heroes, myths and legends of the west - visit jersey€¦ · heroes, myths and legends of the west...
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GPS 49.1849, -2.2026St. Brelade’s Church and BayParking by the church or in the centre of the bay.Our Neanderthal ancestors – Stand on the beach and look east with your back to the Church. There is a large buttress of rocks on the far side of the bay with a dark ravine in the centre. This is ‘La Cotte de St. Brelade’ - the mammoth hunters’ cave. Over 200,000 Paleolithic remains have been found here including mammoth bones, stone axes and even some Neanderthal teeth.
Heroes of The German OccupationIt is impossible to travel round the island without seeing the legacy of the occupation during the Second World War. The concrete sea wall was built by slave labour and St. Brelade’s Bay Hotel was used by German officers for recuperation after fighting on the front line. Two heroes of this time lived in the granite house at the western end of the bay, they were Lucy Schwab (pseudonym Claude Cahun) a French Jewish surrealist photographer and her step sister Suzanne Malherbe known as Marcel Moore. During the war, they took part in many acts of passive resistance. They were caught in 1944 and sentenced to death, but the liberation occurred before their execution. They are buried in the church yard and their gravestone can be found up against the south wall.
The Legend of St. Brelade’s Church The church dates back to the 11th century and possibly earlier. The legend is that when the building of the church began the workers dug the foundations on higher land in the middle of the bay, but each day they returned to work all
their tools and stones had been moved by the ‘fairies’ to the present-day location. This happened over and over again until it was decided to build the church by the beach.
GPS 49.1815, -2.2411Corbière car parkThe Lighthouse – First lit in 1874. The heroes here were the builders of this first concrete lighthouse. Since that time, it has kept many ships off the treacherous rocks.
Heroic RescuesOne famous shipwreck was the Express in 1859, the ship was smashed onto the reef, two passengers panicked, jumped overboard and drowned, the rest of the 108 crew members and passengers were rescued, along with three race horses. A more recent shipwreck was on Easter Monday 1995 when a fast ferry carrying 300 passengers hit rocks to the north of the lighthouse. Everyone was rescued by the lifeboats and other ships in the area. Now there is a granite memorial of two hands to commemorate the heroes of that day.
Peter LarbalestierAt the bottom of the slip there is a memorial to Peter, who was an assistant keeper at the lighthouse. On the 28th May 1946 he gave his life attempting to rescue a visitor cut off by the incoming tide.
GPS 49.2010, -2.2186Les Blanches Banques (Sand dunes car park)First World War Prisoner of War Camp, head south from this car park onto the dunes and you will find
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Heroes, Myths and Legends of the West
This two-hour tour of the west will take you from St. Brelade’s Bay, along the west coast and back through the countryside to finish in St. Peter.
Approximately 17 miles / 27 km
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concrete and brick remains of a prisoner of war camp from the First World War.
GPS 49.1981, -2.2170Neolithic RemainsHere you will find the ossuary, a small Neolithic grave with standing stones nearby. These were often known as ‘fairy stones’ and were associated with tales of hidden treasure.
The Legend of the Five Spanish GalleonsThere is evidence that this area of sand dunes was once farmland, but the legend is that the sand was blown over the land in a storm in 1484 after five Spanish ships were lured into the bay and wrecked. The local people plundered the ships and left the crews to drown and in retribution their fertile farmland was covered by blown sand. This area is now a Site of Scientific Interest with unique flora and fauna.
GPS 49.2153, -2.2254L’Ouziere car parkCross the road to the National Trust Wetland Centre.Frances and Dick Le Sueur, two local naturalists bought the land where the centre is and were instrumental in helping save the bay from development.
Philippe De Carteret – The wetland area here is called La Mare Seigneur or St. Ouen’s Pond. It is the largest area of natural fresh water in the Channel Islands. Once owned by the De Carteret Family who have been the Seigneurs (Lords) of St. Ouen’s Manor for centuries. Read the story in the Wetland Centre of Sir Philippe and his black horse.
GPS 49.2380, -2.2424L’EtacqThe Manoir de Brequette fact or fiction?The beach here is not always sand and if you look below the wall you may notice some dark areas amongst the shingle. Look more carefully and find the remnants of the 5000-year-old forest of L’Etacq from when sea levels were much lower.
GPS 49.2571, -2.2456GrosnezGrosnez CastleA place of refuge in the 14th century but dismantled in the 16th century to help fortify St. Ouen’s Manor.
GPS 49.2569, -2.2268Plemont headlandJersey National Trust and Mike StentifordOnce the site of Pontins Holiday Camp which closed in 2000, this area has been re-wilded thanks to the efforts of the National Trust for Jersey, and many others, who fought a long battle to stop housing being built on the site. In June 2014, the government agreed to match the National Trust pound for pound and buy the site to halt any further developments.
GPS 49.2460, -2.2010Grève de LecqThe Legend of the PaternostersFrom the beach, you can see a reef of rocks. These are called the Paternosters (Latin for Our Father). The story is that when Helier De Carteret sailed to colonise Sark in 1565, the winds blew up and one of the boats was shipwrecked on the reef. Since then the fishermen always said their prayers or ‘paternosters’ as they passed the reef.
GPS 49.2267, -2.1977St. Ouen’s ManorGPS 49.2129, -2.1825St. Peter’s VillageThe De Carteret Family – The De Carteret family have been Seigneurs of the manor since the 12th century. It is not normally open to the public, apart from guided walks, but can be seen through the trees. One of the more significant members was George Carteret who is remembered with a statue in St. Peter’s village and a pub named after him. He was on the island during the Civil War and was a staunch royalist who helped shelter Charles II when he was in exile in the island and was given ‘New Jersey’ as thanks for his loyalty.
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To find out moreAbout some of the people and stories www.jerseyuncovered.com
To do a guided walk in the area you could find a guide at www.jtga.org
There is more information about the Wetland Centre at www.nationaltrust.je
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Area Tower Wildlife Park
Prehistoric Site Church Fort National
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Click for more info Cafe Castle /
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WCToilets Petrol
Station Kiosk Museum HL
Heritage Let
Town Centre
Heroes, Myths and Legends of the West
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