Elizabeth Castle
Elizabeth Castle (occasionally, also in English publications, misspelled as Elisabeth Castle ) is an island fortress built from the 16th century with a size of about 24 hectares on a tidal island off Saint Helier , the largest city on the Channel Island of Jersey . It was used until 1923 and re-attached during the German occupation of Jersey 1940–1945. Today Elizabeth Castle is a tourist attraction.
division
The castle consists of five main parts:
- Upper Ward ( upper district ), highest altitude and oldest part of the castle
- Lower Ward ( lower district ), with Governor House and Paradeplatz
- Outer Ward ( outer ward ),
- with the later integrated parts of the formerly independent outpost of Fort Charles
- Breakwater and Hermitage rocks
history
Beginning with the introduction of gunpowder and cannons in warfare, it became clear that Mont Orgueil Castle on the east coast of Jersey was no longer up to the task of defending the island. A tidal island in front of Saint Helier was chosen as the location for a new castle that could withstand this , which was also to serve as an anchorage for ships.
The entrenchment of the complex began between 1550 and 1551 when a gun platform was built on the highest part of the island. Around 1590, Queen Elizabeth I sent her military engineer, Paul Ivy, to Jersey to oversee the construction of the upper ward - the oldest part of the castle. Sir Walter Raleigh , Governor of Jersey from 1600 to 1603, named the castle after her as Elizabeth Castle after it was completed .
The castle was enlarged during the 17th and 18th centuries: around 1640 an entrenched windmill was built on the - then - green area in front of the castle , and the western bastion was created around 1660. Two small offshore tidal islands, which were created as outposts, were included in the area in 1668 by widening and lengthening the outer walls, whereby the tidal trenches were closed. In the first half of the 18th century the lower district was redesigned, officers 'quarters and a soldiers' barracks were built.
During the English Civil War , the heir to the throne Charles, Prince of Wales , later Charles II , fled to the castle for a few months in the summer of 1646 .
The disadvantage of the tides became apparent during the French invasion of Jersey on January 6, 1781: the troops of the castle could not take part in the defense of St. Helier because they were cut off from the coast by the tide. Then a new city fortress was built for St. Helier - Fort Regent. Elizabeth Castle continued to be used as a military garrison until that use was abandoned in 1923 and sold to Jersey State.
Between 1940 and 1945, the military function was revived: the Todt organization built observation and fire control towers using forced labor, demolishing old areas of the castle . The area of the breakwaters also goes back to this occupation.
The castle today
In 1945 the castle fell back into the control of the States of Jersey , which began to conserve and restore the castle from the 1950s. Today it is used for tourism.
literature
Jersey Heritage (Ed.): For the love of the castle: Elizabeth Castle . No place, no year, no ISBN. (German)
Web links
- Elizabeth Castle on the Jersey Heritage pages.
- Elizabeth Castle on the pages of gov.je
Coordinates: 49 ° 10 ′ 30 " N , 2 ° 7 ′ 30" W.