The Société Jersiaise () is a

learned society A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

which was founded in 1873, in the manner of similar county societies in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and Sociétés Savantes in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

for the purposes of: *The publication of local history *The encouragement of the use of French, the official language *The study of the ancient local dialect *To achieve, as far as possible, the conservation of all prehistoric and historical sites *To found a library, mainly historical and archaeological *To collaborate with other societies with similar aims The Société continues to fulfill these objectives, with two important differences – because it can no longer be said that French is the official language, the encouragement of its use has been dropped and, secondly, an important addition to the aims is the study of all branches of the

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

of the island and publication of the results of fieldwork in these subjects. By 1878 a museum had been formed. In 1893 the Société moved to No. 9 Pier Rd, which continues to house the museum. The Société is a registered charity funded through subscriptions, donations and legacies.

History

On 28 January 1873 a meeting of notables of the island took place to discuss the formation of a society for the preservation of the island's archaeological, historical and linguistic heritage, perceived to be threatened by the expansion of St Helier and coastal development. Those present were aware of the foundation of similar societies in mainland

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, such as Société des Antiquaires de Normandie (founded 1824) and similar county societies in the United Kingdom. In 1893 the Société was given a large townhouse in

Saint Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...

which became the base for its operations including its library and museum. In 1913 the various branches of activity were formalised into 'sections', amongst the first being Archaeology and History. The Section structure still exists and now comprise some 15 sections. From its inception the Société engaged in archaeological work at numerous sites around the island; most importantly beginning work at La Cotte de St Brelade in 1905, a

Neanderthal Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...

site of international importance. In 1919 the Société purchased the important Neolithic site of La Hougue Bie, excavating it in 1924 revealing a Neolithic chambered passage grave c.4000BC. The site was then restored and opened as a museum. The Sociéte flourished throughout the 20th century, notwithstanding the difficult years of the German military

occupation of the Channel Islands The military occupation of the Channel Islands by Nazi Germany lasted for most of the Second World War, from 30 June 1940 until liberation on 9 May 1945. The Bailiwick of Jersey and Bailiwick of Guernsey are British Crown dependencies in the E ...

between 1940 and 1945. Despite the severe hardships and lack of resources suffered by the island, the museum at Pier Rd remained open throughout the Occupation, but despite protestations La Hougue Bie museum was requisitioned for military purposes by the Nazi occupiers. Post-war the Société continued to grow and add to its collections to the extent that during the 1970s a new headquarters was built adjoining the Pier Road Museum. In 1987 the Société entered into an agreement with the

States of Jersey The States Assembly (; Jèrriais: ) is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable (Jersey and Guernsey), Connétable of each of the Parishes of Jersey, twelve parishes. The origins of the legislature of ...

for its museums to be run by the Jersey Heritage Trust, whilst retaining ownership of its collections. This enabled the Société to concentrate on its core activities of research and publication. In 1990 the Société also entered into a working partnership with the

National Trust for Jersey The National Trust for Jersey is a Charitable organization, charitable organisation which aims at preserving and safeguarding sites of historic, aesthetic and Natural environment, natural interest in Jersey. The trust held its first formal meet ...

which its members had helped to found in 1937, to develop a country life museum at Hamptonne, St Lawrence, a late medieval farm with manorial pretensions, the National Trust purchasing the property, the Société financing the restoration. Presently, the Société has approximately 2,000 members.

Library

The Société library contains much unique and important material about Jersey and comparative academic literature in the form of published works and manuscript documents including maps. The Société employs a professional librarian.

Photographic archive

The Société Jersiaise Photographic Archive contains, as a result of the foresight of early members, by far the most important collection of historic photographic images of the island. A professional photographic archivist is employed by the Société to manage the collection of approximately 100,000 images dating from the mid-1840s to the present day.

Museum collections

Now curated by Jersey Heritage the Société's extensive museum collections contain items on all aspects of Jersey life, in particular Jersey's archaeological heritage. This remains the only substantial collection of Jersey material and is continually expanded by purchase and donation of new pieces, most recently (as of August 2012) a complete

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

jadeite Jadeite is a pyroxene mineral with composition Na Al Si2 O6. It is hard (Mohs hardness of about 6.5 to 7.0), very tough, and dense, with a specific gravity of about 3.4. It is found in a wide range of colors, but is most often found in shades ...

ring (The) Ring(s) may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell Arts, entertainment, and media Film and TV * ''The Ring'' (franchise), a ...

(anneau-disque) which had been discovered in Jersey in the late 1980s but sold by the finder to a private collector in the USA.

Publications

Much of the work of the Société is published in its ''Bulletin Annuel'' commenced in 1875. In addition, the Société has published many works of its members and other scholars. In its early years the Société published many primary sources, such as the Cartulaire des Îles and Actes des États de Jersey to enable its members and others to carry out primary research. Latterly, it has published many secondary works produced by its members and other scholars, many of which remain in print. The ''Bulletin'' has been digitised and is available t
view on their website

Current sections

* Archaeology * Bibliography * Botany * Entomology * Environment * Garden History * Geology * History * La Langue Jèrriaise * Marine Biology * Meteorology * Mycology * Numismatics * Ornithology * Photography * Zoology

Notable members

Notable members have included Dr Robert Ranulph Marett, the leading early evolutionary anthropologist, whose father Robert Pipon Marett was a founder member; Dr Arthur Mourant FRS a noted haematologist, George Reginald Balleine historian and clergyman, and Breton architect Pierre Le Moine. Geraint Jennings, writer and politician, is also a member.

References

External links

Société Jersiaise Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Societe Jersiaise Culture of Jersey Political advocacy groups in Jersey Clubs and societies in Jersey 1873 establishments in Jersey Learned societies of Jersey Archaeological organizations Text publication societies Organizations established in 1873