Nestled between England and France, Jersey is the most southerly Island of the British Isles. It is located some 100 miles south of mainland Britain yet only 14 miles from the coast of France. Despite its small size - Jersey measures just nine miles by five - all your senses are made to work overtime in this tiny Island, packed with natural beauty and a host of hidden treasures just waiting to be explored.

History
The cultural landscape of Jersey - its Norman style farmhouses, the narrow winding lanes and small fields, the French street names - reflect a fascinating and complex history that has entwined the Island in the fate of two great nations, Britain and France, for over one thousand years.

Even Jersey’s prehistoric period produced a rich legacy of artefacts. Around 250,000 years ago, when Jersey was a rocky plateau lying in a low plain, Palaeolithic men followed herds of animals across Europe. Remains of these men and their prey have been found in one of the most important Palaeolithic sites in Europe, La Cotte de St Brelade. (For reasons of safety and preservation, this area is closed to the public). Remnants of a great French forest that existed over 10,000 years ago, when the Island was still part of the continent can occasionally be seen today at St Ouen when there is a low tide. La Hougue Bie is another very impressive prehistoric site, some 30 feet (9 m) long, four feet  (1.2 m) high and roofed with flat, rectangular capstones. Made of earth, limpet shells and rubble it houses a Neolithic passage grave built about 3000 BC.

While Christianity likely came to the Island in Roman times, it was Jersey’s own hermit and martyr, St Helier who put Jersey on the Christian map in the sixth century. St Helier lived and preached at a site just south of Elizabeth Castle and was probably murdered by Saxon pirates. Six hundred years after his death, the oratory, now known as the hermitage, was built on the rock to honour the saint.

While Jersey’s size and location had always made the Island vulnerable to pirates of one kind or another, it was the Viking marauders from the north, or Normans as they were called, that were to have the greatest impact. All through the summer months of the ninth century Norman pirates would plunder the Island. The French King - Charles the Simple - decided the only way to stop them was to bargain with their chief known as Rollo. So in exchange for peace, Rollo got the lands around Rouen later known as Normandy. Thus was forged an important link in Jersey’s connection with France for it was Rollo’s son William who, when he became Duke of Normandy, incorporated the Channel Islands into the duchy. Much of Jersey’s laws, landscape and customs date back to the period of Norman rule between 933 and 1204. It was the same William who conquered England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and thus created the link with the English Crown.

Norman rule prevailed until 1204 when a descendant of William, King John, decided to war with France and lost. In 1204, the Channel Islands were given a choice - pledge their allegiance to England or France. England won!

This pledge of allegiance came with a price over the centuries as England and France were often at war with each other. Not only was the Island in danger because of its own proximity to the French mainland but also a first line of defence against a French invasion of England. So fortifications against the French can be seen all around the Island. Mont Orgueil Castle was built by direct order of King John himself to guard the approaches to the Island’s east coast; Elizabeth Castle named after the Tudor English Queen was built in the sixteenth century to defend the growing town of St Helier and, later on in the 1770’s, the coastline was literally littered with a series of defensive towers designed to protect the Island from Napolean’s advances.

These defences were penetrated by the French on several occasions. In 1461 French troops seized Mont Orgueil Castle itself and from it ruled the Island with great severity for 7 years. In 1781 a French expedition managed to land at La Rocque one January night and march right into St Helier without a shot being fired against them. It was only the bravery of an English officer, Major Pierson, that prevented further French occupation.

The relationship between the British Island of Jersey and the American state of New Jersey can be traced back to the English Civil War. During that war, King Charles II twice took refuge in Jersey, first as Prince of Wales and then as exiled King of England. The Island's loyalty was rewarded when King Charles gave Smith's Island and some neighbouring islets off Virginia to Sir George Carteret with permission to settle. Sir George renamed them New Jersey. The original venture failed but a grant from the Duke of York in 1664 gave Sir George Carteret, Lord of the Manor of St Ouen joint ownership of the territory which is now known as New Jersey.

But if there was an occupation that was to leave the greatest mark on the Jersey landscape and etch a deep furrow in the Jersey psyche it was the German occupation that lasted between 1940 and 1945. Despite gallant and heroic acts of bravery shown by Channel Islanders in rescuing British troops at Dunkirk, Churchill determined that the islands could not be defended and declared them demilitarised. Once again, Jersey islanders had to make a terrible decision - to evacuate to England leaving homes and loved ones behind or stay and face a very uncertain future. In round figures some 10,000 did leave, many to join the armed forces, and some 40,000 stayed.

Under Hitler’s direct order an elaborate system of fortifications were built in both Jersey and Guernsey, the remains of which are very much in evidence today. These fortifications were built by slave labour from countries as widely dispersed as Spain, Russia, Poland and the Ukraine. They lived under the most appalling conditions and islanders who sheltered them, when they escaped, faced punishment as severe as that meted out to the prisoners themselves.

Jersey Flag
The present Jersey flag (a red diagonal cross on a white background, with three gold lions on a red crest surmounted by a gold crown in the top triangle) replaced the old, unofficial flag (the same without crest and crown) in 1979. The presidents of the States committees decided in the jubilee year (1977) to commemorate the event by getting an officially recognised flag. People and Government Jersey is a parliamentary democracy that is a dependency of the British Crown. It is a British island, but is not part of the United Kingdom, nor is it a colony. The Island's link with the United Kingdom and the rest of the Commonwealth is through Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, who as the Sovereign is the Head of State. The Sovereign is represented in the Island by the Lieutenant Governor, through whom official communications with the Lord Chancellor on behalf of Her Majesty's government in the United Kingdom are directed.The Island's parliament is the States of Jersey which consists of 53 elected members from a mix of island wide and parochial constituencies. Executive government is currently managed by committees of the States, but in September 2001, the States resolved to move to a ministerial system of government - arrangements for which are in the course of being developed. Acts of the Westminster Parliament do not apply routinely to the Island. For convenience, however, United Kingdom legislation does, from time to time, include the Island directly or by extension by order of Her Majesty in Council, with such amendments as may be required; but in each case only with consent given that the Island sends no representatives to Westminster. By convention the United Kingdom has assumed responsibility for the Island's foreign affairs, but even in those matters, the United Kingdom only acts with the consent of the States of Jersey. Accordingly, the States can, and frequently does, legislate independently to implement international agreements. The administration is in effect parallel with that of the United Kingdom rather than subordinate to it. The Island has a special relationship with the European Union by virtue of Protocol 3 to the United Kingdom's Treaty of Accession to the European Economic Community. The primary language of commerce and everyday life is English although some residents - especially older people living in the rural areas - still speak the native Jersey French or Jérriais which is a blend of Norse and Norman French. Until the 1960’s French was still the official language of Jersey and is still used in courts of law and by the legal profession. Most of the street names in Jersey are also in French.

Governance
Jersey is not, nor ever has been, a British colony. Constitutionally, its status is that of a Crown Peculiar and, because it is presided over by a Bailiff, its structure is that of a Bailiwick. While Jersey makes its own laws, it has continued to pledge allegiance to the English Crown since 1066 when William Duke of Normandy became King William 1 of England. The Lieutenant-Governor is appointed by the English Crown and acts as a personal channel of communication between the States Assembly and the UK Government. The key legislative body is known as The States (Les Etats) that comprises 53 elected independent members. There are no political parties in Jersey, no cabinet and no prime minister. The elected States Assembly consists of 12 Senators, 29 Deputies and 12 Constables (connetables). The deputies are elected for three years and the Senators for six. The Constables are elected as civil heads of their parishes for three years and sit in the states by virtue of their office. The States is presided over by the Bailiff who is also head of the Royal Court. The Bailiff is aided in his work as head of the judiciary by a Deputy Bailiff and the 12 elected Jurats - judges of fact. By combining what are in effect three roles - President or Speaker of the States, head of the judiciary and civic head, the bailiff is regarded as Jersey’s finest citizen. The Island’s business is run by committees each one reflecting the activities of one of the government departments. Committee presidents are elected by the States and together with their committee members become, in effect, chairman and board of directors to their departments. A Central Committee (Policy and Resources) has as its remit the coordination of policy and strategy but has no power to ordain events or dictate policy. This happens through a process of consultation and influence. Jersey is divided into 12 parishes, all having access to the sea. The Civil Head of the Parish is the Constable (Connétable) who presides over the Parish Assembly at which all ratepayers and voters are entitled to express an opinion to vote. Income to maintain local services such as lighting, rubbish collection and local welfare projects is derived from rates paid by property owners. Jersey residents pay annual income tax to the States - albeit at a lower rate than their counterparts on the British Mainland. Value Added Tax is not levied in the Island. Jersey is not a member of the European Union.The Countryside
The Island of Jersey covers 45 square miles (116 square kms). Much of its countryside has remained unchanged because of the Island’s planning laws and the Island Plan which incorporates the following development strategies: Green Zone - No development
Sensitive Landscape Areas - Strong presumption against development with occasional exceptions to agricultural development
Agriculture Priority Zone - only Agricultural development permitted The rural environment consists largely of open fields, woodland, cliffs and headland, small country lanes, trees and hedgerows. Most of the fields are small, bordered by granite walls or hedgerows and accessed from small country lanes. Cotils (steep south facing slopes) are also used extensively for farming of the Jersey Royal potato and other crops. There are 450 miles (720 kms) of road in Jersey, most of which are quiet country lanes with little traffic (St Helier and the main arterial roads are busy). These roads are ideal for walking, cycling and horse riding.

Jersey also has a network of over 40 miles (64 kms) of ‘Green Lanes’. These quiet, country lanes have a speed limit of 15 mph (24 kph) and give priority to walkers, cyclists and horse riders. ‘Green Lanes’ exist in all but three parishes and it is anticipated that the network will be extended to all 12 parishes over the next few years to provide a linked island-wide network. There is also a cycling network which includes coastal and rural cycle routes together with an Airport cycle route. The network consists of 96 miles (154 kms) of on-road routes and an off-road track running all the way along the south coast to Corbière.