Écréhous
Native name: Les Écréhous,Êcrého | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of the Ecrehos. | |
 | |
| Geography | |
| Location | English Channel |
| Coordinates | 49°16′59″N1°55′59″W/ 49.283°N 1.933°W |
| Major islands | Maîtr'Île La Marmotchiéthe Lé Bliantch'Île |
| Administration | |
Jersey | |
| Parish | St. Martin, Jersey |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 |
| Official name | Les Écréhous & Les Dirouilles, Jersey |
| Designated | 2 February 2005 |
| Reference no. | 1455[1] |
TheÉcréhous(or inJèrriais:Êcrého) are a group ofislandsand rocks that are six miles (9.6 km)northeastofJersey.They are eight miles (12.8 km) away fromFrance.They are part of theParish of St. Martinin theBailiwick of Jersey.
History
[change|change source]Church
[change|change source]In 1203,John, Duke of Normandygave the Ecrehos to theAbbey of Val-Richerso that they could build achurchthere.[2]
The monks went back to Val-Richer in 1413. Their church on La Maîtr'Île slowly becameruins.[3]
Crimes
[change|change source]In the 17th century, the Ecrehos were used bysmugglers.The main items smuggled through the Ecrehos in the 1690s wereleadandgunpowder.Those items were being sent toSt Malô.[4]
To controlvotingin Jersey,citizenswere often kidnapped and left on the islands until after the voting was finished.[4]: 72
International Court of Justice case
[change|change source]In 1950,Francestarted a case against theUnited Kingdomin theInternational Court of Justice(ICJ). The case was to decide which country owned theMinquiersand Ecrehos. TheFrenchfished there, butJerseymade the laws. In theMinquiers and Ecrehos case,the ICJ considered thehistoryof the area. It gave the islands to Jersey on November 17, 1953.[5]
Islets
[change|change source]The biggestisletsin the group are:
- Maîtr'Île
- La Marmotchiéthe ('La Marmotière' ingallicizedform)
- Lé Bliantch'Île (La Blanche Îlein gallicized form)
Some of the others are:
- Les D'mies
- La Grand' Naithe
- L'Etchièrviéthe
- Lé Fou
- La Froutchie
All of them but the biggest three go underwater athigh tide.There is nofresh wateron the islands. Nobody lives on any of them. Due toerosion,they are now much smaller than they may have been in thepast.Maîtr'Île, the biggest islet, is about 300 metres (0.19 mi) long.[6]
References
[change|change source]- ↑"Les Écrehous & Les Dirouilles, Jersey".RamsarSites Information Service.Retrieved25 April2018.
- ↑Balleine's History of Jersey.p. 26.ISBN1860776507.Balleine's History of Jersey,1998
- ↑Balleine, George Reginald (1951).'The Bailiwick of Jersey'.Hodder & Stoughton Ltd.ISBN0340002670.
- ↑4.04.1Cooper, Glynis (2008).Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths in Jersey.Casemate Publishers, 2008.ISBN9781845630683.
- ↑"Minquiers and Ecrehos (France/United Kingdom): Summary of the judgment of 17 November 1953".icj-cij.org.International Court of Justice.
- ↑Coysh, Victor (1985).Channel Islets: The Lesser Channel Islands.Guernsey Press Co Ltd.ISBN0902550128.