,
from the name of part of Gorey, or Mount Orgueil, castle,
being still called " Le Fort de C&ar," from the vestiges
of a camp at Dilament, an immense rampart of
earth near Rosel, and from numerous Roman coins
having been found in various parts of the island. After
the conquest of the western part of Gaul by the
Franks, Jersey and the neighbouring islands became
part of the province of Neustria, and, about the middle
of the sixth century, were annexed, by Childebert, King
of France, to the see of Dol in Armonica (Brittany),
of which St. Sampson, who had emigrated from Britain,
was at that time bishop. St. Magliore, his successor
in that see, anxious to convert the inhabitants
to the Christian faith, left the administration of his
diocese to his disciple, St. Budoc, and retiring to Sark,
founded there a small monastery; from that island he
proceeded to Jersey, where, by his powerful exhortations
and the sanctity of his life, he induced the inhabitants
to renounce idolatry, and receive the rites of
baptism. The progress of Christianity was greatly
accelerated by the exertions of Praetextatus, Archbishop
of Rouen, who, being banished to Jersey in 577,
lived there in exile for ten years. In the ninth ce
tury, a band of Normans having made a descent upon
the island, committed great depredations, and murdered
St. Helier, a venerable anchoret, whose cell is
still to be seen on a rock near Elizabeth castle. In
912, these islands, as part of the ancient province of
Neustria, were, by treaty, ceded to Rollo, by Charles IV.,
King of France, on the establishment of the duchy of
Normandy; and the Normans having been, about that
time, converted to Christianity, one of the principal
nobles, a descendant of one of the party who put St.
Helier to death, founded an abbey here, and dedicated
it to that martyr, from which the principal town in the
island derives its name.
From this period nothing important occurs in the
history of these islands till the time of the Conquest;
when, as forming part of the duchy of Normandy, they
became dependent on the British crown. In the reign
of John, the French having obtained possession of
Normandy, attempted to reduce these islands also, but
were vigorously repulsed by the inhabitants; and King
John, having visited them in person, bestowed \ario.
us privileges, franchises, and immunities, which have
formed the basis of all subsequent charters to the present
time. On their separation from Normandy, such
landowners as had possessions in both were compelled
to make their election, and, confining themselves to
those on which they preferred to reside, were obliged to
abandon the other: the greater number became subjects
of that prince in whose territory they had the
larger possessions; but the Seigneur de St. Ouen, of
the name and family of Carteret, remaining fixed fa>
his allegiance to the crown of England, abandoned his
lordship of Carteret in Normandy, and retained possession
of his smaller estates in Jersey. In the reign of
Edward I., that monarch incorporated the inhabitants,
and gave them a common seal. In that of Henry III.,
Philip DAubigny, Governor of Jersey, intercepted a
fleet conveying French troops to England; and in this
and the following reigns the French made frequent
attempts upon the island, in which they were inva«
riably defeated. During the reign of Edward II., the
judges of assize, who were sent over from England
for the administration of justice, flagrantly invaded
the most valuable privileges of the inhabitants, and
violated their acknowledged rights; but these abuses
were amply redressed by Edward III., <on petition
from the two principal islands. In this reign, thfe
French again attempting to take possession of Jersey,
were vigorously repulsed before Le Chasteau df
Gouray, which, in commemoration of that event, has
been since distinguished by the name of Mont Orgueil
castle; they were more successful in their .attack
upon Guernsey, of which they gained possession, and
continued masters for three years; on the arrival of a
fleet from England, the inhabitants of Jersey raised a
contribution of six thousand four hundred marks to
assist the English in recovering that island. On a sub-
sequent invasion, under the conduct of the celebrated
Bertrand de Guesclin, Constable of France, the castle
of Mont Orgueil was saved from falling into the hands
of the French, by an English fleet, which, being sent to
its relief, compelled the assailants to raise the siege. In
the reign of Henry IV., the French renewed their attempts
on the island, and ravaged the open country,
but could make no impression on the castle.
During the war between the houses of York and
Lancaster, Margaret of Anjou having gone over to
France, in order to raise troops for the assistance of
Henry, entered into a treaty with Pierre de Braze", Count
de Maulevrier et de la Screrme, one of the courtiers of
Louis XI., who agreed to raise a body of troops, and
make a descent upon England in favour of her party, on
Condition of having these islands assigned over to him
and his heirs, to hold independently of the English
crown; and secret orders were sent to the governor of
Mont Orgueil, who was an adherent of the Lancastrian
party, to deliver up that fortress to Surdeval, a Norman,
Vvhom the count had sent to take possession of the
island. The count himself soon afterwards arrived, but
in all his public acts styling himself Pierre de Braze", &c.,
Lord of the islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, and
others adjoining, and adding to his titles that of
Counsellor and Chamberlain of our Sovereign Lord the
King of France, the inhabitants were so exasperated, that
all his endeavours to reconcile them to his government
were unavailing; and, influenced by Philip de Carteret,
Seigneur de St. Ouen, ancestor of the present Lord
Carteret, who held the castle of Grosnez, as a place of
defence against the French and Normans, they set his
power at defiance, and refused submission to his authority.
In the reign of Edward IV.; Sir Richard Harleston,
Vice-Admiral of England, arriving off Guernsey with a
squadron, the seigneur applied to him for assistance,
and having previously concerted their plan, the castle of
Mont Orgueil was so closely invested both by sea and
land, that, after a spirited but unavailing defence, the
garrison surrendered at discretion, and the vice-admiral
was invested with the government of the island, which
he held for sixteen years. The king, to reward the
islanders for their conduct upon this occasion, granted
them a new charter, in which their loyalty was highly
extolled, and the phrase "in perpetuam rei memoriam,"
expressive of the royal approbation, has been inserted in
all subsequent charters. The arbitrary conduct of Matthew
Baker, who succeeded Sir Richard, induced
Henry VII. (who, while Earl of Richmond, had here
found an asylum, on his passage to the continent) to
issue an order, restraining any governor from appointing
a dean, or bailiff, in the island, and from interfering
either in the civil or ecclesiastical courts; and
ordered all differences, in which the governor might be
interested, to be submitted to the king in council. He
"also issued ordinances, comprised in thirty-three articles,
for the government of the island, which continued
in force till superseded by a regular code of laws,
in 1771. The harsh measures of Sir Hugh Vaughan,
governor in the reign of Henry VIII., who was protected
in his tyranny by Cardinal Wolsey, induced
Heller de Carteret, bailiff of theisland, to seek redress
by a personal application to the king; and in
the court of Star chamber, in presence of the cardinal,
he so powerfully pleaded the cause of his countrymen,
that he obtained the removal of the governor, who had
for more than thirty years abused his authority. Jersey
suffered not only from the arbitrary tyranny of its governors
and their deputies for many years, but also
from the continual broils that were kept up between its
seigneurs under the feudal system, which prevailed
in the island till a very late period. After frequent
attempts on the part of the kings of England to put an
end to these internal dissensions, by which the peace of
the island was continually disturbed, they were finally
suppressed by a comminatory bull, obtained from the
pope by the influence of Henry VII. In the reign of
Edward VI., the French having taken Sark, and made
an unsuccessful attack upon Guernsey, anchored in
Boulay bay, and disembarked their troops, with a view
to effect the reduction of this island; but they were
promptly driven back to their vessels, with the loss of a
thousand men. To guard more effectually against these
external attacks, an additional fortress was erected, in
the reign of Elizabeth, in honour of whom it was named
Elizabeth Castle. Two commissioners were sent by the
queen to remedy some abuses in the island, which,
notwithstanding the continued anxiety of successive
sovereigns, was distracted by the unequal distribution
of justice, and the oppression of the wealthy and the
powerful, in whose favour sentence was almost invariably
pronounced, by commissioners of their own appointment.
To destroy this undue influence, the queen issued an
order pin council, directing all appeals from the royal
court of Jersey to be brought before the privy council,
and not before any other tribunal. During the latter
period of this reign, Sir Walter Raleigh was appointed
governor; and in that of James I., the canons and constitutions
forming the basis of the ecclesiastical polity
of Jersey (which are noticed in that department of its
history) were framed.
In the reign of Charles I., the islanders repulsed
another attack of the French; and, to secure them still
more effectually from the repeated assaults to which
they were exposed, that monarch, at his own charge,
added the lower ward to Elizabeth Castle, and repaired
and strengthened the other fortifications. On the
breaking out of the parliamentary war, Captain George
de Carteret, comptroller of the navy, having refused the
appointment of vice-admiral under the parliament, retired
with his family to Jersey, and openly declaring for
the king, equipped a fleet of ten light vessels, to intercept
merchantmen trading under the parliamentary
banners, which, from its activity and spirit, soon spread
alarm around the coast. Prince Charles, eldest son of
the king, being no longer able to maintain a contest
with the parliamentarians in the West of England, repaired
to this island, attended by many of the nobility,
among whom was Sir Edward Hyde, afterwards Earl
of Clarendon, who, with several of the prince's retinue,
remained for a considerable time after the prince had
departed, on a visit to his mother, at that time in France.
A plan was organised here for delivering the king from
his confinement in Hurst castle; but, from some cause
not distinctly known, it was rendered abortive. After the
decapitation of Charles, his son, being obliged to leave
Holland, where he had been residing, landed with a numerous
retinue in Jersey, and was joyfully received and
proclaimed king. Soon after his arrival, Sir George de
Carteret assembled the states, in order to raise a sum of
money for the service of his majesty, when about £633
sterling was contributed for that purpose. The king,
after staying for several months, retired to Scotland:
during his stay, an additional outwork was erected for
the defence of Elizabeth Castle, which he named Charles
Fort. The parliament, enraged that an asylum had
been afforded to the king, and indignant at the numerous
captures made by the squadron of Sir George
de Carteret, resolved on the reduction of these islands,
and for that purpose despatched a fleet, under the command
of Admiral Blake, together with a formidable
land force, under Major General Haines. After fruitless
attempts, for three days, to disembark on the western
shore of this island, in which they were driven back by
Sir George and the natives, the admiral, dividing his
fleet into squadrons, and favoured by a dark night,
effected a landing in St. Ouen's bay. On the day following,
a violent gale arose, by which one of the largest
of the vessels in the parliamentary squadron was driven
on the rocks, where it went to pieces, and every soul on
board perished. The inhabitants, unable to meet in the
field the overwhelming force which was sent against them,
and determined on resistance to the last extremity, retreated
into their fortresses, and for some time held out
against the assailants; but the enemy having made
themselves masters of the fort of St. Aubin, and of Mont
Orgueil castle, the fortifications of which, after the erection
of Elizabeth Castle, had been neglected, and were not
in a condition to withstand a siege, they were ultimately
obliged to yield. Sir George, having retired into Elizabeth
Castle, with a garrison of three hundred and fifty
men, continued to defend that post with heroic valoxir;
but having applied in vain to the king, who was then in
France, for assistance, and finding all hopes of relief vain,
he capitulated upon honourable terms, and went over to
join the king. The parliamentarians having thus become
victors, gave free quarter to their troops,amounting to
five thousand men, who committed dreadful havoc, defacing
the churches, which they converted into barracks
and stables.. On the Restoration, Charles II., after conferring
upon Sir George de Carteret many marks of distinction,
presented the corporation with a silver gilt
mace, with the appropriate motto " Tali hand omnes dignantur
honore," which is borne before the bailiff and
magistrates, upon all public occasions of importance.
The circumstances which led to the abdication of
James II., the troubles which arose in Ireland in consequence
of that event, and the subsequent rebellions and
commotions which were excited in favour of the exiled
family, had no influence on the tranquillity of Jersey,
which, from the revolution of 1688 to the reign of
George III., enjoyed uninterrupted peace. In 1779, the
Prince of Nassau, commanding a force of six thousand
men, appeared with a fleet off St. Ouen's bay, destined
for the reduction of the island, which at that time was
ill provided with regular troops; but the enemy, on attempting
to disembark, was repulsed with loss by the
regiment then stationed here, assisted by the militia,
and supported by artillery, who, after a forced march,
arrived in time to prevent their landing. Frustrated in
this attempt, the prince sailed to St. Brelade's bay, where
he hoped to effect a landing; but there finding adequate
preparations made to oppose him, the design was for
that time abandoned. After much recrimination among
the officers of the fleet, another effort was resolved
upon; but before it could be carried into execution,
the squadron appointed to cover the attack was met
by a British naval force, under Sir James Wallace, and
almost annihilated. The last attempt made by the
French to obtain possession of the island was in 1781.
On the night of the 25th of December, 1780, when no
British ship was on the station, a fire was observed
between Rozel and La Coupe, which continued to burn
for about eight minutes, and was immediately answered
by a similar fire on the French coast, which blazed
for about a quarter of an hour. On the following
morning, the Baron de Rullicoxirt embarked with two
thousand French troops, thinking to sxirprise the inhabitants
while engaged in celebrating their Christmas
festivities, and carry the island by a coup de main.
The tempestuous state of the weather was unfavourable
to his enterprise; several of his vessels were dispersed,
and he was obliged to put back for shelter into the
small rocky island of Chauzey, and postpone the attempt,
after losing several of his ships and men. On
the 5th of January, however, he again put to sea with
the remainder of his ships, and with the rest of his
troops, which had decreased to one thousand two
hundred men, and towards midnight arrived off the
island. . At day-break, on the 6th, the market-place
of St. Helier, which now forms the royal square, was
filled with their troops, which, under the command of
the Baron de Rullicourt, had effected a landing, during
the night, at a small point near La Rocque, in the parish
of St. Clement. Several of their vessels having
been dispersed by the severity of the weather, and the
difficulties experienced in landing having greatly diminished
their numbers, scarcely more than seven hundred
reached the shore; but these proceeding unobserved,
secured a small battery of four guns, in which
they left a company for the protection of their ships
and, in case of necessity, to cover their retreat, established
themselves in the town of St. Helier, and took
prisoner Major Corbet, the lieutenant-governor. Having
induced him to make a promise of surrendering the
island, they extorted from him a signature of capitulation,
by representing tbat they had landed four thousand
troops, and made prisoners the guard which protected
the coasts near La Rocque; and compelled him
to sign an order to the commanding officers of the
several stations to remain in their quarters; but this
order was disregarded, and the troops stationed in various
parts, in defiance of repeated injunctions to the
contrary, continued to advance upon the town. Part
of the French troops left St. Helier to take possession
of Elizabeth Castle, the garrison of which they summoned
to surrender, according to the terms of the extorted
capitulation; but the commander answering
only by a discharge of artillery, they prudently retired
into the town, and concentrated their forces, in
order to sustain a conflict, which now appeared inevitable.
On the capture of the lieutenant-governor, the
command of the troops devolved on Major Pierson, to
whom Rullicourt despatched a messenger, exhorting
him to accede to the capitulation, in order to prevent
the effusion of blood. Major Pierson had much difficulty
in restraining the ardour of the militia, till the
various troops had reached their respective destinations,
which was not fully accomplished before an impetuous
attack was made on theenemy, who, hopeless of escape,
fought with desperate obstinacy; the major was killed
at the commencement of the action, but his troops, by
no means discouraged, maintained the conflict with determined
valour, and obtained a triumphant victory.
Rullicourt, and the greater number of his men, were
slain, a small number escaped to their ships, and the
remainder surrendered; only about eighty of the militia
and regulars were killed, or wounded, in this action.
Since that period, Jersey, though subject to many
alarms, has not been again assaulted. From the year
1779 to 1793, it was distracted by internal dissensions,
the most inveterate animosity being cherished by the
parties into which the islanders were unhappily divided;
and notwithstanding these feuds have subsided, their
effects may still be traced in the acrimony displayed in
more recent disputes. In 1814, the Duke de Berri,
nephew of Louis XVIII. of France, took up his abode
in the island, where he remained till the peace with
that country, which was joyfully proclaimed, on the
12th of the following July, at St. Helier's and at St.
Aubin's.
The island of Jersey is about ten miles in length
from south-east to north-west, of an average breadth
of five miles (in no part exceeding seven), and about
sixty miles in circumference, measuring the indentations
of the bays. It is greatly elevated on the north side,
and shelves considerably towards the south-east; the
cliffs on the northern coast are in general about one
hundred feet in height, though in some places they rise
to more than double that elevation; the whole of this
side is indented with small coves and bays, and a precipitous
ridge of granitic rocks stretches for a considerable
distance from east to west: the remainder of
it consists of rocks of sienite, of various elevation, exhibiting
broad and perpendicular masses towards the
sea, every where intersected by perpendicular veins of
granite to the north and south, and, where they have
been exposed to the action of the waves, forming numerous
caverns of remarkable appearance. The rocks
of Mont Mado, in the centre of this coast, are particularly
abundant in felspar of a flesh colour, and susceptible
of a high polish. The west, east, and south
sides of the island arc formed of shelving shores, with
wide sand bays, separated by lofty rocks, with which
they are thickly studded. About four leagues to the
south are the Minquais, a dangerous group of rugged
rocks of considerable elevation, reaching more than ten
miles from east to west; the passage between them and
the island is always hazardous, even at high water, as the
flood tide sets in upon them with a direct current.  A
little further to the south-east is an extended chain of
rocks, the largest forming the barren island of Chausez,
or Choze\ The bay of St. Ouen, a large flat tract of .sand,
occupies the principal part of the western side of the
island, and is bounded by an extensive ridge of sienitic
rocks, terminating in the Corbieres, a cluster which
stems the current of the Atlantic tide, and is rendered
extremely dangerous, from the number of sunken
reefs lying near it to the north-west. From this point
to the bay of St. Aubin, by which the south side of
the island is deeply indented in the centre, and to the
westward of .which is the smaller bay of St. Brelade, is
a succession of points of the same sienitic rocks, their
sides every where covered with schistus; the castle of
St. Aubin, to the west of the bay, and Elizabeth Castle,
to the east of it, are built on rocks of similar composition.
On the eastern side of the island is Mont Orgueil,
where the rocks of granite become continuous,
and on one of the most prominent of which the castle
of that name is built. From Mont Orgueil the coast,
with the exception only of a flat shore in the centre of
St. Catherine's bay, is an uninterrupted cliff, extending
to Rosel harbour, at the northern extremity of the
island. At this point a rock of very singular appearance
commences, which seems to occupy the whole of
Boulay bay; it is an argillaceous breccia, consisting
of large and small masses of schistus, cemented by a
basis of the same nature.
The sea around Jersey varies more in depth than
round any of the other islands, from the greater number
of banks and shoals by which the coast is environed.
The tides are not influenced by others in the channel;
they flow, in a direction east-south-east, to the bay of
Mont St. Michel, where the declivity of the shore is so
inconsiderable, that the bay is filled in the course of two
hours; they then take a northerly direction along the
Norman coast, and having encircled the islands in the
course of twelve, hours, return, after a course of from
twelve to sixteen miles, to the spot where they began to
flow. These tides rise from forty to forty-five feet round
the islands, and at St. Male's their height exceeds fifty
feet. It is high water at Jersey at six oclock every new
and full moon; but as the flood commences by. rushing
full against the rocks on the northern shore, it is
high water half an hour earlier on that and on the
western shores, than on the southern and eastern. The
currents, in consequence of being frequently intersected,
succeed each other with extreme rapidity, and are in
perpetual motion. The principal bays are those of St.
Ouen, St. Aubin, Grouville, St. Catherine, and Boulay. St.
Ouen's is the most capacious, and the stupendous rocks of
LEtac, which form its northern extremity, are exposed
to all the violence of the great wave that breaks upon
them from the Atlantic. St. Aubin's opens exactly to
the south, and is equally admirable for its extent and
for the variety and beauty of its scenery. Grouville
bay stretches from La Rocque to the venerable castle
of Mont Orgueil, and is inferior only in extent to those
already described; the picturesque harbour of Gorey
adds greatly to its beauty. St. Catherine's, though
comparatively small, is rich in every variety of picturesque
and pleasing scenery; a few farm-houses, half
concealed by woods extending to the edge of the
beach, are scattered round its shores, and the points
forming its boundaries are composed of lofty and
irregular rocks. Boulay bay is surrounded by rocks
of bolder elevation than are found in any other part of
the island, but they are destitute of wood, and of every
kind of vegetation. The stupendous barriers which
form the northern coast contrast finely with the interior
of the island, which is richly clothed with wood, and
studded with cottages, built of stone and thatched, with
orchards attached, and inhabited by the proprietors,
who are far removed from poverty, many of them, by a
long course of industry, having even acquired a degree
of comparative wealth. The island is intersected, in every
direction, by beautiful vallies, watered by numerous
streams, which issue from their wood-crowned banks,
and, after irrigating the meadows and turning many
mills, empty themselves into the sea. The coasts abound
with a great variety of fish; most of those known in
England are found here, but the haddock, the smelt, and
the muscle, are rarely seen, nor is the cod found to any
great extent; the fish most esteemed are the red mullet
and the ormer, the latter being highly prized by the
natives; the rocks swarm with conger-eels, of which
some are fourteen feet in length.
The climate, though tending to humidity, may be
considered as temperate and mild; the westerly and
south-westerly winds, which prevail generally for threefourths
of the year, convey an abundance of vapour
from the Atlantic, a large proportion of which is arrested
in its progress by the high lands; no observations have
been made to ascertain the quantity of rain that falls
during the year, but it is supposed to be about the same
as in the western part of Ireland. The dews are also
heavy in summer and autumn, and are favourable to vegetation;
and though the weather is more variable than
in England, the temperature of the air is more genial.
The heat of the sun is mitigated in summer by the sea
breezes, and the frosts in winter are neither intense nor
of long continuance; the snow seldom remains -on the
ground more than two or three days. Shrubs, which
in Devonshire and Cornwall require to be sheltered
during the winter months, flourish here in the open
air; and carnations, and various other flowers, in a favourable
aspect, blossom in the winter. Plants, which
cannot be raised in Guernsey, will thrive here in the
greatest luxuriance, this being ascribed to the inclination
of the shore, which gradually slopes towards
the south, while Guernsey, on the contrary, shelves
to the north. This island also derives great protection
from its proximity to the French coast, which breaks
the force of those winds to which Guernsey is constantly
exposed. The climate and soil are extremely
favourable to the growth of the apple-tree, which is extensively
cultivated, and forms a fruitful source of
profit to the farmer: thriving orchards are seen in
every part of the island, of which they form a distinguishing
feature. The Chaumontel pear, cultivated
in almost every garden, attains a degree of perfection,
both in flavour and size, not elsewhere to be
found; it not tmfrequently weighs nearly a pound, and
so highly is it esteemed, that a hundred of the finest
sort will readily sell for £5. 5. Melons are produced
in great perfection, the strawberries are remarkable for
the richness of their flavour, and the peach and apricot
attain a very large size.
The whole of the western end of Jersey consists of
light land; the subsoil, in the neighbourhood of Grosnez
Point, is chiefly formed of granite in a state of decomposition;
on approaching the bay of St. Ouen, the
schistose rock may be observed rising nearly to the
surface, -and the soil is consequently light and thin
but nearer the bay are small fertile glens, which produce
the earliest corn in the island. The mielles, or
hillocks of sand, by which the bay is skirted, extend for
about three miles and a half in length, and are about a
mile and a half in breadth; and a tract of high laud of
nearly seven hundred acres, communicating with them
to the south and east, and being completely open to
the western gales, is inundated with sand drifted from
these hillocks, which, in some places, rise to the height
of one hundred feet above the level of the shore, whereby
a constant, sterility is produced. In this tract, called
Les Quenvoais, vegetable mould is found, at irregular
depths belo.w the surface, interspersed with fragments
of granite, chrystalized quartz, and schistus. Fragments
of coarse French earthenware have been dug
up here, but there are few traces of ancient dwellings,
or of fences. A few acres of this land have been enclosed
by order of General Don, the natural soil having
been reached by deep trenching. The soil of the
island generally is so fertile, that the produce of ten
vergees, less than four acres and a half, is sufficient for
the maintenance of a large family; but from the difficulty
of procuring labourers, from the dislike of innovation,
and the propensity in the possessors of small
estates to manage their lands without other assistance
than what they obtain from their own families, a less
efficient system of agriculture prevails here than in the
neighbouring islands. The practice of stacking hay,
and cutting it in trusses, is seldom observed, it being
loosely stowed away in barns. Jersey formerly produced
more corn than was sufficient for the supply of
its inhabitants, but at present it does not yield more
than tworthirds of the quantity consumed; this decay
in the tillage of the lands may be attributed to the improvement
of navigation and foreign commerce, which,
by furnishing employment to an additional number of
the inhabitants, has increased the price of labour; and
to the introduction and growth of the stocking manufacture,
which has withdrawn considerable numbers from
agricultural pursuits. Owing to the increase of the population,
a greater number of oxen and sheep were imported
from England and France, a greater number of
horses became necessary for the military stationed here,
and the vast number of cows (of the Alderney breed) exported
to England, have led to the conversion of considerable
quantities of arable into pasture land. A blue
and a yellow clay is met with occasionally, but neither
limestone, chalk, nor any calcareous substance has been
discovered, except in very trifling portions, nor is either
marl or gravel to be found; the walks in gardens and
pleasure grounds are laid with fragments of broken rock,
which being of a very argillaceous nature, binds well,
and serves instead of gravel, sometimes even resembling
it in colour. Near the town of St. Helier is a superstratum
of brick earth, which, though of inferior quality,
has been greatly in demand since the improvement of
the town, many of the buildings having been erected
with that material. The principal manure is a species
of sea-weed, called vraic, which from time immemorial
has been highly esteemed, its growth being protected by
the laws of the island, which allow it to be cut from
the rocks only at one particular time of the year on the
western, and at two different periods on the eastern,
coast. It is either, in its natural state, dug in with the
spade, or burnt to ashes and spread thickly over the
surface of the land; when burnt, its efficacy is supposed
to be so much increased, that one measure of wheat is
willingly exchanged for eight measures of the ashes.
The mode of agriculture very much resembles that
of Guernsey, being greatly inferior to the system practised
in England; it has been invariably pursued by
many succeeding generations, without the smallest
deviation, or any attempt at improvement. The large
plough is generally used, but neither drilling, nor the
horse or hand hoe, is used; and the necessary operation
of weeding is but little practised: parsnips and pota-
toes, of which there are abundant crops, are kept tolerably
clean, but the corn is in general greatly intermixed
with weeds. Fallowing is seldom, if ever, practised.
From the most accurate calculations, the Jersey wheat is
ascertained to be lighter than that produced in England,
in the ratio of fifty-two pounds thirteen ounces to sixtytwo
pounds; but the produce per acre exceeds the
English wheat, in a ratio of seven hundred and twentyseven
to four hundred and ninety-six, and the average
crop of potatoes, in a ratio of twenty-nine to twenty
nearly. The Coteaux, or slopes, yield timber, broom,
gorse, and fern; and, where neither too steep nor too
rocky, afford good pasturage. Most kinds of forest
trees thrive well, particularly the chesnut, the elm, and
the white oak; but these and other species of timber
would attain a much greater freight and girth, were it
not for the circumscribed area of the enclosures round
which they are planted: some fine beech and ash
trees are occasionally seen, and in the parish of St;
Clement there is an ever-green oak of extraordinary
growth. The fields are enclosed with high banks of
great breadth, which, on the side towards the roads,
are faced with stone, and most of them are planted
with hedge-row trees. The approach to most houses of
respectability is by a long narrow avenue, called " Une
Chasse," the number of which, from the minute subdivisions
of property, is exceedingly great. The highways
were formerly of various widths, and in that respect
were under very strict regulations; in each parish, one
of these, called " Perquage," led directly from the church
to the sea-coast, and was privileged to enable such persons
as, for any capital crime, had taken sanctuary in
the church, to reach the sea in safety to embark for exile.
Along most of the old roads is a paved foot-path, which,
as well as the carriage road, is extremely rugged; and, as
the breadth of the road will not admit of quartering,
the ruts are very deep; the high banks, planted with
trees, afford a pleasant shade, and preserve a refreshing
coolness in the summer;  but in the winter the roads
are generally damp and muddy: some fine military
roads have been made across the island, which are not
inferior to those of England. The horses are small,
and not remarkable for beauty; but they are strong,
capable of bearing fatigue, and require but little attention,
being therefore well adapted for agricultural purposes.
The cows, in England distinguished as the Alderney
breed, are too generally known and appreciated
to require any description; they are common to all
these islands, but at least ten times more,! are exported
from Jersey than from Alderney; the number sent annually
to England is about one thousand seven hundred.
The sheep are of an inferior breed; they are hardy, but
the flesh is indifferent, and the wool coarse and of comparatively
little value; the degeneration of the breed is
attributed to the discontinuance of the manufacture of
knit woollen stockings, which formerly prevailed here
to a great extent, but has been superseded by the more
profitable pursuits of agriculture and commerce. The
island affords various kind of game, but the liberty of
shooting, which is now denied to no person, has very
much contributed to reduce the quantity. Formerly the
jurats, the king's officers, and the lords of the manors,
were the only persons privileged to shoot game, in which
were included even pigeons and rabbits. The red-legged
partridge,.which formerly abounded, is now rarely seen;
and it is remarkable, that the pheasant is not found in
this island, which is thickly wooded, although it occasionally
frequents the small island of Herm, which is destitute
of timber; the wheatear is common, and, in cold
seasons, the woodcock is frequently met with. The
Coasts are frequented by many species of sea-fowl, and
the bernacle is occasionally seen in the winter. Toads,
for which Jersey has always been remarkable, are found
in every variety of species, some of enormous size, and
lizards of every hue may be seen basking in the sun,
during the summer.
The only branch of manufacture which ever prevailed
was that of knit-stockings, which had attained to such
perfection, that laws were framed to preserve its reputation
by inflicting penalties on such as, by deteriorating
the quality, might injure the sale, of the article; but
the extent to which it was carried on being found
injurious to the agricultural interest, by withdrawing
the labourer from the cultivation of the soil, a law was
passed, in 1608, to compel all persons above the age of
fifteen to relinquish that employment, and assist the
farmers during the seasons of vraiclcing and harvest;
the manufacture still exists, but is confined to females,
and to the aged and infirm.
The civil government is vested in the royal court
of Jersey, and in the assembly of the states; and the
military command is entrusted to a governor appointed
by the crown. The royal court is composed of the
bailiff, who is appointed by the crown, and, as the king's
representative in the court, occupies a seat elevated
above that of the governor; and of twelve jurats, who
must be Protestants of the church of England, and
are elected by the people. The bailiff presides; in all
the debates he sums up the opinions, and pronounces
the sentence of the court, but has no deliberative voice,
unless on an equality of votes of the jurats, in which
case he has a casting vote; in every other instance he is
bound by the majority, and decides accordingly. The
dignity and prerogatives of his office are very great;
he is the keeper of the public seal, which, however, he
cannot affix to any act without the concurrence of three
of the jurats; the duties of his office require a thorough
knowledge of the laws, and an almost constant attendance
at his post. The jurats are appointed for life, but
are removable at the pleasure of the sovereign, or may
be dismissed on their own petition; their office is
honorary and without emolument, and the few privileges
attached to it are by no means commensurate to the
labour of discharging its duties. There can be no
proceedings unless the bailiff, or his lieutenant, be
present, but neither of them can sit in judgment on any
matter in which he is personally interested. The court
is attended by the following officers; Le Procureur du
Roi, or attorney-general; Le Ficomte, or high sheriff;
LAvocat du Roi, or solicitor-general; Le Greffier, or
clerk, who has the custody of the rolls and records;
two Denondateurs, or under-sheriffs, who publish the
injunctions of the court; six Avocats du Burreau, or
pleaders at the bar; and VHuissier, or usher, whose
business it is to preserve order. To constitute a court,
there must be present the bailiff, two jurats, the procureur,
or the avocat du roi, the vicomte, or his deputy, or
one of the denonciateurs, and the greffier, and, though
not essentially a member of the court, LEnregistrcur, or
keeper of the register for hereditary contracts. The
royal court has cognizance of all pleas, suits, and
actions, whether real, personal, or criminal, arising within
the island, treason alone excepted; some other matters
are also reserved for the decision of the king in council,
to whom alone this tribunal is immediately subordinate.
The courts of Westminster have no authority
within the island; even prior to the reign of John, by
whom the court was in a great degree modelled, the
governor held the pleas, and, in extraordinary cases,
appeals were made to Normandy, but never to England.
Subsequently to that time, appeals were sometimes made
to the English courts, but the practice was discontinued
in the reign of Edward III., and Lord Chief Justice
Coke admits, " that the king's writ runneth not in these
isles," but maintains, " that the king's commission
under the great seal does operate." After the hearing
of a cause before a Corps de Cour, or a full court, an
appeal may be made to the king in council, under
certain regulations, and by consent of the court; but in
every case these appeals must be determined according
to the laws and customs of the island. Should the
court refuse to grant an appeal, a doleance, or complaint
to the king, may be preferred; in criminal cases
there is no appeal, nor can the governor even suspend
the execution of a sentence till the king's pleasure be known.
The assembly of the states is composed of the
bailiff, who is perpetual president; the twelve jurats, representing
the inhabitants of the first class; and the
clergy and the twelve constables, representing the several
parishes; the procureur and avocat du roi, or attorney
and solicitor general, and the vicomte, or sheriff, are
also admitted, but have no vote; and the greffier of
the royal court is, by virtue of his office, clerk of the
assembly of the states. The assembly is convened by
the bailiff, or his lieutenant, but the governor's assent
is necessary to authorise the meeting; if, however,
he postpone their assembling for more than fourteen
days, he is bound to assign a reason. To constitute
a meeting of the assembly, it is requisite that
seven from each body should be present, unless upon
occasions of very sudden emergency; foreigners preferred
to benefices are not admissible till they have
been naturalized. The principal business brought before
the assembly of the states is, the granting of
supplies for the public service, and the naturalization
of foreigners; the governor possesses a veto on all
their deliberations. The constables, who are the principal
magistrates in every parish, are chosen in the
same manner as the jurats; their appointment is triennial,
but they may be re-elected, and their office is
similar to that of mayors in corporate towns in England
5 besides being members of the assembly of the
states, they preside at all parochial meetings on secular
business. Under each of the constables are two
centeniers, who preside over one hundred families, and,
in the absence of the constable, the senior centenier
performs his duty, and represents him in the assembly
of the states. There are several vintainiers, each
of whom has the charge of one of the vintaines, or
double tythings, into -which every parish is divided,
except the parish of St. Ouen, of which the divisions
are called cuillettes. There are also Officiers du Connetable,
officers of the constable, whose duties are similar
to those of constables in England, and two procureurs
du bien publique, whose office it is to conduct any
parochial lawsuits.
The laws may be comprised under two general
heads; first, the ancient customs of Normandy, together
with municipal and local usages; secondly, ordinances
made by different sovereigns, and acts passed by the
states and confirmed by the king; together with such
orders as have been, at various times, transmitted
from the council board. Acts of parliament, in which
the island is particularly named, have no force unless
transmitted from the king in council, and registered
in due form. A code of laws was compiled by the
states in 1771, and sanctioned by the king, which
superseded the laws previously enacted by the court;
and though the assembly of the states, or legislative
body, can still make provisional statutes, yet they do
not remain in force longer than three years, unless
sanctioned and rendered permanent by an order of
council; neither can any alteration be made in laws
previously established, unless under the sanction of
the same authority. As there is but one tribunal before
which a great variety of causes requiring different
kinds of process must be brought, the court necessarily
assumes four distinct characters, and, according to
the. functions which it has to discharge, is termed, La
Cour dHeritage, La Cour de Catel, La Cour du Billet,
and La Cour Extraordinaire, or La Cour de SamedL
La Cour dHeritage takes cognizance only of hereditary
causes, such as the partition of estates, differences
concerning boundaries, trespasses, &c.; La Cour
de Catel takes cognizance of rents and decrees; La
Cour du Billet is chiefly for arrears of rents and the
recovery of small debts; and La Cour Extraordinaire
determines all personal actions. The procureur du roi
is the prosecutor in all criminal cases, and every accusation
is first examined by a petty jury, termed la petite
enquete, composed of the parochial constable and twelve
of his officers, of whom it is necessary that seven should
concur in opinion to find a prisoner guilty; should
the prisoner disapprove of the verdict, he may appeal
to a grand jury, termed to grande enquete, composed of
twenty-four persons chosen from the three neighbouring
parishes, any of whom, on substantial grounds,
may be objected to by him, but a peremptory challenge
is not allowed: five concurrent voices are sufficient
to acquit the accused party, to whom, if he cannot
afford to employ counsel, one of the advocates of
the bar is assigned by the court to plead his cause.
A prisoner is seldom fettered while in confinement, and
never while on his trial, as the laws of these islands,
in harmony with the spirit of English law, presume
every accused person to be innocent, till he has been
pronounced guilty. Prisoners are not, as in England,
found either guilty or not guilty; but, according to
circumstances, are pronoxmced either plutot coupable
qu innocent (rather guilty than innocent), or plutot
innocent que coupable (rather innocent than guilty);
should the former of these verdicts be retxirned, his indictment
is declared to be legal. When sentence of
death is pronounced, the bailiff and the jurats put on
their hats, and the prisoner kneels to receive it. Forgery
is not punished with death, but is considered a
fraud: in 1814, an individual convicted of this crime
was sentenced to the pillory, and to have the tip of
his right ear cut off; but mutilation of the person ap-
pears to be now exploded; the crime of forgery is here
of very rare occurrence.
In cases of insolvency, the insolvent makes a public
cession of his property for the benefit of his creditors,
which is termed " renoncer," and his estate is said to be
" en decret." The creditors who have sued take precedence
according to the date of their actions; arrears of
rents, if registered, have a preference over simple contract
debts, but they cannot be recovered after a lapse of five
years. When the creditors are all assembled, those whose
debts have not been sued for and registered are first applied
to, with an offer of the insolvent's estate, subject to
the condition of paying the claims of all the other creditors:
should one or more accept the offer, the estate is
adjudged to them; but should they refuse, their own
claims are annulled; should they all decline the condition,
the estate is offered to the last on the list of registered
creditors, on the same terms; and, on his .refusal,
to the next in priority before him, till some one
accepts the terms. It sometimes thus happens that the
party accepting the estate will obtain, after paying the
other creditors whose debts have not been cancelled by a
refusal, more than the sum due to him; but if it should
be less, it is, notwithstanding, a dividend upon his debt,
which he would otherwise have forfeited. The property of
those debtors not privileged, that is, of those who do not
possess rents in the island, is immediately, upon an arrest
being made, placed in the hands of the sheriff, for
the benefit of such creditors as have sued, who, if the
property be sufficient, are paid in full; but should there
be a deficiency, the creditors are paid in the order in
which they have sued, those on the first day in full, and
the next day in full, if sufficient assets, if not, the whole is
divided amongst them. Should a privileged debtor wish
to have his effects secured, with a view to gain time for
making an arrangement with his creditors, he may apply
to the court, and, upon an assurance of his solvency,
two jurats are appointed to superintend the collection
of his debts and rents; a reasonable sum is allowed
him for the maintenance of his family, and a year
and a day are granted for the liquidation of his debts.
In cases of imprisonment for debt, the prisoner is not
entitled to the writ of Habeas Corpus, which, though
said to extend to Jersey, is not registered in the island,
nor allowed by, the court. No proprietor of lands or
rents can be imprisoned for debt, unless by order of
the court. Ten years is the term of limitation on actions
of debt, bonds, and other simple contracts. Rents
are considered as .mortgages on estates, and were formerly
paid either in corn or in money, varying according
to the value of grain. In all deeds the term corn
rent is still retained, and the custom, though anciently
originating in the poverty of the inhabitants, and in
the scarcity of money, has been found so salutary in
its effects, that it has been continued, and extended to
every species of real property. Landlords may attach
for rent accruing, though not actually due, and prevent
the removal of any articles thus attached; and, should
they be perishable articles, they may proceed to sell. The
real and personal property of a person dying insolvent
are equally liable to the liquidation of his debts.
In the division of property, the eldest son, or, in
failure of male issue, the eldest daughter, is entitled to one
out of every ten vergees of land in the estate, and to the
principal house and all the avenues leading to it, to enable
him to discharge the seigneurial services and ground-rent,
payable in corn to the original lord of the soil; and to
indemnify him for those military supplies which every
estate, in proportion to its extent, is bound to furnish,
should the defence of the island require it; and for the
payment of all ground-rents now payable in money,
which may have been due upon the estate for forty years.
When these claims have been discharged, two-thirds of
the remainder of the estate are divided among the other
sons, and one-third among the daughters, each being
charged with a due proportion of any other mortgages
that may be due upon the property. No real property
is devisable by will. A wife, on the death of her husband,
may claim one-half of his personal property, if he
have no children; if he have, she can claim only one-third;
one-third becomes the portion of the children, and the
remaining third may be disposed of according to the will
of the testator. A widower, having no children, may
dispose of his property as he thinks fit: a widow
can claim, as her dower, one-third of her husband's
estate. A widower, on the death of his wife, if there
be issue, enjoys the whole of her real estate till he
marries again; in which case, as also if there be no
issue, it reverts to her next, of kin". A wife, on her
husband's death, may reclaim her estate, if it has been
sold, or encumbered, by him, without her sanction
being expressed, by becoming a party to the deed; and
should she die first, her heirs have the same privilege.
A father cannot give to any one of his children a
greater portion of. his landed property than is specified
by law; should he do so, his donation may be annulled
by an action brought within a year and a day after his
decease. The personal property of persons dying intestate
is divided equally among all the children, if
they be all sons or all daughters; but if there be
both, two-thirds are divided equally among the sons,
and the remaining third among .the daughters. All
sales of land belonging to minors may be revoked
by them, on coming of age. Holders of estates owe
homage to the lord of the manor, and, when required,
are obliged to deliver into the baronial court an account
of all the lands they possess, under a penalty
of seizure of their property, till the contempt of court
is cleared. In cases of collateral succession, the lords
enjoy the estates of the deceased for one year: the
undisturbed possession of an estate for forty years is
equivalent to a title. Title deeds and mortgages must
be inserted in a register, which is kept by a registrar
duly appointed; the neglect of this insertion invalidates
the mortgage. If an estate is overcharged with mortgages
the cessio bonorum, or relinquishmeht of property,
is allowed to the mortgager, in the same manner as in
cases of insolvency; the mortgagees institute proceedings
to establish their claims, which last for a year,
and "during that time the lord of the manor enjoys the
estate of the mortgager. At the end of that time, it is
demanded of the last mortgagee whether he will take
the estate and make good all the preceding claims upon
it; if he refuses to do so, his own claim is cancelled,
and the same offer is made to the next in succession,
and continued, as in insolvency, till some one of the
mortgagees is found who will accept the estate, and discharge
all claims upon it which remain uncancelled.
The tenure of land purchased with money only
cannot be considered stable till the expiration of a
year and a day, within which time, the next of kin to
the seller, or the lord of the manor, is privileged, by the
law of Retraite, or pre-emption, to take the estate from
the buyer, on returning the purchase money: if the
estate be purchased with rents, the sale cannot be set
aside, as the transaction is considered rather as an exchange
of real property than as a "purchase. All encroachments
on property, and civil injuries, which
require a prompt redress, may, as in Guernsey, be
visited by the Clameur de Haro, after which an action
is brought: this singular exclamation, of which the
form is " Haro! haro! haro! & Iaide mon Prince." was
anciently made use of in the duchy of Normandy,
on occasions of great peril or importance, and was
an appeal to Hollo, the first duke, for justice and protection;
the word Haro is compounded of Ha, an earnest
ejaculation, and Ro, a contraction of Rollo; and
it operates as an instantaneous check, not to be disregarded.
There are two regular terms in every year,
in which the court meets for the dispatch of business,
and they are fixed at such times as not to interfere with
the seasons of vraicking or harvest; the court occasionally
holds sittings out of term, for the decision of admiralty
causes, and actions on bills of exchange,notes of
hand, and commercial matters, which require a prompt
decision. The processes are conducted, and all public
acts and deeds are recorded, in the French language,
which is spoken by the upper classes, but the general
language of the island is what is called the Jersey
French, a kind of patois, which differs in every parish,
and also from the patois used in Guernsey.
The military government is vested in a governor,
appointed by the crown, who enjoys the whole of the
revenue arising from the royal demesnes: this revenue
has varied at different times, and the privileges and
prerogatives of the governor have also been subject to
repeated fluctuation. In the earlier periods of the history
of Jersey, the governor had not only the entire
direction of military operations, but was also at the head
of civil affairs, and was then styled bailiff; his office
was of very considerable importance, and the name of
it was adopted from the French, among whom it designated
an officer invested with high judicial functions
being in Spelman's Glossary thus- noticed, ." Ballwus
apud Gallos splendidus Magistratus est." These offices
were separated in the reign of Edward I., in 1301; and
the appointment of the bailiff was vested in the governor,
but this privilege was abolished in the reign of
Henry VII., since" which time the appointment ofthe
bailiff has been exercised solely by the crown. The
governor still retains a small degree of civil authority,
and has a negative voice in the assembly of the states;
but his duties are principally confined to the military
defence of the island. The lieutenant-governor, who
is always a military officer, discharges all the duties of
the governor, has under his immediate command the
garrison of regular troops stationed in the island, and
grants commissions to the officers of the militia, which
is under his superintendence and control. The militia
is a very numerous and efficient force; every native of
the island, between the ages of seventeen and sixty-five,
is liable to serve in it, and strangers, after a year's residence,
are equally bound to contribute their personal
service. Each regiment is composed of a certain number
of men, furnished, in proportion to their extent by a
district consisting of a certain number of parishes.  To
each regiment is attached a company of artillery, and
such as are judged least fit for actual service are appointed
to man the coast batteries of their respective
districts. The whole of the militia are provided with
arms and clothing from the British government, but,
with the exception of the adjutants and drill-serjeants,
neither officers nor privates receive pay. During war
the duty of the militia is very severe; detachments
from the different regiments are successively employed
in mounting guard round the island, and, in eases of
alarm, they assemble with great celerity. In time of
peace their discipline is by no means neglected; during
winter they are frequently drilled in companies, and in
summer as often exercised in brigade. They are annually
inspected by the lieutenant-governor, and boys,
who have not attained the age of admission into the
ranks, are instructed in the use of arms, and rewarded
with prizes, according to their proficiency. Exclusively
of the regular force under the more immediate command
of the lieutenant-governor, there are five regiments
of militia, at all times ready to assemble for the defence
of the island. Besides its natural barriers, Jersey is
strongly defended by forts at all those points where it
is most easy of access, and consequently most liable to
assault: of these, the principal are Fort Regent, the
castles of Mont Orgueil and St. Aubin, and Elizabeth Castle.
The public revenue of the island is principally derived
from a new impost on wine and spirits, and from
the sums paid for licenses by the keepers of taverns
and public houses: though small, it is sufficient for the
general- expenditure, and is levied in such a manner as
to press lightly upon all classes of the inhabitants. The
harbours are kept in repair by the dues of anchorage
paid by every vessel entering them, for shelter or for
commercial purposes, and by an ancient impost upon
the importation of wine, which has been levied for that
purpose almost from time immemorial. The great military
roads- are kept in repair by the several parishes, but
a grant is generally made by the assembly of the states,
when any important or extensive improvement is to be
accomplished. The various parochial expenses are defrayed
by a rate levied on the landholders, of which the
proportion for each parish is previously fixed by an assembly,
consisting of the principal landed proprietors in
the island. When any extraordinary works are undertaken,
which might draw too largely on the funds of
the parish, the expense is generally provided for by
lotteries, and in no instance are the needy required to
contribute to the supply of the revenue, or to the public
expenditure, of the island.
The ecclesiastical-government, is vested in a dean,
appointed by the crown, who is also rector of one of
the parishes. The dean holds an ecclesiastical court,
in which .he is assisted by the rectors of the several
parishes: an appeal from his judgment lies to the
Bishop of Winchester, and, in the event of a vacancy
in that see, to the Archbishop of Canterbury; inthese
appeals the parties must attend in person, and the de-
cision is irreversible. The ecclesiastical laws, which
are regulated by the canons of James I., give the dean
the power of granting special licenses for marriage.)
the probate of wills, which must be registered in his
office, and approved by his seal; and letters of adroinisJ
tration of the goods of intestates dying without heirs,
to the next of kin. The early inhabitants were followers
of the Druids till the sixth century, when
they were converted to Christianity by St. Magliore,
who had previously established the Christian faith in
the island of Sark; and the efforts of Pratextatus, who,
being banished from Rouen, remained for ten years in
the island, completed the conversion of the inhabitants.
The Normans, to expiate their former cruelty,
erected, after their conversion to Christianity, numerous
religious edifices in the island, and endowed them with
ample revenues. After the alienation of the Norman
isles from the parent state, the inhabitants remained
under the spiritual control of its bishop, till after the
Reformation, when the island was annexed to the see
of Winchester, in the reign of Elizabeth. Edward VI.
presented them with a copy of the English liturgy, in
the French language, which was used in the several
churches till the mass and the Roman Catholic religion
were revived, in the reign of Mary. Paulet, the last
papistical dean, was dismissed by Queen Elizabeth, and
the reformed religion was restored, in 1565; but from
that time till the year 1620, there was neither a book of
common prayer, nor a professed form of liturgy in the
island, nor were the churches under the superintendence
of any spiritual head. Several French Protestants, disciples
of Calvin, having arrived, they began to introduce
their own principles, and to overturn the whole system
of church government; and a species of discipline;
formed upon their own model, was established in the
place of episcopal jurisdiction, which was no longer ac-
knowledged; all ecclesiastical affairs were regulated by
their councils of consistories, colloquies, and the synod.
The church remained in this state till the reign of
James I., who ordered that the liturgy should be reestablished,
but with certain qualifications, adapted to
the prejudices of the people at the time, and tending
to their gradual eradication. From this period the influence
of the presbytery declined, and David Bandinel
being appointed dean, the powers of ecclesiastical jurisdiction
were restored to the spiritual court. Bandinel
continued to discharge the duties of his office till 1643,
when, being suspected of encouraging the distraction
of the times, he was confined, and, in attempting to
escape from Mont Orgueil castle, was killed by falling
from the ramparts. From the commencement of the
parliamentary war till the Restoration, the liturgy was
discontinued, and the office of dean abolished; but, in
1661, the dean was re-appointed, and the regular service
of the church restored) since which time the ecclesiastical
affairs of the island have remained without any interruption.
The revenue of the church is inconsiderable;
the corn tithes of the parish of St. Saviour, which
had previously belonged to the crown, were annexed to
the deanery by James I. The income of the rectors of
the other parishes is derived from the small tithes, to
which is added that portion of the great tithes which,
in some of the parishes, was granted by the Norman
abbots to their subordinate ministers. The incumbents
of some of the benefices receive also the tithe on waste
lands recently brought into cultivation, which were formerly
claimed by the clergy, under the designation of
"Novels, or Deserts." A parsonage-house is attached
to each living, and is kept in repair at the expense of
the parishioners; each parish ha& a fund, arising from
donations and benefactions, for repairing the church
and the parsonage-house; and the poor are supported
by donations, collections at the churches, and by rates.
The island of Jersey comprises the parishes of St.
Brelade; St. Clement; Grouville; St. Helier, or La Ville;
St. Jean, or St. John; St. Laurent, or St. Lawrence;
St. Marie, or St. Mary; St. Martin; St. Ouen; St.
Pierre, or St. Peter; St. Sauveur, or St. Saviour; and
La Trinite", or the Holy Trinity; the livings are all rectories,
in the deanery of Jersey. Of these, the principal,
or, as it is called, the Town parish, is that of ST-HELIER,
which includes the town of that name, the principal in
the island, and contains 10,118 inhabitants. The town
occupies a very considerable portion of the parish, and
is rapidly increasing in extent: it is pleasantly situated,
and is completely sheltered from the northerly winds
by an. extensive range of hills; the streets are spacious
and well paved, and the inhabitants are amply supplied
with water. The public subscription library was erected
in 1736, and furnished with a valuable collection of
books by the Rev. Phillip Falle, the venerable historian
of the island; the collection was considerably augmented
by the late Rev. Dr. Dumaresq; it is open to
the inhabitants upon very moderate terms: there is also
a circulating library, with a handsome reading-room in
the Royal square. The theatre royal, built by subscription
in 1827.» at an expense of £3000, is a handsome
edifice, one. hundred feet in length, forming the central
compartment of a spacious crescent: in the front
is a noble portico of six Doric columns, supporting a
handsome pediment, the cornice of which is continued to
the extremities of the range; the internal arrangements
are complete, and the decorations tastefully splendid.
Some commodious and elegant public baths have been
recently constructed opposite to the post-office, in
Minden-place. The commercial intercourse with other
countries having greatly increased, it became necessary,
for the protection of the vessels frequenting the harbour,
which carry an. aggregate burden of twenty thousand
tons, to enlarge the pier, which was accordingly
accomplished, at an. expense of £61,000; it is entirely
constructed of the sienite rock, from the quarries of
St. John's, and is faced with blocks weighing nearly
two tons each.
The town and harbour are defended by Fort Regent
and Elizabeth Castle; the former, built on the Mount
de la Ville, a solid rock, rising to the height of one
hundred and fifty feet above the level of the sea at high
water, and commanding the bay of St. Aubin: the whole
expense of erecting this extensive and massive fortress,
which exceeded one million sterling, was defrayed by
the British government; of that sum £ 11,280 was paid
for the purchase of the site, and the interest is appropriated
annually to the improvement of the town; the
garrison is supplied with water from a well excavated
in the solid rock, to the depth of two hundred and
thirty-three feet. Elizabeth Castle is situated three
quarters of a mile from the town, upon an eminence
surrounded by the sea at high water, and, on the reflux
of the tide, is connected with the town by a line of
loose stones on the sands, called the bridge: it was
originally built in 1586, greatly improved by Queen Elizabeth,
from whom it took its name, and considerably
enlarged by Charles I.; it comprises three wards, defended
by strong batteries of heavy ordnance, and con-
tains barracks for a very considerable number of troops.
The custom-house, a commodious building, is under the
superintendence of a collector, comptroller, and subordinate
officers; but, as few articles of merchandise are
contraband or prohibited, the import duties are trifling,
and the chief business is the registering of the exports.
There are several banking establishments in the island,
of which the Old Bank, the Commercial Bank, and
the Jersey Banking Company, are the principal; they
have many notes in circulation: the legal tender is
three-shilling and eighteen-penny pieces, of silver coin,
issued by the states. The market is on Saturday, and is
well supplied with butchers meat and with provisions
of every kind, and, during the -winter, with abundance
of game from France; but the supply of fish is not
very plentiful. The present market-place combines
beauty of appearance with convenience of arrangement:
it occupies three sides of a spacious quadrangle, of
which the internal fronts are ornamented with piazzas,
affording a convenient shelter for the sale of eggs,
poultry, and vegetables; and the central buildings comprise
two double ranges of shops for butchers, who are
not allowed to expose meat, for sale in any other place;
the fourth side of the quadrangle is parted off from
Halkett-place, a spacious handsome street, by iron
palisades, in -which are the principal entrances to the
market. Adjoining .the principal market-place is a
smaller for the sale of fish; and a cattle market has
been, recently formed on a similar plan.
The court-house, a substantial and handsome building,
erected in 1647, occupies one side of the Royal
square, formerly the old market-place, a spacious area,
in the centre of which is a bronze statue of George II.,
in the Roman costume, elevated on a lofty stone pedestal.
The interior of the court-house is conveniently
arranged for the holding of the several courts,- and
the transaction of public business; and the courtroom
is decorated with a portrait of George III., by
an artist named Jean, and a full-length portrait of
Marshal Conway, Governor of the island, by Gainsborough.
The prison, which is situated at the extremity
of the town, is a substantial and not inelegant building
of sienite stone; the front is ornamented with an
arcade, one hundred and twenty feet in length, which
supports the upper range of the building; it contains
spacious and airy cells for confining criminals, and
light and commodious apartments for the debtors;
every indulgence of exercise, consistent with security
and the nature of their offence, is permitted. The
church of St. Helier is supposed to have been built
about the year 1341, and its original character has
been almost effaced by alterations and repairs; the
exterior possesses few attractions, and the interior,
which preserves some traces of original beauty, has
been materially deformed by injudicious additions made
without any regard to its original style: there are several
monuments, among which is that of Major Pierson,
who fell at the head of the troops, in the defence of the
island against the French, in 1781: it was erected by
a vote of the states, as a just tribute to his valour.
The chapels of St. James, in St. James-street, and St.
Paul's, in New-street, the former an elegant structure in
the later English style, and the latter a handsome
edifice in the Grecian style of architecture, with a noble
portico of four Doric columns of Jersey granite, are
proprietary chapels; in both divine service is performed,
in the English language, by a clergyman of the established
church. There are various places of worship
for dissenters: at the Calvinistic chapel, in Upper
Halkett Place, service is performed in the French language;
and at the chapel in Zion-place in the English
language, morning and evening. The Baptists and
Wesleyan Methodists have each two places of worship,
in one of which, respectively, the services are performed
in the French, and in the other in the English,
language. The Bryanites have a chapel in the He"mies;
and there are two Roman Catholic chapels, one in Hue
street for an English, and one in Castle-street for a
French, congregation. The Jersey National school, the
St. Helier parochial Sunday school and lending library,
and several benevolent and charitable associations are
supported by subscription. The hospital is a neat and
commodious building, in every respect well adapted to
the comfort of patients; it is supported partly by an
income arising from donations and bequests, the deficiency
being supplied by the several parishes.
The parish of ST-BRELADE, containing 1717 inhabitants,
comprises the town of St. Aubin, situated on
the margin of the bay, three miles from St. Helier's;
the town is remarkably clean, and, though irregularly
built, contains several excellent houses; it was formerly
inhabited by many of the most opulent merchants in
the island, most of whom, on the completion of the more
commodious harbour of St. Helier's, removed to that
town, where they found greater advantages for commerce.
The bay has the benefit of a good pier, and is
protected by St. Aubin's tower, a fortress surrounded
by the sea at high water, and defended with a battery
of fourteen pieces of heavy ordnance, and a proportionate
number of troops. In this parish are the Quenvais,
the most unproductive tract of land in the island. The
church, which is the most ancient in the island, is beautifully
situated on one side of the bay of St. Brelade,
and at high tide the water flows up to the churchyard;
it resembles in character the church of St. Sampson
in Guernsey; both were consecrated in the year
1111. The parish of ST-CLEMENT, containing 938 inhabitants,
is the smallest in the island. The church, from
its situation, is an interesting and picturesque object:
the surrounding scenery is richly diversified, and many
of the high grounds in the vicinity afford extensive and
delightful prospects. The parish of GROUVILLE, containing
1917 inhabitants, abounds with richly-wooded eminences,
and with much picturesque and beautiful scenery.
The church, which is in the centre of the village, differs
from the general style of the Jersey churches in the extension
of the nave, both towards the east and the west,
beyond the aisles, and has a lofty spire rising from the
centre, which forms a good land-mark. The coast is
defended by Seymour tower, which, at high water, is two
miles distant from the shore, but may be approached
at low water; it is exposed to a very heavy sea, which,
during winter, dashes against its base with tremendous
force. The parish of ST-JOHN, containing 1657 inh
bitants, is characterised by the same bold line of coast
that distinguishes the northern side of the island, and
is chiefly noted for its extensive quarries of a fine kinder
sienite, much resembling granite in appearance and hardness,
and highly esteemed for architectural purposes;
it is procured from a cliff, called Mont Mado, which is
entirely composed of it. The parish of ST-LAWRENCE,
containing 1872 inhabitants, is remarkable for its beautiful
vallies, its numerous flourishing orchards, and its
high state of cultivation: the church has been more
defaced than any, by repeated enlargements and alterations.
The parish of ST-MARY, containing 1020 inhabitants,
is bounded towards the sea by high rugged
rocks, and contains a great portion of undulating ground.
The beautiful bay of Grfoe de Lecq, partly in this parish,
is situated at the bottom of a deep ravine; the sands, on
the reflux of the tide, are dry, firm, and of a beautiful
colour; the church is unique in its style of architecture,
and romantically situated; here are numerous mineral
springs of great medicinal virtue. The parish of ST-MARTIN,
containing 16Q1 inhabitants, abounds with objects
of interest: among these Mont Orgueil castle is the
most remarkable; though its origin is not distinctly
known, it was a fortress of great strength and importance
in the reign of John; the greater-part of it is of
more modern erection, as is evident from the armorial
bearings of several who have contributed to its enlargement;
the chapel of St. George, in which many
distinguished characters have been interred, is now
in ruins, and almost choked up with rubbish. At a
place called Anne Ville, on the neighbouring heights, are
the remains of a Druidical temple, or Poquelaye, consisting
of one large stone, fifteen feet long and ten
broad, formerly resting transversely upon five smaller
masses, but, by the removal of some of them, now
reclining on the ground. At Le Coupewn, on a small
cliff not far distant, is the largest monument of this
kind in the island: it consists of twentyone stones,
three feet high, enclosing, within an. elliptical, area,
other masses that appear to have formed a cromlech of
considerable dimensions; three slabs, each six feet in
length, which were probably united, are supposed to
have rested upon fourteen supporting masses. The
parish of ST-OVEN, containing 2081 inhabitants, is
bounded towards the sea by large masses of rock, in
which the tide has worn numerous excavations of considerable
depth and of singular form. This parish contains
a greater number of enclosures than any other;
the church possesses little claim to architectural notice,
but the ancient manor-house is an interesting object.
The parish of ST-PETER, containing 1854 inhabitants,
displays much interesting and beautiful scenery; the
lands are fertile, and in. a very high state of cultivation.
St. Peter's valley is the most extensive and the
most picturesque in the island, and the soil is distinguished
for its produce; the church is spacious, but
has no particular claim to architectural description.
The parish of ST-SAVIOUR, containing 1687 inhabitants,
abounds with pleasing and varied scenery: the church
is not devoid of architectural beauty, but has been much
disfigured by the various additions and alterations which
have been made, without due regard to uniformity of
character; the cemetery contains many stately oak and
beech trees, and commands an extensive view; the parish
contains several mineral springs of considerable
efficacy. TRINITY parish, containing 2048 inhabitants,
is rich in varied and romantic scenery; the view from
the heights above Boulay bay is remarkably interesting
and extensive; the shores of France, bounding the ocean
on one side, are distinctly visible, and on the other,
the islands of Guernsey, Alderney, and Sark, present
themselves. The church does not claim particular
notice; the ancient manor-house is an interesting object,
and there are several remains of antiquity, of
which the most important is La Petite Cesarte, or
Caesar's wall, which is still visible, and, though now of
limited extent, is said to have reached to the harbour
of Rosel. The churches generally are cruciform
structures in the Norman style of architecture;
the walls are of great thickness, and strengthened
with buttresses, many of which have a considerable
projection; the roofs are generally vaulted, and no
timber appears to have been used in their construction;
the windows are usually distinguished by the pointed
arch, which prevails also in the internal arrangement,
and the doorways have the semicircular arch, with
mouldings and ornaments of the most simple character.
Eight of the churches have steeples, of which
that of St. Peter's is the Highest; those of St. Brelade's
and St. Lawrence's either had no towers originally
rising from the intersection of the nave and transepts,
or they have been removed. In most of them a second,
and in some a third, aisle has been introduced,
the roofs of which are supported upon low massive circular
columns; the windows in many instances have
been altered by the introduction of tracery, and in the
course of enlargement which most of the churches
have undergone, for the accommodation of the increasing
population, they have been materially divested of
their original character. Divine service is, in all of
them, invariably performed in the French language.
Two free grammar schools were founded in 1498, St.
Magliore's, or St. Manlier's, and St. Athanasius, the former
in the parish of St. Saviour, and the latter in that of
St. Peter, each being intended for the accommodation
of six parishes 5 but the endowments are insufficient
to render them at all subservient to the design, of their
foundation. Lawrence Baudain, of the parish of St. Martin,
bequeathed a rent-charge of thirty-two quarters of
wheat, for the maintenance, at either of the Universities,
of such poor scholars of Jersey as might be desirou$
of improvement, and deserving of encouragement; and
Charles I. founded three fellowships respectively in the
colleges of Pembroke, Exeter, and Jesus, in the University
of Oxford, to be held, in alternate succession, by
natives of Jersey and Guernsey designed for holy
orders: three scholarships for boys from the free
schools have been subsequently founded in Pembroke
College, Oxford, by Bishop Morley. Jersey formerly
contained the magnificent abbey of St. Helier,
founded in the early part of the tenth century, for
canons regular of the order of St. Augustine, and endowed
with an ample revenue. In the reign of Stephen,
the Empress Matilda, having engaged its abbot to superintend
the erection of a monastery at Cherbourg,
appointed him, on its completion, to the abbacy, to
maintain which with greater splendour he alienated
the principal property of the abbey of St. Helier, which
subsequently dwindled into a priory, and continued in
that impoverished state till its final suppression, in
the reign of Henry V. Among other religious establishments
were the priories of Noirmont, St. Clement,
Bonne Nuit, and De Lecq; and several ancient
chapels, of a date much earlier than any of the
churches. Of these there are remains only of La chapelle
des Pe"cheurs at St. Brelade's, of St. Marguerite
at Grouville, of Notre Dame des Pas at Havre des Pas,
and of La Hogue Bie, a mile to the west of Mont
Orgueil. Some trifling vestiges of other chapels may
still be traced in different parts of the island, in
one of which at St. Saviour's, St. Magliore, who visited
Jersey in 565, was interred. Upon Mont de la
Ville, where Fort Regent now stands, a very perfect
Druidical temple was discovered, in 1785, on the removal
of an artificial mound of earth, by which it had been
concealed; it was presented by the assembly of the
states to Marshal Conway, then governor, who removed
it to his seat in Berkshire, where it has been carefully
re-constructed, with a rigid adherence to its original
arrangement. Jersey is the birthplace of many eminent
literary characters, among whom may be noticed, Durell,
Dean of Windsor; Brevint, Dean of Lincoln; Falle, the
historian of the island; DAuvergne, ancestor of the
late Prince de Bouillon, and author of the Campaign of
William III.; Morant, the celebrated antiquary; Dr.
Durel, Principal of Hertford College, -Oxford; Dr.
Bulkeley Bandinel, Bodley's librarian in that University;
Dr. Dumaresq, the munificent contributor to the
public library founded by the Rev. Phillip Falle; the
Rev. Mr. Le Couteur; Dr. Valpy; author of many valuable
classical works, and of a revised edition of the
classics; the Rev. Dr. Lempriere, compiler of the ClassicalDictionary;
andPhillpot Payn, seigneur de Samares,
from whose manuscript chronicles the history of the
island was principally compiled. Among the eminent
natives who have been most distinguished in its naval
and military annals may be mentioned, Philip de Carteret,
seigneur de St. Ouen, wha nourished in the reigns
of Henry VI. and Edward IV.; Sir George de Carteret,
who signalized himself during the parliamentary war;
and, in modern times, Admirals Hardy, Durel, and Kempenfeldt.
Jersey gives the title of earl to the family
of Villiers.