Saint Mary, Jersey
| Saint Mary Jèrriais: Sainte Mathie | |
| Jersey | |
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| Population: | 1,752 |
| Island: | Jersey |
Saint Mary is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. It is situated in the north west and covers an area of 3,604 vergées.
St Mary borders four other parishes: Saint Ouen, Saint John, Saint Peter and Saint Lawrence. The parish and its eponymous church derive their name from a mediaeval monastery, probably destroyed during Viking raids some time between the 8th and 10th centuries. In 1042 Duke William, the Conqueror, gave "Saint Mary of the Burnt Monastery" to the abbey of Cerisy.
Geography
Among the natural attractions of the parish is a feature known as the Devil's Hole[1] (Lé Creux du Vis), a blowhole in the cliffs of the coast. The descent into the Devil's Hole used to be accessible to visitors and was a lucrative tourist attraction, but it has been closed off for decades. Following a shipwreck in 1851, when the ship's figurehead washed up in the Devil's Hole, a statue of a devil adapted from the figurehead was set up above the Hole.[2] This wooden statue was replaced by a succession of modern versions in the 20th century.
Mourier Valley runs down the boundary between Saint Mary and Saint John. The stream formerly powered a number of mills despite the scant population of the area.
Crabbé is the location for pistol shooting.
La Grève de Lecq lies on the border between Saint Mary and Saint Ouen. On the east side of the bay, in Saint Mary, lies Le Castel de Lecq, a mediaeval earthwork. In the bay Le Moulin de Lecq, an old watermill, was converted into a residence in 1929 and following the Second World War became a pub, while retaining the wheel and remnants of the gears.
The parish stands upon coarse-grained granite, 'of Saint Mary's type', which formed during the lower Palaeozoic period. This granite was formerly quarried for building.[3]
Vingtaines
The parish is divided into two vingtaine:
Outside links
References
- ↑ http://www.nationaltrustjersey.org.je/coast/ab_points_C.html National Trust - Devil's Hole
- ↑ "Turnkey" Giffard and the Devil
- ↑ Institute of Geological Sciences, Jersey. (Channel Islands Sheet 2) 'Solid and Drift', by D.H. Keen and A.C. Bishop. Published 1982, G.M. Brown, Director, Institute of Geological Sciences.
- Historic Jersey, W.S. Ashworth, Jersey 1993 (no ISBN)
| Parishes of Jersey |
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St Brelade • St Clement • Grouville • St Helier • St John • St Lawrence • St Martin • St Mary • St Ouen • St Peter • St Saviour • Trinity |
