Brecqhou
 |
This is a map of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Brecqhou is just west of Sark. |
Brecqhou (
Brechou) is one of the
Channel Islands, located at about 49° 26' N x 2° 23' W, just west of
Sark. Its surface area is approximately 200 acres. It is a
tenement of Sark (although the current tenants dispute this), which is in turn part of the
Bailiwick of
Guernsey.
|
A view of Brecqhou, from the north of Sark |
The island is separated from Sark by an extremely narrow sound (Le Goulliot Passage) which, according to legend, has only once been traversed by boat in a high tide. However in reality it is traversed frequently by yachts during each summer and by fishing boats year round and even forms a part of the route taken by occasional powerboating events in the islands.
The origin of the name is as follows:
-hou as found in many island names around the Norman coast derives from
Old Norse language holm (island or islet);
brekka signifies a cliff or escarpment (cf.
Bricquebec).
Since
1993 the tenement of Brecqhou has been owned by the
Barclay brothers, identical twins, who are better known as co-owners of
The Daily Telegraph newspaper and former co-owners of
The Scotsman. Under the Reform (Sark) Law 1951, the tenant is David Barclay who is entitled to occupy the tenant's seat in Chief Pleas, the parliament of Sark. Since the purchase the Barclays have been in several legal disputes with the government of Sark, and have expressed a desire to make Brecqhou politically
independent from Sark. Ironically in contrast, their former paper,
The Scotsman has
opposed moves towards Scottish autonomy. They drive cars on the island, and have a helicopter, both of which are banned under Sark law.
|
A view of Brecqhou, from the south east. |
The former tenant,
Leonard Joseph Matchan, had devised a personal
flag (identical to the
Sark flag, with the exception that the Matchan
arms was emblazoned on the bottom right). Although frequently considered the
island flag, this was only a
personal flag, and is not in use anymore.
Leonard Joseph Matchan, had issued stamps in
1969. Matchan occupied Brecqhou until his death on
October 6,
1987. The current tenants have issued
postage stamps annually since
1999.
In Sark, the word
tenant is used, and often
pronounced, as in French in the sense of
feudal landholder rather than the common English meaning of
lessee. The landholdings of Sark are held by 40
tenants representing the parcels of the 40 families who colonised Sark. As explained on the Sark government website [
1]: "There is no true freehold, all land being held on perpetual lease (fief) from the Seigneur, and the 40 properties (Tenements) into which the Island is divided (as well as a few other holdings in perpetual fief) can only pass by strict rules of inheritance or by sale."
*
1966â€"
1987:
Leonard Joseph Matchan *From
1993:
Sir David BarclayLe Dicotentin, Lepelley, Cherbourg 2001, ISBN 2913920063
