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Hundred Years War: Burning, looting, besieging
THE Hundred Years War between England and France put the Channel Islands in the front line of a conflict which, in reality, lasted from 1337 to 1451.
And it did not take the French long to capitalise on the exposed position of Jersey just 14 miles from the Norman coastline and some 30 miles from Brittany.
In 1338 Admiral Nicholas Béhu-chet, whose background is thought to have been in the law rather than as a seafarer, set sail for the Channel Islands with a large fleet.
He landed troops in Jersey, and, after the usual round of burning and looting, they settled down to besiege Gorey Castle.
That they meant to conquer the Island is evidenced by the length of their stay. The troops and the Admiral remained before the castle walls for at least six months.
During the course of the siege the Seigneur of Rosel, Jean de Baren-tin, was killed while leading a sortie against the French forces.
However, in spite of the length of the siege, the castle resisted, and Béhuchet withdrew, going on to see if he could do better in Guernsey.
There his tactics succeeded, and as well as capturing the island he subdued Castle Cornet and went on to occupy Alderney and Sark.
A year or so later, the French made a second assault on Jersey.
This time the leader was Robert Bertrand, Marshal of France and Seigneur of Bricquebec, the Coten-tin town where the seigneurial castle can still be seen today.
According to contemporary documents relating to the invasion, Bertrand was accompanied by other noblemen and some 8,000 soldiers. The force was conveyed to the Island in 17 Genoese galleys and 35 ships from Norman ports.
Bucking tradition, Bertrand neither attacked nor pillaged. Instead he invited representatives of the Jersey population to discuss the situation and the plight they were undoubtedly in.
He said that if Gorey Castle were surrendered, the French king would treat the Islanders favourably, respecting their traditional liberties and allowing them to retain their lands. Contemporary evidence shows that the response was uncompromising. Jersey’s answer was that while ten men remained alive to defend the castle, there would be no surrender.
Bertrand then took his time, surveying the castle from land and sea.
The results of his investigation were not to his liking. He concluded that Gorey was so well defended that he stood no chance of defeating its garrison.
After allowing his troops to burn and plunder in the conventional fashion, he weighed anchor and sailed off, never to return.
In 1340 Admiral Béhuchet, the man who had begun Hundred Years War operations against the Channel Islands, found himself fighting the English at the Battle of Sluys.
His fleet was at anchor in a wide inlet in the Low Countries where it was attacked by English vessels led by King Edward III.
After hand-to-hand fighting and the employment of fireships, running down on the French fleet to set it ablaze, the English recorded a resounding victory.
Legend has it that Béhuchet himself managed to wound Edward. More reliably, history records that Béhuchet was captured and hanged from the mast of his own ship.
Also in 1340, the French occupation of Guernsey and Castle Cornet (established by Béhuchet two years earlier) was ended by the English.
Significantly, it was Edward III who, in 1341, confirmed the rights and privileges of the Channel Islands as special possessions of the Crown.
No doubt in the realisation that the French had tried to undermine Channel Island loyalty by an offer of their own, Edward issued a charter, saying:
‘Considering how faithfully the beloved men of our isles maintained their loyalty toward the King of England, and how much they have suffered in defence of their islands, and of our rights and honour, we concede for ourselves and our heirs that they hold and retain all privileges, liberties, immunities and customs granted by our forebears or of other legal competency, and that they enjoy them freely without molestation by ourselves, our heirs or officers.’
This, as Channel Islanders are proud to proclaim, is a charter that has never been revoked.
This article originally appeared as part of the Jersey Evening Post Crowns in Conflict series, compiled for the 1204-2004 celebrations.
author - Rob Shipley
This article updated: 2004/07/15 13:36:07
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| ......timelines...... |
| In 1843 Sir John le Couteur bred Beauty, the pedigree Jersey cow regarded as the first example of the modern breed. |
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