Brecqhou
| Brecqhou | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Waters | English Channel |
| Archipelago | Channel Islands |
| Geographical location | 49 ° 25 '53 " N , 2 ° 23' 14" W |
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| length | 950 m |
| width | 690 m |
| surface | 60 ha |
| Highest elevation | 70 m |
| Residents | 2 3.3 inhabitants / km² |
| main place | Fort Brecqhou |
 on a map from 1857 |
|
Brecqhou ( English also Brechou , French Brecqhou - from Old Norse brekka , steep slope and holm , island) is one of the small Channel Islands . It is only 180 meters west of Sark , separated by the Gouliot Passage . Between Brecqhou and Sark is the small rock Moie S. Pierre , also Moie du Gouliot . Brecqhou reaches a height of 70 meters.
Politically Brecqhou is one of Sark, the (English again a part of the Bailiwick bailiwick ) Guernsey 's. The Channel Islands are neither part of the United Kingdom nor crown colonies , but as crown possessions (English crown dependencies ) directly under the British crown.
In the feudal system Sark Brecqhou has under the name La Moinerie de Haut status Quarantaine Tenements , that is one of the parcels of land whose owners must have a gun to the Dating back to the 16th century edition of the feudal lord, the Seigneur of Sark , to be able to meet: The island must be permanently occupied by at least 40 armed men. This status was of particular importance until recently because it was linked to a seat in the island's parliament until 2008. The rights, obligations and name of the Tenements La Moinerie de Haut are originally linked to a plot of land on Sark itself, which has been in the possession of the Seigneurs since 1835; when the Dame of Sark sold Brecqhou in 1929, she transferred the legal status of this tenement to the island.
The island was originally part of the Vinchelez fiefdom in Jersey and came into the possession of the La Marchant family of Guernsey from 1363 to 1681. It was therefore also called 'Île des Marchands'. The English version of Merchant Island can be found on a map of Sark Island from 1680 . It was later acquired by the Seigneurs von Sark, who sold it again in 1929. From 1966 to October 6, 1987, the island was owned by Leonard Joseph Matchan , who bought the island for £ 44,000. Since 1993, the island has belonged to twin brothers David and Frederick Barclay , co-owners of the Daily Telegraph and The Scotsman , who have turned it into an extensive park and have owned a Gothic castle that dominates the island since 1996. For a long time the island was hermetically sealed and only accessible to guests and employees of the Barclays; strictly regulated tourist visits have been possible since 2012.
The island's owners dispute its status as part of Sarks and are trying to politically separate it from the neighboring island. They are of the opinion that Brecqhou does not belong to the Sark area, as it is not mentioned in the deed that established this fief in 1565, nor in any other deeds related to Sark. The island was later - 1681 at the earliest - also came into the possession of the seigneur, but was sold again in 1929 - the retention of the seigneur's privileges was invalid, since Brecqhou was never part of the fief. The privileges mentioned traditionally include the fact that the seigneur must agree to sell the island and receive a thirteenth of the sales price (which has now been replaced by a property sales tax); Last but not least, the legislative competence of the island parliament, Chief Pleas. The former owner Matcham had already issued its own stamps in 1969, the Barclay brothers have been doing this annually since 1999.
Since the thesis of the Barclays is based only on the non-mention in documents of the 16th and 17th centuries, the island is still considered by the Seigneur of Sark as part of his territory. In addition to a court case between 1996 and 2000, a Brecqhou Liaison Sub-Committee established in 2006 in Sark's parliament should help clarify the matter.
gallery
View from Sark
View from Sark with Herm in the background
Barclays mansion, modeled after a castle
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sark chart
- ↑ Hill Bagging: Brecqhou
- ^ Alfred H. Ewen, Allan R. de Carteret: The Fief of Sark. With Foreword by La Dame de Serk. Guernsey Press, Guernsey 1969, p. 120f: The transfer meant no loss for the Dame of Sark , as she also had other tenements and had only one vote in Chief Pleas, regardless of their number.
- ↑ Thomas Phillips: The Island of Sarck (1680)
- ^ Julia Hunt: Fort Brecqhou. The island of the Barclay billionaires. ( Memento of February 10, 2013 in the web archive archive.today ) Retrieved on December 12, 2013.
- ↑ General Purposes & Finance Commettee. Report to Chief Pleas 22nd February 2007. Report from the Brecqhou Liaison Sub-Committee. ( Memento of October 15, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF file; 1.26 MB).
