Jethou

Jethou
Island
Jethou from St. Peter Port, Guernsey
Motto:  Vigilare et admonere
This is a map of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Jethou is just south of Herm.
Coordinates (isle): 49°27′N 2°28′W
Crown dependency	Guernsey
Seat	Manor House
Area
• Total	0.06875 sq mi (0.1781 km2)
Population  (1996)
• Total	3
• Density	44/sq mi (17/km2)

Jethou (/ʒɛˈtuː/ zhe-TOO) is a small island that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey in the Channel Islands. It is privately leased, and not open to the public.

It is immediately south of Herm and has an area of approximately 44 acres (18 ha).

History

See also: History of Guernsey and Archaeology of the Channel Islands

There is evidence of flint manufacturing in an area exposed only at low water between the island and Crevichon which shows occupation around 10,000 BC.

It is said that in AD 709 a storm washed away the strip of land that connected the island with Herm.

The Viking name for the island was Keitholm.

The island's name contains the Norman -hou suffix, meaning small island or small hill.

In 1416, it became part of Henry V's estate and still remains a Crown lease and now owned by the States of Guernsey.

On the top is a marker. It is said that in earlier times, pirates were hanged on it with chains, as on nearby Crevichon.

Modern history

An aerial shot showing Jethou centre right next to its bigger neighbour Herm, with Sark in the background and the east coast of Guernsey.

In 1867 Lt Colonel Montague Fielden became tenant however he was discovered using the island as a storehouse for smuggling Brandy.

From 1920 to 1923 it was leased by the Scottish novelist Compton MacKenzie along with Herm and remained part of that estate for years, although it is currently part of a different one.

The British 1957 musical Free as Air by Dorothy Reynolds & Julian Slade was set on the fictitious island of 'Terhou', which was based on Jethou.

From September 1964 until December 1971 the island was occupied by the Faed family consisting of Mr Angus Faed, his wife Susan Faed and their four children, Colin, Erik, Colette and Amanda. Mrs. Susan Faed was the 22nd tenant of Jethou.

In 1972, Charles Hayward, founder of the Firth Cleveland Group of Companies, purchased the Crown Tenancy of the island and lived there with his wife Elsie Darnell George until Sir Charles's death in 1983.

It is flanked by two islets, Crevichon to the north and Fauconniere to the south. There is one house on the island and two cottages as well as a large garage where vehicles such as quad bikes and tractors are stored.

It is now leased by Sir Peter Ogden of IT company Computacenter.

Recognised in 2016 as an area of international environmental importance under the Ramsar Convention.

Politics

Unlike the largely autonomous islands of Sark and Alderney within the Bailiwick, Jethou is administered entirely by the States of Guernsey, and elects members to the States of Deliberation as part of the St. Peter Port South electoral district.

Wildlife

At the back (east) of Jethou, puffins can be seen swimming off the rocks.

See also

• List of tenants of Jethou

Bibliography

• BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names (Oxford University Press, 1971) ISBN 978-0194311250

External links

• Jethou Homepage Dead link
• Free Gutenberg Project book, a Crusoe-like novel on Jethou
• Stamps from Isle of Jethou
• Island of Jethou at Britlink Dead link