Legends of St Marculf and the Seas

St Marculf is associated in later legends with St Helier, although that only comes into the much later Life of Helier which dates from the 10th century, around 400 years after the time of St Helier, and has scant historical merit.

Legends of St Marculf and the Seas
By Philip Ahier

"While St. Marculf stayed in Jersey there was a devastating raid upon it by the Northmen, which produced dire terror upon the few inhabitants thereof. Owing to the absence of any semblance of resistance, the greater part of the population hid themselves in grottos and caves.

"The chroniclers (i.e. the writers of the lives of the Saints) related that one set of raiders consisted of no less than 3,000 men, but in all probability there were fewer. Be that as it may, St. Marculf prevented a party of Islanders from fleeing; mustering a little army, he put himself at their head; astonished at his insuperable valour, they followed him. His courage, and his energy gave them new life, and marching with them, he cheered them on to win a glorious victory against their oppressors.

" 'Arm yourselves, keep more closely together, stand firm, and Heaven will come to your aid,' said the intrepid monk to them. `Remember how Pharaoh's great army was engulfed in the Red Sea while pursuing the Israelites, then you will behold your redoubtable enemies, scattered and annihilated.' "

"Hurling themselves with all their strength upon the pirates, they routed and overthrew them, because, being taken unawares of an unforseen attack, the latter hurriedly betook themselves to their boats at the moment when, it is said, a furious tempest arose and burst upon them, scattered their ships, flung them upon the rocks and swamped them."

The above has been freely translated from Mr. J. Le Bas' account given in the "Almanach de la Chronique de Jersey" for 1888 (pp. 162-163). He says his authorities were G. Dupont and Mons. L'Abbe Le Canu. This legend also appears in the "Acta Sanctorum" compiled by the Bollandists, and in Pigeon's "Saints ,du Diocese de Coutances," quoted by the Rev. G. R. Balleine in his "Biographical Dictionary of Jersey." (pp. 638-644).

Mr. Le Bas seems to have combined all the possible versions into one compact whole. From Pigeon's "Saints" we learn that "the Lord of the Island when he heard of the great victory of the Islanders over the pirates, gave the Saint half of the Island and here he built a monastery, in which he placed monks to form a Household of God." (B.D.J., p.. 638).

Mr. Balleine comments on this legend as follows:—

"The Pirate story is practically the same as the one told of St. Magloire in Sark. He too encouraged the natives to resist. He too received from the Lord of the Island half the land as a gift. He too built there (in Sark) a monastery. The legends of the two saints with somewhat similar names, have clearly become entangled. So the whole incident (of the Pirates) may belong to Sark." (B.D.J., p. 639).

The Biography of St. Marculf is given by Mr. Balleine in B.D.J., pp. 643-646.

A second legend relates of St. Marculf, which I have not seen elsewhere, is given by Mr. Le Bas in the same "Almanach," (p. 163):—

"One day as St. Marculf was seated on the seashore, in deep meditation, a woman of ravishing beauty appeared to him as she, siren-like, leapt out of the sea-water; her long tresses fluttering at the whim of zephyrs, her clothes streaming with the ocean spray, her eyes sparkling and beaming with impassioned and seductive love. In a voice throbbing, plaintive, tender, and sorrow¬ful, she asked for aid.

"Said she to him tearfully: 'I am a poor shipwrecked woman, have compassion on my misfortune, the relentless sea has flung me upon your hospitable Island; grant me hospitality by giving me nourishment to appease my ravenous appetite and some water to quench my insatiable thirst.'

"Without saying a word, St. Marculf turned towards the entrance of his humble cottage and consecrating some bread with the Sign of the Cross, held it towards the pretended shipwrecked woman and said: 'If you are what you appear to be, take the bread which I have blessed in the name of Jesus Christ.'

"On hearing the Honoured Name, a transformation occurred in her figure; her features became hideous and livid, her form became converted into a phantom which vanished, while the Saint heard in the sea, a great noise as if a burning fire had been plunged therein."

“St. Marculf returned to the Monastery to celebrate Easter week and related the above story to his fellow-monks.”

La Fontaine de Mirtre

La Fontaine de Mirtre
by Philip Ahier

Early Guide Book compilers dwelt upon the magical and medicinal properties of this Spring, which is also known as La Belle Hougue Spring and La Fontaine des Mittes.

The Spring itself is on the promontory of La Belle Hougue at the North of the parish of Trinity.

Two Guide Books of the Forties of the last century expatiated at considerable length upon it.

The anonymous compiler of "A Week's Visit to Jersey," compiled after 1844, wrote concerning La Fontaine de Mirtre (p. 162):—

"At the foot of Belle Hougue point, we are told by one authority, there is a miraculous spring, which has the power of loosening the tongue, nay, even of giving speech to the dumb, provided that the draught be taken before sunrise.

"It is a mineral spring, of a ferruginous quality, called 'La Fontaine de Mirtre,' to which some few resort; but being in a part little frequented, and at some distance from any house, it is not so much sought after as if it were placed in a more favourable situation, added to which it is but little known, except to those who reside in the neighbourhood

"Its waters are said to be also a beneficial for sore eyes. The whereabouts of this tongue-loosening spring, my dear sister, your not being with us, we did not take the pains to verify. In our case, its virtues would, of course, have been superflous."(!)

The above account of "La Fontaine de Mirtre" or "Fontaine des Mittes," appeared in many Guide Books after 1844, and, in 1856, our old friend, Mr. Octavius Rooke, in his "Channel Islands" (pp. 65) "dedicated the following legend" to it:—

"In ages gone by, when yet the world was young, two fairies dwelt there, together they lived, enjoying all that was glad and beauteous upon God's earth. There was then no sin to mar, no crime that could pollute earth, heaven, sea, air and sky; all sang the Almighty's praise; sweet sounds of music rolled from sphere to sphere, and bright glad spirits wandered where now man slaves to gain his daily bread by the hard labour of his toil-worn hands.

"Down mid the ever-blooming flowers, these fairies sat-Arna and Auirna were their names—together they had lived and loved for many an age, but now their state was soon to change, for they had passed the time allotted to them on earth, and soon their God would place them in a still higher sphere of joy.

"Together, hand in hand, they sat, and while they gazed, an angel's form swept down, and thus he spoke:-

" 'Arm and Aiurna, I come to take thee to a new bright home beyond the Stars, there wilt thou be nearer placed to the Almighty throne.'

"Joy flowed through all their veins, they raised their hymn of praise, aloft they rose, led by the angel, up to where their seats in heaven should be for ever fixed among the blest.

"But, ere they went, the recollection of their long loved ones came o'er them, and from each sinless eye, one pearly drop fell down, pure as themselves, . . . these tears were earthly, so to earth they fell. But springing from those who so immortal were, they could not die; so up again from earth they sprang, and the twin fountain flows for ever, fraught with twin blessings to mankind."

This, as can be suspected, is a fabricated or made-up legend; it in nowise bears any resemblance to the native types. It was "dedicated" as Mr. Rooke put it, to the guardian fairies of "La Fontaine des Mittes," at Trinity.

Its subsequent history is interesting; in spite of its being an "imported" legend, it was translated into French by Mr. J. Le Bas, and the French version appeared in the "Almanach of the Chronique de Jersey" for 1891. It was re-translated and adapted by Major L'Amy in 1927 in his "Jersey Folk Lore," (pp. 63-66).

The water from this spring is still used for bathing sore eyes. Chemical analysis has revealed that it contains a mixture of Sodium, Calcium, Magnesium, Chlorine besides small quantities of Sulphuric Acid and Carbonic Acid.

Julius Caesar and Jersey

Julius Caesar and Jersey
By Philip Ahier

Former Historians of Jersey commenced their narratives by reproducing the several traditions handed down respecting the conqueror of the Gauls, but could Julius Caesar truly say regarding Jersey:—" Veni, Vidi, Vici ?"

The Rev. Philippe Falle, writing his "History of Jersey" (pp. 1 & 2 of the 1732 edition), said:—

"Caesar himself relates how he brought under subjection the Unelli, the Lexobii and other nations adjoining the maritime tract (De Bello Gallico, Lib. iii & vii). And accordingly we want not proofs of the Romans if not Caesar himself, coming amongst us?"

The Reverend gentlemen advanced several reasons why the Romans had occupied Jersey, but left the question of a personal visit by Julius Caesar to the Island severely alone.

John Patriarche Ahier, writing in 1852, commences his "Tableaux Historiques de Jersey," thus:—

"Jusqu'a ce jour tous les auteurs qui ont ecrit sur Jersey ne sont fort peu preoccupes de savoir quels etaient les premiers habitants de l'isle. Une legende qui ne repose sur aucune preuve historique est le point de depart que chacun adopte, mais pour un travail serieux it faut des bases plus solides."

["Until this day, all the authors who have written about Jersey have been very little concerned with knowing who the first inhabitants of the island were. A legend that is based on no historical evidence is the starting point that everyone adopts, but for serious work, more solid foundations are needed."]  

However, J. P. Ahier related the legend in the footnote:—"A lieutenant of Julius Caesar was supposed to have conquered Jersey in an osier boat lined with copper."

Then, on page 10, J. P. Ahier, when talking about the migration of the Gauls, says:—

"Animated by this instinct which always attracted them to the west, and continually seeing our Island before them, from the top of their neighbouring cliffs, it is quite possible that they crossed over in their rickety skiffs to spy out the land."

"The legend of the willow boat in which Caesar's lieutenant came to occupy the Island might very well be true and the tradition is not nullified except on a matter of dates."

But, as J. P. Ahier himself, in a footnote says, there were authorities, who, in 1852, maintained that Jersey, at the time of Caesar's conquest of Gaul, up till the eighth century, was part and parcel of the Continent!

Major J. H. L'Amy, in his "Folklore of Jersey," (p. 60), said that:—

"The Roman occupation was only temporary and the story told by ancient chroniclers that Caesar gave the Island to twelve of his Generals who divided it into the same number of curiae or parishes is nothing more than interesting legend."

“The story of Caesar's visit to Jersey is absolute legend, he himself gives an account of his campaigns against the Gauls in those four books so well known to schoolboys in classical forms, but there is no mention whatever therein that he came to the Island.”

“Former writers and chroniclers liked to think that Julius Caesar had visited Jersey, basing, as Falle did, their statement upon the existence of place-names containing Caesar or Cesaree.”

The story of the division of the Island into twelve parishes as originating from Caesar's General is, as Major L'Amy says, "an interesting legend."

The Legend of the Plank

Two commentaries on "The Legend of the Plank", one by Philip Ahier, followed by a second by myself which looks at the possible purpose of the story as a form of propaganda.

The Legend of the Plank
By Philip Ahier

This is one of the oldest traditions which has been handed down through the centuries.

We first meet it in Jean Poingdestre's "Caesarea" (1682, p. 75) in which he scouts the whole idea of Jersey's ever having been linked to the Continent:—

"Neither will I mention another yet more fabulous tale of the conjunction of Jersey to Normandy by a Plank or by a Bridge, which never was, unless it was before the Flood."

Then came Plees, in his "Account of Jersey," (1817, pp. 8-10), who wrote:—

"There is a legendary tradition that this Island was once so contiguous to France that persons passed over on a plank or bridge, paying a small toll to the Abbey of Coutances . . . it must have been at a remote period, as no historical account whatever records or alludes to it."

The story of the fiction was further elaborated in 1829 by M. l'Abbe Manet of St. Malo, who, in a work entitled "De l'Etat Ancien et l'Etat Actuel de la Baie du Mont St. Michel et de Cancales," wrote:—

"There is a belief founded on the most trustworthy authorities that long before the ocean encroached upon the Coast of France in the month of March, 701, Jersey, Guernsey and all the Islands of the Norman Archipelago were part of the Continent.

"There is even a tradition in Jersey—a tradition corroborated by a very old MS. (which we have read) that during the lifetime of St. Lo, who died on the 21st of September, 565, Jersey was separated only from its ecclesiastical diocese of Coutances by a small stream over which the inhabitants were bound to provide a plank for the Archdeacon of the Mother Church whenever he paid the Islanders a visit.

"But even though History remains silent on this point, the overwhelming belt of rocks which surround this Island and the others and which shelve more or less gradually towards the coast of France, would suffice alone to prove what we have put forward, for it is a fact, which can be verified every day by taking soundings, that if the whole of the English Channel were to become entirely dried up from Calais to Havre, only the abatement of the waters would leave equally dry the area between Batz and Ushant in such a way that the Archipelago would revert to what it was in the beginning—an integral part of Lower Normandy." (De La Croix in his "History of Jersey," Vol. 1, p. 4).

"To round off the argument which we have adduced, it is but necessary to glance at the English map of the Channel, published in 1794 by Thomas Geffereys, and better still, that of Mons. Buache, shewing the base of the Canal, inserted in the Journal of the Academy of Science, 1752."

It will be seen that the learned Abbot does not give the source and date of the very old MS. which he had had the privilege of reading. According to this ecclesiastic, the date of this cataclysm occurred in A.D. 701. It will be subsequently seen that various dates from A.D. 701-709 are given.

In 1834, William Inglis wrote his "Channel Islands", (Vol. 1, p. 77), and on the subject of the Plank, said:—

"There are traditions, not only that the chain of rocks formed, in remote times, a part of the Island, but that it was connected by a bridge with France.

"That the former may have some foundation is probable . . but that Jersey ever approached at any period, the shores of the Continent, is an assertion too ridiculous to merit examination. Marvels are always popular, and the people of Jersey are not less credulous than their neighbours."(!)

Both Inglis and Plees, who had probably not read Manet's treatise, were severely criticised by De La Croix for doubting the Legend of the Plank.

In 1835, the Rev. Edward Durell, in his Annotations to Falle's "History of Jersey," refers several times to the inundation or catastrophe:—

"Tradition and the local appearance of Elizabeth Castle confirm the supposition that all betwixt the Castle and the Town was once dry land," but he added, "at what period that precisely happened, it is now impossible to ascertain." (p. 289).

However, on turning to page 377, Mr. Durell makes a reference to M. l'Abbe Manet's hypothesis:—

"According to M. Manet, the great inundation of the sea which formed the Bay of St. Michel in France, happened in 708, long after the arrival of St. Magloire, and the death of St. Helier . . . But, . . . though the fact of those inroads of the sea is unquestionable, the date which we can reason from probabilities, must ever remain uncertain." (loc. cit. p. 377).

Then, when describing The Hermitage on page 433, Durell gave the date of the inundation as A.D. 704.

The next author to tackle the Legend of the Plank was Jean Patriarche Ahier in 1852, in his "Tableaux Historiques de Jersey." He was much influenced by M. l'Abbe Manet's hypothesis:—

"This tradition seems to me to have a sufficiently historical genuineness to mention it in a serious work. I refer to the Plank from which the Bishop or the Archdeacon of Coutances walked from France to Jersey previous to 709. Notwithstanding the fact that the story is similarly reported in Jersey and on the Continent, there is not agreement as to the site where the bridge stood. In Jersey, it is believed that it stood on the East coast at Rozel, at St. Catherine's, or at Mont Orgueil; but in the Cotentin the peasants maintain that it stood in the front of Regneville, at the bottom of the River Coutances.

"This tradition, by reason of its having been transmitted orally, has become distorted in time, but it seems to me easy to give its primitive character and to reconcile oral tradition with written ones." (loc. cit. p. 103).

Jean Patriarche Ahier did quote three authorities for his statements:—

(1) "The History of the Monks of St. Michel and of the Order of St. Benedict," where there is a reference to the right claimed by the Bishop of Coutances to use this bridge.

(2) Hermant, in his "Biography of the Bishops of Bayeux," speaks of the same bridge.

(3) Le Canu, in his "History of the Bishopric of Coutances," refers to the bridge. "There is an unshakeable tradition that Jersey was situated not far distant from the Continent by the length of a plank; this tradition is more widespread than the Diocese of Coutances." (also quoted by De La Croix "Jersey" Vol, 1. p. 5).

During the whole course of his "Tableaux Historiques," which he described as a "serious work," he only mentions three Legends, viz., The Plank, Caesar in Jersey, and La Hougue Bie, and with regard to the Legend of the Plank, he was compelled to admit that there was not agreement as to where the Plank (or Bridge) actually stood.

The next writer, who discussed at considerable length the "Legend of the Plank," and one who strongly argued in its favour, was De La Croix, in his "Jersey, ses Institutions, etc." (1858), (Vol. 1, p. 4.) He attacked Plees and Inglis. :—

"Si les auteurs ci-dessus avaient consulte de M. l'Abbe Manet, ils n'eussent assurement point ecrit d'une maniere aussi absolue et aussi tranchante sur un sujet qu'ils ne sent point donnes la peine d'approfondir. 

De La Croix gave a very graphic account of the cataclysm:—

"In 709 there occurred a violent invasion (encroachment) by the sea of the forest which bounded the area of the Diocese of Coutances.

"A south-westerly wind, which blew incessantly for three months with great violence, overturned the trees in the direction of the wind and gathered together the waters from the Ocean in such quantities from our coasts that the March tide-s overstepped their ordinary limits and overwhelmed a large stretch of country. "Nevertheless, it was only in 860, that all the forest was completely submerged and then the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, and Alderney found themselves further away from the Continent than hitherto." (loc. cit. Vol. 1, p. 4).

Mr. Joseph Sinel, in his monograph on "The Relative Ages of the Channel Islands", (B.S.J. Vol. VI, pp. 431-2), discusses the Legend of the Plank in two paragraphs:—

"This stream is supposed to have existed where there is now a depression of sea bottom, between the Bank known as "Les Boeufs" and the gently sloping shore of La Rocque at a distance of 9 miles from either shore as the land now stands.

"It was doubtless knowledge of the existence of this depression (it is 3 feet deep) which has given rise to the legend; an attempt to clothe old ideas in modern dress."

There is no doubt whatever that Jersey was at one time joined to the mainland of France, but the precise date when the separation took place is not definitely known; the matter comes within the purview of geology and pre-history rather than that of chronological history.

But whether a plank or bridge joined the Island to France is a moot point and until the original MS. referred to by M. l'Abbe Manet is unearthed, I prefer to suspend judgement thereon.

"In attempting to lift the veil between the historic and the prehistoric, a mass of conjecture, much of it of a controversial nature, is inevitable. There are many theories, one is that the Island was separated from France by a narrow stream spanned by a plank 2,000 years ago, and another that the inundation of the post-glacial forest of Scissy was cataclysmic in origin, the legendary lore of Brittany refers to the great upheaval of the 8th century, whilst others maintain that the process of land subsidence was gradual. Suffice it to say that where geological experts disagree, it is not within the province of the folklorist to arbitrate."

(J. Sinel, "Pre-historic Times and Men of the Channel Islands," p. 17)

The Legend of the Plank

By Tony Bellows

"They say," said Win, "that the space between the castle and the town was once a meadow. For that matter, they also say that the whole channel between here and France was once so narrow that the Bishop of Coutances used to cross to Jersey on a plank." ("The Spanish Chest" by Edna A. Brown)

The story of the plank first appears in Jean Poingdestre’s "Caesarea" of 1682, in which he mentions a "fabulous tale of the conjunction of Jersey to Normandy by a Plank or by a Bridge". This is elaborated by Plees in his 1817 "Account of Jersey" to mention that persons passing over the plank or bridge paid a toll "to the Abbey of Coutances"; Plees also notes that there is no historical records he can find for this.

The story has undergone variant forms since this, one in 1829 by l’Abbe Manet of St Malo in which the plank was laid down for the Archdeacon of Coutances when he visited. This is attributed to the lifetime of St Lo, around 500 AD, according to an old manuscript which Manet cites as having read, but singularly fails to mention where this could be found.

The evidence of geology is for the split from France taking place many years before historical times, yet there still persist people today who take this story, or its variants, as proof that the separation from France occurred in historical times, possible around 400 AD. But apart from this story, one has to ask what other evidence there is for such a theory. 

The cave at Belle Hougue is of singular importance for prehistoric times because it supplies evidence (in deer bones) which corroborates the geological record for Jersey being separated from France by a high sea level. One would expect similar evidence in support of this theory, and even better evidence in the form of historical documentation of some description, but none is forthcoming. There is no mention of churches or centres of population in the vast area presumed to have been swept away by the tides. The burden of proof must be on those who would overturn the geological record in favour of one story with poor documentation.

In fact, I see the treatment of the story here very much like that of the Creationists who take the book of Genesis as depicting literal historical events; there is an inability to understand what the story is really about.

The form of the plank story is clearly that of folklore rather than history. The story lacks any historical underpinning, and in its variant forms shifts forward and backwards quite easily, being set at the time of St Lo, around 500 AD, and at later times mentioned in connection with a catastrophic inundation around AD 700. The location of the plank is not mentioned on either side of the divide, but also shifts about. But the key to the story does exist, and it lies in one of the authorities mentioned by later writers - "The History of the Monks of Mont St Michael and of the Order of St Benedict", which contains a reference to a right by the Bishop of Coutance to use the plank or bridge.

Form criticism is the method of examining stories, in which we consider why a story was told in its original setting, and what purpose it had in the community in which it arose, and how the form developed. In stories like the plank, as with stories in which dragons feature, the story is told in a coded form akin to allegory. Symbols are representatives of something else, but this makes the story accessible to everyone, and so it is successfully communicated widely.

If we look at the legend of the plank from this context, we see that above all else it is an argument for the authority of the diocese of Coutance over the Jersey. It is saying that Coutance has religious authority and ties over Jersey, and the people of Jersey must pay respect to this authority. It is a story told when such authority might be a matter of dispute, when the Island might be becoming too independent in religious affairs, and it is set in the distant past precisely to give it the weight of authority; it says that this was the case in the distant past, before the present situation. This also explains the strange connection of the plank with the Bishop (or Archdeacon) of Coutances. Why else tell a story about the connection with France, and just mention a Bishop crossing?

Having said that, when do we date the story, and what communities do we place it in? The fact that one of the authorities ties back to Mont St Michel suggests that it is placed between 1000 AD and 1100 AD, when (according to Balleine) the continental Church was taking significant control over the Jersey Churches. If we place the writing of the Life of St Helier around this time, then we have two stories written to make differing claims.

The Life of Helier was clearly written to establish the independence of the Priory of St Helier from Coutances, while the Story of the Plank does the exact opposite. Notice how the Life of Helier talks of Helier as a hermit on an Island, which could only be reached by boats. The Plank says that this is untrue, around this time Jersey was almost part of France, an Island in name alone, and the Bishop used to visit regularly. It is the answer to the Life of Helier - the counter claim! The medieval map which once existed in Mont St Michel which showed an enlarged Jersey and a small channel between Jersey and France, is the geographical support for the same claim.

This was a time when the practice of forged documents purporting to have ancient provenance was rife. It must not be forgotten that with religious control came economic dues from the area under control, and so considerable wealth was involved; it was not just a religious matter, but one which also involved considerable financial gain!

Of course, the original context became lost in time, and like so many folk and fairy tales, it probably survived largely as an oral tradition, and was in time mistaken for history. People realised that Jersey was once part of France, but were not being able to date this scientifically; in this context, the story was retained as a "just so" story, and with the story of a great inundation around 700 AD, it changed its function.

There may well have been great inroads into the Jersey coast around 700 AD, but linked to the story of the plank, and with the need to separate Jersey geographically by the time of the Norman rulers, what was probably a purely local affair becomes a grand catastrophe, and a new ending to the story of the plank. Now it is Jersey’s own version of a Flood myth, or a Lost Continent (like the myth of Atlantis), where a vast tract of land is wiped out in a deluge, and is lost beneath the waves.

Postscript:

My piece was referenced in "Semantics of the Sea – Stories and Science along the Celtic Seaboard."
K. E. Kavanagh and M. R. Bates, School of Archaeology, History and Anthropology, University of Wales.

The part of the text referencing it is as follows:

Let us sail out from the British coast for a moment to the skirts of Jersey, where we can consider the Bishop of Coutances and his Plank. Whilst this story is a familiar one to Jersey islanders it is not so to other shores. In 1682 the historian Jean Poingdestre writes of a “fabulous tale of the conjunction of Jersey to Normandy” (Poingdestre, 1889) wherein the Bishop would cross back and forth by manner of a plank, or bridge. He maintains that the locals affirm the crossings to have occurred in the sixth century, which he queries. His queries are met with assertions explaining that until the eighth century the boundary was still shallow but a storm was caused by a priest in La Rocque profaning on hallowed soil, causing divine retribution in the form of a storm which swallowed the marshy plain beneath an engulfing sea. Variant forms of the alleged legend exist, setting it sometimes during a cataclysmic inundation in 700 AD and sometimes two hundred years earlier in the time of St Lo and some four hundred years later amongst the Monks of Mont St. Michel.  

The local historian Tony Bellows (Bellows, 2014) has taken a different slant to the interpretation, proposing the flood to be no more than a symbol of independence, the traversed plank to be a political allegory for Norman religious authority over Jersey.  Geologically we can be confident that the creation of a seaway between Jersey and France was created between 6500 and 7000 BP (Sturt et al., 2013) and despite the presence of significant stretches of terrain in the vicinity of the Ecrehous it would have been impossible to cross without sea-going craft from at least the Neolithic period thereby perhaps lending credence to Bellows hypothesis.

The Robin Hood Hotel

THE ROBIN HOOD HOTEL—Rouge Bouillion, St. Helier

By Philip Ahier

This hostelry at the corner of Val Plaisant and Trinity Hill was a sort of prison during the Bread Riots on May 17th, 1847.

These riots arose as the result of the workers making La Haule Road complaining at the high price of provisions, especially that of bread, compared with the terribly low wages they were receiving at the time, namely 2s. 0d. per day!

These workpeople gathered others from the Ship-building Yards at La Collette and those from the stores on Commercial Buildings and those working on the Pier; they arrived in the Royal Square shouting for cheap bread. The Riot Act was read outside the Royal Court House but this did not prevent the rioters from proceeding to the Town Mill in Grand Vaux which they attacked, grabbing bags of flour and loading two waggons with the commodity.

At this stage, the Constable of St. Helier (Peter Le Sueur) once again read the Riot Act outside the Robin Hood Tavern, 'as it was then known. One of the ringleaders of the rioters was arrested and lodged in the inn, but in the confusion that ensued he escaped by the back door, while the mob was trying to force open the front!

The Military was summoned from Fort Regent and closed the road leading to the Robin Hood Tavern. The carts laden with wheat and flour were 'captured', re-harnessed by horses and taken back to the Mill under military escort.

The Police arrested more rioters and lodged them in the Tavern taking precautions they did not escape!

The prisoners were later transferred to the prison in Gloucester Street and presented before the Royal Court.

A military guard was left outside the Town Mill, the Robin Hood Inn and the general vicinity for a fortnight after the riots.

On Thursday, June 3rd, 1847 fire broke out at the tavern, and before the first engine could reach it, the entire building was ablaze. It was eventually demolished, and replaced by the present building.

The accompanying crayon sketch of the Town Mill Bread Riots was made on the spot by an eye-witness, Mr. Mellish de la Taste then a young man of 24, the brother of Colonel John James de la Taste.

The sketch has an interesting history. After the death of Mr. M. de la Taste, some of his effects found their way into a second-hand shop in the early eighties of the last century.

Colonel de la Taste saw it lying between the window and some `junk' and suspected that it was his brother's drawing. He called in and asked "how much?", he was told and said he would think about it. The shop-keeper replied "better be quick about it as the Societe Jersiaise is after it". Whereupon, the Colonel put a golden sovereign and six shillings upon the counter and thus secured his brother's sketch!

While visiting Mr. M. de la Taste, Jnr., one evening some years ago, the writer noticed the drawing hanging on a wall and asked whether he could get a photographic reproduction thereof, to which Mr. de la Taste readily assented.

During the 1870's, The Robin Hood was the penny omnibus terminus. These were horse-drawn buses which travelled the town area.

The Inn has had a series of owners since it was rebuilt, until 1969, when it was purchased by the Ann Street Brewery Co. Ltd., in whose ownership it has since remained.

La Haule Manor by Philip Ahier

La Haule Manor
By Philip Ahier

As its name indicates, it is one of the first examples of an old Manor House being converted into a Hotel.

It is situated at the corner of La Route die La Haule and Le Mont au Roux (commonly known as La Haule Hill), in the Parish of St. Brelade.

The story of the Manor and its former owners was told by historian Julia Marett in the bulletin of the Societe Jersiaise (B.S.J. XIII p. 367-368), hence that which follows is a summary of her excellent monograph to which the writer acknowledges his indebtedness for the same.

There was a homestead in the locality as far back as 1430, when its owner, Guillaume de Marest, by his will, left the Manor with its gardens, the cotils of Le Mont de La Rocque (the hill west of the present La Haule Hill) to his elder daughter, who had married a Guernseyman by the name of Perrot Nicolas.

The Manor was forfeited to the Crown in 1488, because the heir of James Nicolas (son of Perrot) had not paid his dues to, the King. Later in that year John Cowper bought the Manor, but in 1498 he sold it to Nicolas Vallepy. Later, in 1501, he also sold a piece of land near La Haule called "La Rocque" to the same Nicolas Vallepy.

In 1513 Nicolas Vallepy sold the Manor to Thomas de Marest and hence it reverted into that family once again. Le Haule Manor descended from father to son .in this de Marest family until 1644 when it passed on to Suzanne, the sister of Elie Dumaresq (the family by this time had altered the spelling of their name). She married as her second husband Elie Marett.

Some interesting features are associated with the first Manor House.

1. In 1546, and again in 1621, the ammunition required for use at St. Aubin's Fort was stored here.

2. In 1626 the plague carried off some 120 persons from St. Brelade's Parish, including Elie Dumaresq of La Haule and his daughter. The register of St. Brelade's Church mentions that five servants from the Manor House were buried in the garden at La Haule.

3. Chevalier, in his 'Journal' (p. 323), tells that Sir Peter Osborne, the Governor of Guernsey, at the request of Charles, Prince of Wales, came to Jersey with his Chaplain, the Gentleman Porter of Castle Cornet, and stayed at La Haule Manor. The present Manor House was built in 1796, by Phillip Marett, who used a great deal of material from the old house, incorporating the shaped tops of the old windows and doors in the walls. The present cellars, no doubt are part of the original older building which seems to have faced the hill. The yard by which they are approached is much lower than the level of the present house. On the entrance door are the Arms of Payne-the three trefoils. Regarding the present Manor House, a tradition has been handed down that a Russian Soldier was killed while helping to build it, and was buried in the gardens. During the German Occupation, the Manor was requisitioned for the housing of a few German officers, who left the premises in an extremely dilapidated condition.

After such bad treatment, the Manor was converted into a first class hotel in 1952, by Mr. & Mrs. Parker, who opened it in 1953. Unfortunately, Mr. Parker passed away in September of that year, but the Hotel continued to prosper under the proprietorship of Mrs. A. Parker. Since then Mrs. Parker has completely modernised and renovated the property, and today it is one of the most popular first register hotels on the island.

La Folie Inn by Philip Ahier

La Folie Inn
By Philip Ahier

This inn is one of the six "Free Houses" in the town of St. Helier. It is owned by the States of Jersey and is administered by the Harbours and Airport Committee: it is also probably one of the oldest inns in the Town, and certainly, it has kept its original name throughout the two and a half centuries of its existence. It was termed `La Folie' as it was considered a piece of foolishness to build a house, hence a folly to do so, no matter of what type, so close to the sea, as there was every possibility that it might be overwhelmed by the waves, particularly when there was a strong south-westerly gale blowing.

The inn does not appear on a map of St. Helier compiled in 1700, but in Peter Meade's Map, prepared "pursuant to an Order of the Board of Ordnance, dated May 30th, 1737" (E. T. Nicolle, "The Town of St. Helier", p.30), there are three black rectangle's near the Town Pier not finished and very unsafe. The Town Pier was commenced in 1700.

It can: be assumed that one of these rectangles depicted the La Folie Inn, and thus it can be assumed that it was built at some date between 1700 and 1737.

There was at one time a leaden well pump which had the date 1823 embossed upon it. A tradition has been handed down that a hundred years before this date, La Folie Inn had been built, that is in 1733, which fits in well with the idea put forward: in the previous paragraph. De La Croix in his “Ville de St. Helier" says:

"In the space between Le Havre aux Anglais and the South Pier (Le Havre aux Francais) stood La Folie Inn built at the foot of a rock and which remains to this day (1850) although it has been completely rebuilt and faces the entrance of the harbour"-a photograph of a painting of the Inn, made in 1820, and kindly presented to the writer by "Mine Host and Hostess" certainly shows it in that position.

A sepia drawing of the South Hill and the Old Harbour of St. Helier, dated 1770, depicts the harbour very clearly, but it is difficult to decide among the buildings so delineated, which is the La Folie Inn. This drawing can be seen at the Museum in Pier Road.

It is pretty apparent why the hostelry was built at that spot. The workers employed on the new Harbour in 1700, needed refreshment, to sustain them in their strenuous labours, while those sailors returning from long sea voyages across the Seven Seas would be glad to have a drop of home brew!

There is a tradition prevailing that if a bona fide: sailor arrives in the non-prescribed hour of opening, the licensee must open the premises!

The hostelry has been nicknamed the Jolly Inn on account of the jollity sometimes associated with it!

The interior of the Inn is interesting; the ceiling of the lounge is adorned with a ship's wheel parallel to itself. During the War Years, the Inn was occupied by the Army of the Occupation Forces.

At the end of the hostilities the premises were then occupied by Mr. W. H. Machon, who stayed at La Folie as licensee till 1965, when he passed away, and was succeeded by his nephew. Mrs. B. Collingny then took over the license, which she held until 1972, when Mr. E. A. Langford became the licensee. At this time the Inn was completely refurnished, but without affecting its original seafaring atmosphere, which is a constant reminder that this is one of the oldest Inns in Jersey.

Among the distinguished persons who have patronised the Inn are the following film stars: - Rock Hudson, Yvonne de Carlo, and Michela Denis, the wife of Armand Denis.

The Story of the Shipwrecked Jersey Sailor who became a Monk

The Story of the Shipwrecked Jersey Sailor who became a Monk
By Philip Ahier

Le Comte de Chateaubriand in his Essay on "Les Revolutions Anciennes" (4th Edition, 1826, Vol. II pp. 384-387) told the story of a Jersey sailor who became a monk.

The distinguished French writer visited Gracioza, an island off the Azores on May 6th, 1794. Here he met the Jerseyman: "The chief brother who acted as our guide was a Jersey seaman whose vessel some years previously had struck the coast of Gracioza. He was the only survivor from the shipwreck. Not lacking in intelligence, he had noticed that there was only one occupation in the Island, that of being a monk! He determined to become one and became extremely interested in the lessons given to him by the Fathers; he learnt the Portuguese language and several Latin words. Eventually, because he was an Englishman, this erring sheep was brought back to the fold and made a priest.”

"The Jersey sailor, fed, housed, kept warm and having nothing to do but drink fayal (a kind of wine), found this mode of life much more congenial than unfurling the foresail on the top of a main yard. “

"He often remembered his former avocation. Having been so long without talking his native tongue (de Chateaubriand does not say which?), he was delighted to find someone who could understand it with the result that he laughed, he swore, he told us in truly sailor-like fashion, the scandalous history of Father So-and-So who was likewise present but who hadn't the slightest idea of the conversation which the English monk was regaling us! Then he promenaded us around the Island and took us to the convent.”

(At this point de Chateaubriand gave a description of the Island of Gracioza).

"Evening came, we partook of an excellent repast. Very pretty girls waited upon us with the wines. We gulped, fayal in large quantities. It was easy to see what was going to happen.

By one o'clock in the morning there was not a guest who could be seated in his chair! At 6 a.m. our Jersey monk told us in a stammering hesitant speech, punctuated with an English swear word only too well-known, that he was going to celebrate Mass immediately. We accompanied him to the church, when in less than five minutes the office had been performed ! Several Portuguese assisted very reverentially to the Sacred Office, while on our return we met many persons who bowed most obsequiously to the Monk's habit.

"The impudence with which this sailor, sodden with wine and debauchery, offered his arm to the crowd, amused me, but at the same time, I could not help, from the bottom of my heart, deploring the stupidity of mankind."

Part of the above story was originally reproduced by De La Croix in his "Ville de St. Helier" (p. 132), but unfortunately he gave the incorrect page. This necessitated having to consult the two volumes of de Chateaubriand's work on "Les Revolutions Anciennes" in order to get the complete story as De La Croix did not transcribe it all.

Entries of Burials in St. Martin's Parish Church Register of persons drowned off Jersey, 1665-1816.

Entries of Burials in St. Martin's Parish Church Register of persons drowned off Jersey, 1665-1816.

By Philip Ahier

The Parish Registers of St. Martin contain mournful accounts of lives that, from time to time, have been lost within sight of land with no one to help them.

The following extracts, translated from the French, were reproduced in the Parish Magazine for that Parish between the years 1890-1898 by a former Rector, the Rev. Thomas Le Neveu, the grandfather of the present Rector, the Rev. E. C. Lempriere.

September 1665

"On the last Saturday of September 1665, Clement Journeaux, Jean d'Assigni and Nicolas Baudayns, all three natives of this Parish, and Jean Dolbel of St. Saviour, were drowned at low water ... They were drowned at the rock called La Conchiee in Grouville Bay."

June 26th, 1667

"On June 26th, 1667, George Machon, son of Thomas, son of Helier left his house early in the morning to go trawling by la tour Perin at the north of Trinity Parish. He was drowned, no one knows how; his body was found twelve days after in Rozel Haven at the spot known as La Grasse Fosse."

February 9th, 1676

"On Friday, February 9th, 1676, Edouard Mallet son of Jean, Jean Le Huquet, Abraham Le Huquet, Lorans Le Moigne, his son Jean Le Moigne, Nicollas Noel, Pierre Giffard, Jean Le Huquet, son of Jean, Phil Renouf, and George Germain, ten men in all, were gathering seaweed at a spot called Rousetain in a boat belonging to Jean Le Huquet and his partners when it struck a rock and sank between 4 and 5 p.m. All the ten bodies were found near a rock called Le Repasseur des pierces on the following day."

March 6th, 1682

An account of a catastrophe which occurred in St. Ouen's Bay on March 6th, 1682, found its way into St. Martin's Parish Register although there are two discrepancies in this version as compared with an almost contemporaneous account found among the D'Auvergnes - MS. and reproduced in B.S.J. Vol. VI p. 52.

I have attempted to translate the story of this tragedy in readable English; some words are not to be found in any French. English Dictionary so only the essential details of the narrative are given:

"The following persons left le Havre de l'Etacq in a sloop: Mr. Jean Dauverne, Constable, Captain and Deputy for Monsieur de St. Ouen. Dlle Rachel le Montay, wife of the said Dauverne. Mr. Francoise Ricard, Centenier and Deputy for Monsieur Vinchelez de Bas. Mr. Pierre Le Brocq, Churchwarden. Mr. Philippe Dauverne, Master of the sloop. Jean Hacquoil, Parish Clerk and Constable's Officer. Esther Bellee, wife to the Parish Clerk. Mr. Jean Vautier, son of Jean, son of Edward. Jean Hamon, son of Jean Robele, man-servant of Mr. Jean Dauverne.

"They embarked for Le Havre de L'Etacq in order to catch oysters around the coast, they left an area known as La Demie Retraite from whence blew a fresh north wind. Unfortunately for them, they had hoisted sail and kept to the coast all the day. In the evening they attempted to return but foundered about half an-hour to three-quarters-of-an-hour after sunset. It was high tide between Le Pulec and Le Hurel at the hour stated; they were all drowned without any one being able to come to their rescue." (The rest of the account deals with the burial of the bodies). This was the surmise of the writer of this MS. account of the shipwreck tragedy. It must have made a deep impression upon the whole Island at the time, and hence one reason for its having been recorded in the Register of St. Martin where the scene of the wreck is definitely given as Le Pulle, whereas in the D'Auvergne MS., the rendering is Le Pimar.

July 31st, 1704

"On July 31st, 1704, Jean du Fresne son of Jean, Jean Germain son of Noe, Hugh Noel, Elie Starcq son of Jean, natives of this parish were interred. They were drowned on Sunday July 30th, with Jean Le Sueur of La Godellerie who was then one of the Churchwardens of the Parish of Trinity. There were also drowned, Thomas Le Riche du Catel son of Jean; Philippe Le Riche, nigh to Bouley; Hugh Whiller, son of Richard who was Prevost of that Parish and a son of Philippe Le Maistre, miller. The five from Trinity were buried in that churchyard the same day." "There was also a woman from St. Lawrence named Elizabhet (sic) Le Gros, the widow of Rouge Remon who had gone to see her son who was serving in one of the frigates."

"All the above persons had gone together to see the frigates which were anchored in Bouley Bay and were drowned by the overturning of the boat."

This entry is important as it indicates an instance of the English fleet cruising along the north coast of the Island in 1704. The War of the Spanish Succession had broken out in that year, and Louis XIV King of France was supporting the claims of his grandson as King of Spain and had declared War on England. A squadron of the English fleet had distinguished itself in the capture of Gibraltar on July 24th, 1704, while this squadron at Bouley Bay was ready to attack any French warship lurking in the vicinity.

March 1816

The last entry of burials of shipwrecked persons is the account of the interment of some of the French people drowned as the result of the sinking of the Balance in March 1816.

"On March 27th, 1816, Josephine Doucet, Sophie Bonnevie, Pelagie Poirrier, Edmond Briard, Louise Doubet, Jules Vigneau and Marguerite Bourgeoise, wife of Jacques Poirrier were buried in the cemetery of this Parish. They were drowned, with many others, on the Dirouilles on the night of the 23rd inst."