Les Augres Manor, Jersey, United Kingdom-14April2009 (1)

Les Augrès Manor is a

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

on ''La Profonde Rue'' in the

Vingtaine de Rozel Rozel is a place name describing two identically named vingtaines in the Channel Island of Jersey- the Vingtaine de Rozel of St Martin and the Vingtaine de Rozel of Trinity . Situated in the north east coast of Jersey, the vingtaines are mos ...

in the parish of

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

. The present building mostly dates from the 19th century, although the site has medieval origins. It is a listed building. The old manor is in the

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...

of Augrès, but stands on the fief of Diélament. The

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

walls and

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...

es date back to the 16th century, but the house was rebuilt in 1771. The manor house is depicted on the 2010 issue Jersey 5 pound note.

Datestones in the manor

The manor contains numerous

datestone A datestone is typically an embedded stone with the date of engraving and other information carved into it. They are not considered a very reliable source for dating a house, as instances of old houses being destroyed and rebuilt (with the old da ...

s, the oldest identifiable ones of which state *"EDM. FSDC 1682.", located above a fireplace, placed when a son Elie was born to the couple Elie Dumaresq and Francoise de Carteret (married 1680) occupying the manor in 1682. *"EDM.EDC.1732." One of the two stones placed by the couple Elie Dumaresq

fils Fils or FILS may refer to: People * Anton Fils (1733–1760), German composer * Arthur Fils (born 2004), French tennis player * Pascal Fils (born 1984), Canadian football player Other uses * Fils (currency), a subdivision of currency used in ...

Elie and Elizabeth de Carteret fille Jean, who married in 1703 or 1704. *"EDM. EDC.1741." The second of the two stones placed by the couple.

Previous occupants

Les Augrès Manor was the seat of the

Seigneur of Augres The Seigneur of Augrès is a noble title in Jersey, which still follows the Norman system. They traditionally lived in Les Augrès Manor, which was actually in the fief of Diélament and not Augrès. Larbalestier Seigneurs of Augrès The Lar ...

, which included notable people from the Dumaresq family. In 1649 during the

interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...

, the recently proclaimed "King" Charles II visited

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

, Elias Dumaresq at Augrès Manor with Philippe de Carteret and

George de Carteret George Frederick Cecil de Carteret (1886 – 3 January 1932) was an Anglican cleric, and the long-serving Bishop of Jamaica from 1916 until 1931. He was educated at Wadham College, Oxford and ordained in 1889. His first posts were curacies at Cante ...

, giving him a new grant to the title. The manor was separated from the title following the death and bankruptcy of Elias Dumaresq, 5th Seigneur of Augres.

Durrell headquarters

The manor house has been used as the headquarters of the

Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust is a conservation organization with a mission to save species from extinction. Gerald Durrell founded the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust as a charitable institution in 1963 with the dodo as its symbol. The ...

(formerly Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust) since 1963. It was also the personal residence of naturalist

Gerald Durrell Gerald Malcolm Durrell, (7 January 1925 – 30 January 1995) was a British naturalist, writer, zookeeper, conservationist, and television presenter. He founded the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and the Jersey Zoo on the Channel Island ...

during this time until his death in 1995, and remains so for his widow

Lee Durrell Lee McGeorge Durrell (née McGeorge; born September 7, 1949) is an American natural history, naturalist, author, zookeeper, and television presenter. She is best known for her work at the Jersey Zoo, Jersey Zoological Park in the British Chann ...

. It has been prominently featured in several of Gerald Durrell's works, including ''Menagerie Manor'', which takes its title from the house. The manor house was bought outright by the Trust from its previous owner in 1971. Since 1958, the grounds of the manor have been developed as a zoological park, originally named ''Jersey Zoo'', and presently named

Durrell Wildlife Park Jersey Zoo (formerly Durrell Wildlife Park) is a zoological park established in 1959 on the island of Jersey in the English Channel by naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell (1925–1995). It is operated by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. ...

References

External links

*A short history of Augrès Manor, Joan Stevens, published by Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust
A website on Jersey datestones
{{DEFAULTSORT:Les Augres Manor Tourist attractions in Jersey Manor houses in Jersey Buildings and structures in Trinity, Jersey