Sark

For other uses, see Sark (disambiguation).

Sark Sèr / Cerq Sercq
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: God Save the Queen  (official) Sarnia Cherie a
A map of Sark with Brecqhou to the west.
Aerial view of Sark. North is to the lower left, Little Sark toward the upper right and Brecqhou at bottom right.
Administrative center		La Seigneurieb
Official languages		English French
Recognised regional languages		Sercquiais
Government
•	Seigneur of Sark	John Michael Beaumont
Part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey (British crown dependency)
•	Fief granted to Hellier de Carteret by Elizabeth I	1565
Area
•	Total	5.45 km2 2 sq mi
Population
•	estimate	600
•	Density	110.09/km2 285.1/sq mi
Currency		Pound sterlingc (GBP)
Time zone		GMT
•	Summer (DST)	(UTC+1)
Calling code		+44 1481
Internet TLD		noned
a.	Official for occasions when distinguishing anthem required.
b.	Head of government's residence; Sark has no capital.
c.	Guernsey pound notes and coins not legal tender outside Guernsey.
d.	Sark currently has no official cctld.

Sark (French: Sercq; Sercquiais: Sèr or Cerq) is a small island in the Channel Islands in the southwestern English Channel, off the coast of Normandy, France. It is a royal fief, which forms part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of laws based on Norman law and its own parliament. It has a population of about 600. Sark (including the nearby island of Brecqhou) has an area of 2.10 square miles (5.44 km²). Sark is one of the few remaining places in the world where cars are banned from roads and only tractors and horse-drawn vehicles are allowed. In 2011, Sark was designated as a Dark Sky Community and the first Dark Sky Island in the world.

Geography and geology

La Coupée

Sark consists of two main parts, Greater Sark, located at about , and Little Sark to the south. They are connected by a narrow isthmus called La Coupée which is 300 feet (91 m) long and has a drop of 330 feet (100 m) on each side. Protective railings were erected in 1900; before then, children would crawl across on their hands and knees to avoid being blown over the edge. There is a narrow concrete road covering the entirety of the isthmus that was built in 1945 by German prisoners of war under the direction of the Royal Engineers. Due to its isolation, the inhabitants of Little Sark had their own distinct form of Sercquiais, the native Norman dialect of the island.

"Le Moulin" windmill, c. 1905

The highest point on Sark is 374 feet (114 m) above sea-level. A windmill, dated 1571, is found there, the sails of which were removed during World War I. This high point is named Le Moulin, after the windmill. The location is also the highest point in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Little Sark had a number of mines accessing a source of galena. At Port Gorey, the ruins of silver mines may be seen. Off the south end of Little Sark are the Venus Pool and the Adonis Pool, both natural swimming pools whose waters are refreshed at high tide.

The whole island is extensively penetrated at sea level by natural cave formations that provide unique habitats for many marine creatures, notably sea anemones, some of which are only safely accessible at low tide.

Sark is made up mainly of amphibolite and granite gneiss rocks, intruded by igneous magma sheets called quartz diorite. Recent (1990–2000) geological studies and rock age dating by geologists from Oxford Brookes University shows that the gneisses probably formed around 620-600 million years ago during the Late Pre-Cambrian Age Cadomian Orogeny. The quartz diorite sheets were intruded during this Cadomian deformation and metamorphic event. All the Sark rocks (and those of the nearby Channel Islands of Guernsey and Alderney) formed during geological activity in the continental crust above an ancient subduction zone. This geological setting would have been analogous to the modern-day subduction zone of the Pacific Ocean plate colliding and subducting beneath the North and South American continental plate.

Sark also exercises jurisdiction over the island of Brecqhou, only a few hundred feet west of Greater Sark. It is a private island, but it has recently been opened to some visitors. Since 1993, Brecqhou has been owned by Sir David Barclay, one of the Barclay brothers who are co-owners of The Daily Telegraph. They contest Sark's control over the island. However, the candidates endorsed by their various business interests on the Island failed to win any seats in the elections held in 2008 and 2010.

History

A horse-drawn carriage on Sark

Sark in relation to the other islands of Bailiwick of Guernsey

Etymology

The etymology of Sark is unknown. However, Richard Coates has suggested that in the absence of a Proto-Indo-European etymology it may be worth while looking for a Proto-Semitic source for the name. This is because the British Isles were likely repopulated from the Iberian Peninsula following the last Ice Age. He proposes a comparison between the probable root of Sark, *Sarg-, and Proto-Semitic *śrq "redden; rise (as of the sun); east", noting Sark's position as the easternmost island of the Guernsey group.

Early history

In ancient times, Sark was almost certainly occupied by the Veneti. These people were subdued by the Roman Empire about 56 BC and the island annexed. After the Roman retreat during the fifth century AD, Sark was probably an outpost of one or other Breton-speaking kingdoms until 933, when it became part of the Duchy of Normandy. Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the island was united with the Crown of England. In the thirteenth century, the French pirate Eustace the Monk, having served King John, used Sark as a base of operations.

During the Middle Ages, the island was populated by monastic communities. By the sixteenth century, however, it was uninhabited and used by pirates as a refuge and base. In 1565, Helier de Carteret, Seigneur of St. Ouen in Jersey, received letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I granting him Sark as a fief in perpetuity on condition that he kept the island free of pirates and occupied by at least forty of her subjects. This he duly did, installing forty families, mostly from St. Ouen, on the island. A subsequent attempt by the families to endow a constitution under a bailiff, as in Jersey, was stopped by the Guernsey authorities who resented any attempt to wrest Sark from their bailiwick.

Recent history

In 1844, desperate for funds to continue the operation of the silver mine on the island, the incumbent Seigneur, Ernest le Pelley, obtained Crown permission to mortgage Sark's fief to local privateer John Allaire. After the company running the mine went bankrupt, le Pelley was unable to keep up the mortgage payments and, in 1849, his son Pierre Carey le Pelley, the new Seigneur, was forced to sell the fief to Marie Collings for a total of £1,383 (£6,000 less the sum borrowed and an accumulated interest of £616.13s).

During World War II, the island, along with the other Channel Islands, was occupied by German forces between 1940 and 1945. German military rule on Sark began on 4 July 1940, the day after the Guernsey Kommandant Major Albrecht Lanz and his interpreter and chief of staff Major Maas visited the island to inform the Dame and Seigneur (Sibyl and Robert Hathaway) of the new regime. British Commandos subsequently raided Occupied Sark during the night of 3–4 October 1942, capturing prisoners and gathering intelligence.

Invasion attempt

In August 1990, an unemployed French nuclear physicist named André Gardes armed with a semi-automatic weapon attempted an invasion of Sark. The night Gardes arrived, he put up two posters declaring his intention to take over the island the following day at noon. The following day he started a solo foot patrol in front of the manor in battle-dress with weapon in hand. While sitting on a bench, changing the gun's magazine and waiting for noon to arrive, the island's volunteer constable approached the Frenchman complimenting the quality of his weapon. He showed the gun to the constable, who took it and arrested Gardes. Gardes attempted a comeback the following year, but was intercepted in Guernsey.

Transition to new system of government

Main article: Sark general election, 2008

In 2008, Sark dismantled its previous system of government, which had evolved gradually from its original system established in 1565. The change was advocated largely by the Barclay brothers who purchased an island within Sark's territorial waters in 1993 along with ownership of the hotels on the island. Their premise was that a change was necessary to comply with the European Convention on Human Rights though their objection was more likely at odds with certain property tax requirements and primogeniture laws impacting their holdings. Under the old system, Sark's parliament consisted of a 54-member chamber that included the Seigneur, the Seneschal, 40 tenant members and 12 deputies. On 16 January 2008 and 21 February 2008, the Chief Pleas approved a law which introduced a 30-member chamber, with 28 members elected in island-wide elections, one hereditary member and one member appointed for life. The old system was described as feudal, and hence objectionable, because the Tenants were seen to be able to sit in Chief Pleas as of right, and the new system has been described as democratic, and hence acceptable. The Tenants were elected by and from among only the joint owners of each Tenement. On 9 April 2008, the Privy Council of the United Kingdom approved the Sark law reforms, The first elections under the new law were held in December 2008 and the new chamber first convened in January 2009.

Some Sark residents have complained that the new system is not democratic and have described the powers the new law granted to the Seneschal, an unelected member whose term the new law extended to the duration of his natural life, as imperial or dictatorial. The Court of Appeal has indeed ruled his powers to be in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights and his powers are subject to further legal challenges on these grounds.

In March 2012, the BBC Today programme reported on local disquiet about the influence of the billionaire identical twins David and Frederick Barclay. The New Yorker magazine further illustrated the ongoing and escalating tensions between the Barclays and some of the longer term residents in October 2012.

Dark Sky Community status

In January 2011, the International Dark-Sky Association designated Sark as Europe's first Dark Sky Community and the first Dark Sky Island in the world. This designation recognises that Sark is sufficiently clear of light pollution to allow naked-eye astronomy. Although Sark was aided in its achievement by its location, its historic ban on cars and the fact that there is no public lighting, it was also necessary for local residents to make adjustments, such as re-siting lights, to cut the light pollution.

Following an audit in 2010 by the IDA the designation was made in January 2011. The award is significant in that Sark is the first island community to have achieved this; other Dark-Sky Places have, up to now, been mainly uninhabited areas, and IDA chairman Martin Morgan-Taylor commended Sark residents for their effort.

Politics

Sark was considered the last feudal state in Europe. Together with the other Channel Islands, it is the last remnant of the former Duchy of Normandy still belonging to the Crown. Sark belongs to the Crown in its own right and has an independent relationship with the Crown through the Lieutenant Governor in Guernsey. Formally, the Seigneur holds it as a fief from the Crown, reenfeoffing the landowners on the island with their respective parcels. The political consequences of this construction were abolished in recent years, particularly in the reform of the legislative body, Chief Pleas, which took place in 2008.

Although geographically located within the Bailiwick of Guernsey, Sark is fiscally entirely separate from it and has been granted its own UN country code (680) to assist in identifying this fact to the world at large. Together with the islands of Alderney and Guernsey, Sark from time to time approves Bailiwick of Guernsey legislation, which, subject to the approval of all three legislatures, applies in the entire Bailiwick. Legislation cannot be made which applies on Sark without the approval of the Chief Pleas, although recently Chief Pleas has been delegating a number of Ordinance making powers to the States of Guernsey. Such powers are, however, in each case subject to dis-application, or repeal, by the Chief Pleas. By long standing custom, Sark's criminal law has been made by the States of Guernsey, and this custom was put on a statutory basis in Section 4 of the Reform (Sark) Law, 2008, by which Sark delegates criminal law making power to the States of Guernsey.

Seigneur

Main article: List of Seigneurs of Sark

John Michael Beaumont is the current and twenty-second Seigneur of Sark, inheriting the position in 1974.

The Seigneur of Sark was, prior to the constitutional reforms of 2008, the head of the feudal government of the Isle of Sark (in the case of a woman, the title was Dame). Many of the laws, particularly those related to inheritance and the rule of the Seigneur, had changed little since they were enacted in 1565 under Queen Elizabeth I. The Seigneur retained the sole right on the island to keep pigeons and was until 2008 the only person allowed to keep an unspayed dog. In 2008, the latter privilege was abolished (on the proposal of political opponents of the Barclay brothers) supposedly because it did not comply with the European Convention on Human Rights.

Seneschal

The Seneschal of Sark is the head of the Chief Pleas. Since 1675, he has also been the judge of the island (between 1583 and 1675, judicial functions were exercised by five elected Jurats and a Juge). The Seneschal is appointed by the Seigneur. Recently, following the decision of the English Court of Appeal, the Chief Pleas decided to split the dual role of the Seneschal. The complete list of all the Seneschal of Sark from 1675 is as follows:

1. Pierre Gibault (15/7/1675-1680)
2. Thomas de Beauvoir (1680–1683)
3. Phillipe Dumeresq (1683–1702)
4. Jean Payne (1702–1707)
5. Philippe de Carteret (1707–1744)
6. Henri de Carteret (1744–1752)
7. Phillipe le Masurier (1752–1777)
8. Henri le Masurier (1777–1785)
9. Amice le Couteur (1785–1808)
10. Jean le Couteur (1808–1812)
11. Jean Falle (1812–1830)
12. Elie le Masurier (1830–1841)
13. Philippe Guille (1841–1851)
14. Thomas Godfray (1851–1876)
15. William de Carteret (1876–1881)
16. Abraham Baker (1881–1891)
17. Thomas Godfray (1891–1920)
18. Kenneth Campbell (1920–1922)
19. Ashby Taylor (1922–1925)
20. Frederick de Carteret (1925–1937)
21. William Carré (1937–1945)
22. William Baker (1945–1969)
23. Bernard Jones (1969–1979)
24. Hilary Carré (1979–1985)
25. Lawrence Philip de Carteret (1985–2000)
26. Reginald J. Guille (2000–2013)
27. Jeremy la Trobe-Bateman (from 27 Feb 2013 – )

Tenants

The Seigneurie ()

Pursuant to the royal letters patent, the Seigneur was to keep the island inhabited by at least 40 armed men. Therefore, from his lands, 39 parcels or tenements, each sufficient for one family, were subdivided and granted to settlers, the Tenants. Later, some of these parcels were dismembered, and parts of the Seigneurial land were sold, creating more parcels.

Originally each head of a parcel-holding family had the right to vote in Chief Pleas, but in 1604 this right was restricted to the 39 original tenements required by the Letters Patent, the so-called Quarantaine Tenements (quarantaine: French for a group of forty). The newer parcels mostly did not have the obligation to bear arms. In 1611 the dismemberment of tenements was forbidden, but the order was not immediately followed.

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. Originally, the word referred to any landowner, but today it is mostly used for a holder of one of the Quarantaine Tenements.

Chief Pleas

Meeting place for Chief Pleas and the Court of the Seneschal

Chief Pleas (French: Chefs Plaids; Sercquiais: Cheurs Pliaids) is the parliament of Sark. Until this decade, it consisted of the tenants, and 12 deputies of the people as the only representation of the majority, an office introduced in 1922. The Seigneur and the Seneschal (who presides) are also members of Chief Pleas. The Prévôt, the Greffier, and the Treasurer also attend but are not members; the Treasurer may address Chief Pleas on matters of taxation and finance.

The executive officers on the island are:

• The Seneschal (President of Chief Pleas and Chief Judge) and Deputy
• The Prevôt (Sheriff of the Court and of Chief Pleas) and Deputy
• The Greffier (Clerk) and Deputy
• The Treasurer (Finances)
• The Constable (senior police officer and police administrator) and the Vingtenier (junior police officer)

The Seneschal, Prevôt, Greffier and Treasurer are chosen by the Seigneur, while the Constable and Vingtenier are elected by Chief Pleas.

Since 2000, Chief Pleas has been working on its own reform, responding to internal and international pressures. On 8 March 2006 by a vote of 25–15 Chief Pleas voted for a new legislature of the Seigneur, the Seneschal, 14 elected landowners and 14 elected non-landowners. But it was made plain that this option was not on the table. Offered two options for reform involving an elected legislature, one fully elected, one with a number of seats reserved for elected Tenants, 56% of the inhabitants expressed a preference in a totally elected legislature. Following the poll, Chief Pleas voted on 4 October 2006 to replace the 12 Deputies and 40 Tenants in Chief Pleas by 28 Conseillers elected by universal adult suffrage. This decision was suspended in January 2007 when it was pointed out to Chief Pleas that the 56% versus 44% majority achieved in the opinion poll did not achieve the 60% majority required for the constitutional change. The decision was replaced by the proposal that Chief Pleas should consist of 16 Tenants and 12 Conseillers both elected by universal adult suffrage from 2008 to 2012 and that a binding referendum should then decide whether this composition should be kept or replaced by 28 Conseillers. This proposal was rejected by the Privy Council and the 28 Conseiller option was reinstated in February 2008 and accepted by Privy Council in April 2008.

In 2003, Chief Pleas voted to vary the longstanding ban on divorce in the island by extending to the Royal Court of Guernsey power to grant divorces.

Bailiwick of Guernsey Laws and United Kingdom Acts of Parliament can (the latter as also in the case of all the other Channel Islands) be extended to Sark with the consent of Chief Pleas. In practice, Sark does not make its own criminal laws; the responsibility for making criminal law is formally delegated to the States of Guernsey by Section 4(3) of The Reform (Sark) Law, 2008.

The list of current Officers of the Island of Sark:

• Seneschal – Jeremy la Trobe-Bateman
  • Deputy Seneschal – Ewan de Carteret
• Prevôt – Kevin Neil Adams
  • Deputy Prevôt –
• Greffier – Trevor John Hamon
  • Deputy Greffier – John Hamon (father of Trevor John Hamon)
• Treasurer – Mrs Wendy Kiernan
• Constable – Sam la Trobe-Bateman
• Vingtenier – Glenn Williams
• President of Chief Pleas – Lt. Col. Reg Guille MBE

Clameur de Haro

Among the old laws of the Channel Islands is the old Norman custom of the Clameur de haro. Using this legal device, a person can obtain immediate cessation of any action he considers to be an infringement of his rights. At the scene, he must, in front of witnesses, recite the Lord's Prayer in French and cry out "Haro, Haro, Haro! À mon aide mon Prince, on me fait tort!" ("Haro, Haro, Haro! To my aid, my Prince! I am being wronged!"). It should then be registered with the Greffe Office within 24 hours. All actions against the person must then cease until the matter is heard by the Court. The last Clameur recorded on Sark was raised in June 1970 to prevent the construction of a garden wall.

Periodicals

A local resident on Sark has set up an online newspaper called The Sark Newspaper, which voices his concerns about the way the island is governed and the impact of its policies, although contributions or comments from others are not published. A group of islanders has set up a quarterly magazine called Sark Life, which promotes a positive view of the island and welcomes contributions.

Sercquiais

Main article: Sercquiais

Sercquiais (Sarkese, or sometimes called Sark-French) is a dialect of the Norman language still spoken by older inhabitants of the island. Its use has declined in recent years due to a large influx of people who have moved to Sark.

Economy

Tourism

Sark's economy depends primarily on tourism and financial services. Sark has no company registry and relies on Guernsey's financial services commission.

Taxation

Sark is fiscally autonomous from Guernsey, and consequently has control over how it raises taxes. There are no taxes on income, capital gains or inheritances. There is also no VAT charged on goods and services, but import duties (Impôts) are charged on some goods brought onto the island at around 70-75% of Guernsey rates. However, the island does levy a Personal Capital Tax, a Property Tax, a Poll Tax (Landing Tax) on visitors coming to the island, and a Property Transfer Tax (Stamp Duty) on residential properties when they are sold.

The island has its own tax assessor, Simon de Carteret, who collects the Property Tax, PTT, and the Personal Capital Tax (direct tax). Currently, the Personal Capital Tax ranges from a minimum of £320, to a maximum of £5,760 or 1% per annum (whichever is the lower). In 2014, there were 5 taxpayers who paid the maximum amount of £6,400 (PCT and Property Tax combined), and 6 who paid zero tax. Residents over the age of 69 do not pay the PCT. If a resident chooses not to declare the value of their personal assets, they can elect to pay a flat-rate under the Forfait method.

In 2006, Property Transfer Tax replaced the feudal Treizième. This used to be calculated by dividing the purchase price of any of the 30 tenements or 40 freehold properties on Sark by 13. The proceeds from doing this were then paid directly to the Seigneur. Since the abolition of the Treizième, The Chief Pleas has replaced it with an indexed-linked pension of £28,000 per year, payable to the Seigneur.

An individual is considered to be a resident for tax purposes if they have remained on the island for at least 91 days in any tax year.

Education

Sark generally follows the education system of England though this is not strictly adhered to.

Sark has one school, the Sark School, which takes residents from the ages of 4 to 15. School is divided into 4 classes. Class 1 takes children from the ages of 4 to 7 (reception to year 2), class 2 caters for 7- to 10-year-olds (year 3 to year 5), class 3 has 10- to 14-year-olds (year 6 to year 9) and the older children attend class 4 (years 10 and 11). Pupils wishing to obtain a GCSE or A-level qualification often finish their education in Guernsey or in England. Since 2006, however, a limited number of GCSEs have been offered to pupils at Sark School.

Population

Year	1274	1821	1831	1841	1851	1861	1871	1881	1891	1901	1911	1921	1931	1939	1951	1961	1971	2008	2012
Sark	>400	488	543	785	580	583	546	571	570	504	579	611	571	430	555	550	584	>474	>444 (est. 600)
Brechou		0	0	5	0	0	5	7	2	2	0	3	6	0	10	11	6

Notes:

• 1274 data from census taken before black death
• 1821–1971 data from 1971 Bailwick of Guernsey report.
• 2008 data represents only eligible voters
• 2012 data represents only those who signed for electoral roll. Total is estimated.

Demography

Population by gender and movements

Resident population on Sark by gender and residence at one and five-yearly intervals.

Residents (1971)		Residence One Year Prior				Residence Five Years Prior
		Same		Different		Same		Different
M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F
245	248	230	230	15	18	189	187	56	61

Data from the 1971 Bailwick of Guernsey report.

Population by birthplace and visitors

Birthplace	Guernsey			Alderney			Sark
	Persons	Males	Females	Persons	Males	Females	Persons	Males	Females
Resident in Bailiwick
Total	49399	23749	25650	1579	752	827	493	245	248
United Kingdom	47648	22923	24725	1429	689	740	463	233	230
Channel Islands	35820	17401	18419	642	323	319	264	139	125
Bailiwick	35250	17151	18099	607	309	298	247	131	116
Jersey	570	250	320	35	14	21	17	8	9
England	10346	4827	5519	680	320	360	183	87	96
Scotland	734	324	410	70	32	38	7	2	5
Wales	414	194	220	26	10	16	6	3	3
Northern Ireland	334	177	157	11	4	7	3	2	1
Other Country	1751	826	925	150	63	87	30	12	18
Visitors
Total	2059	1043	1016	107	45	62	97	44	53
United Kingdom	1669	838	831	96	39	57	83	37	46
Channel Islands	134	60	74	4	1	3	1	0	1
Bailiwick	98	46	52	4	1	3	1	0	1
Jersey	36	14	22	0	0	0	0	0	0
England	1205	610	595	87	36	51	75	34	41
Scotland	116	55	61	4	2	2	3	2	1
Wales	71	29	42	0	0	0	3	0	3
Northern Ireland	143	84	59	1	0	1	1	1	0
Other Country	390	205	185	11	6	5	14	7	7

Data from the 1971 Bailwick of Guernsey report.

Transport

The high-speed ferry service from Jersey arriving at Sark

The Isle of Sark Shipping Company operates small ferries from Sark to St Peter Port, Guernsey. The service takes 45 minutes for the 9 miles (14 km) crossing. A high-speed passenger ferry is operated in summer by the French company Manche Iles Express to Jersey. A 12-passenger boat, the Lady Maris II, operates regular services to Alderney.

The island is a car-free zone where the only vehicles allowed are horse-drawn vehicles, bicycles, tractors, and battery-powered buggies or motorised bicycles for elderly or disabled people. Passengers and goods arriving by ferry from Guernsey are transported from the wharf by tractor-pulled vehicles. To the dismay of residents, large tractors, which produce even more noise and dust than cars of the same size, have proliferated in recent years.

There is no airport on Sark, and flight over Sark below 2400 ft is prohibited by the Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Guernsey) Regulations 1985 (Guernsey 1985/21). The closest airports are Guernsey Airport and Jersey Airport. Sark lies directly in line of approach to the runway of Guernsey airport, however, and low-flying aircraft regularly fly over the island.

Religion

St. Peter's Church (Anglican)

In common with the other Channel Islands, Sark is attached to the Anglican diocese of Winchester.

Sark has an Anglican church (St. Peter's, built 1820) and a Methodist church. John Wesley first proposed a mission to Sark in 1787. Jean de Quetteville of Jersey subsequently began preaching there, initially in a cottage at Le Clos à Geon and then at various houses around Sark. Preachers from Guernsey visited regularly, and in 1796, land was donated by Jean Vaudin, leader of the Methodist community in Sark, for the construction of a chapel, which Jean de Quetteville dedicated in 1797. In the mid-1800s there was a small Plymouth Brethren assembly. Its most notable member was the classicist William Kelly (1821–1906). Kelly was then the tutor to the Seigneur's children.

Supported by the evidence of the names of the tenements of La Moinerie and La Moinerie de Haut, it is believed that the Seigneurie was constructed on the site of the monastery of Saint Magloire. Magloire had been Samson of Dol's successor as bishop of Dol, but retired and founded a monastery in Sark where he died in the late sixth century. According to the vita of Magloire, the monastery housed 62 monks and a school for the instruction of the sons of noble families from the Cotentin. Magloire's relics were venerated at the monastery until the mid-ninth century when Viking raids rendered Sark unsafe, and the monks departed for Jersey, taking the relics with them.

Law enforcement

Despite having its own legislative assembly, Sark voluntarily submits to Guernsey in matters of criminal law. For matters of routine law enforcement and policing the island relies upon the States of Guernsey Police Service. Sark has a small police station and jail, with two (rarely used) cells available. The island has no full-time police officers permanently stationed on it, but has access to police services in three principal ways: firstly through the activity of a volunteer special constable on the island (there has been a resident volunteer constable since before the formal policing agreement with Guernsey first began); secondly through the designation of a member of the Guernsey Neighbourhood Policing Team as a dedicated point of contact for Sark authorities; thirdly by means of regular visits and patrols by Guernsey-based officers who cross to Sark on the passenger ferry service.

Emergency services

Tractor-drawn emergency ambulance on Sark

A resident doctor provides healthcare on Sark, and is available to attend accidents and emergencies. The Sark Ambulance Service operates two tractor-drawn ambulances, and is able to treat casualties and transport them to the harbour for transfer onto the Guernsey marine ambulance launch, Flying Christine III, operated by Guernsey Ambulance and Rescue Service. A small ambulance station houses the two ambulances.

Fire and rescue services are provided by an independent and volunteer service established in 1958. Originally named 'Sark Fire Brigade', it is now known as the Sark Fire and Rescue Service. The services operates two pump tenders and an all-purpose trailer; all three appliances are drawn by tractors owing to the ban on other motor vehicles on Sark. The original fire station was a large garage. Today the service operates from a large purpose-built fire station on La Chasse Marette.

Lifeboat services are provided by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution from the Guernsey lifeboat station, supported by the RNLI stations on Jersey and Alderney.

Sport

See also: Rugby union in the Bailiwick of Guernsey and Sark football team

Participation in sport tends towards individual sports rather than team sports, but the population supports a cricket team, a rugby union team and a football team. Sark competes in the biannual Island Games in which the Sark football team has participated. The annual Sark to Jersey Rowing Race is contested by teams from both bailiwicks.

Sark in media

There are many examples of media taking Sark as an inspiration or setting.

Norman literature

Although there is no record of literature about Sark in Sercquiais, Guernésiais and Jèrriais literature has included writing about Sark; for example by such authors as Edwin John Luce, Thomas Grut, George F. Le Feuvre, and Denys Corbet.

English literature

• Algernon Swinburne wrote a poem, In Sark, which appears in the collection A Century of Roundels.
• John Oxenham wrote Carette of Sark (1907) and his 1910 novel A Maid of the Silver Sea uses the mines of Little Sark as its setting.
• The novel Mr Pye by Mervyn Peake, best known for the Gormenghast series, is set on Sark. The book has been adapted for radio and television. The TV series, filmed on Sark, starred Derek Jacobi and Judy Parfitt, and featured a number of islanders. Sark may also have been a crucial inspiration for Peake while writing Gormenghast (he lived on the island at some point in his life).
• Dame of Sark, the memoirs of the 21st Seigneur Sibyl Mary Hathaway, who was present during the German occupation, were made into a play and television drama of the same name. Dame Sibyl also wrote Maid of Sark, an historical romance published in 1939; set in the sixteenth Century, it incorporates events related to the defence of the island against the Bretons.
• The novel Appointment with Venus by Jerrard Tickell is set on the fictional island of Armorel, which is presumed to be based on Sark. The 1951 film of the book used Sark as a principal location.
• Sarah Caudwell's The Sirens Sang of Murder (1989) is partly set in Sark.
• John C. Wright (author)'s Iron Chamber of Memory (2016) is partly set on Sark.

French literature

Maurice Leblanc's novel L'Île aux Trente Cercueils (translated in English as The Secret of Sarek) features an island called Sarek, off the coast of Brittany, and bears obvious similarities to Sark. In the story, gentleman-thief Arsène Lupin rescues Véronique d'Hergemont from a local superstition requiring the death of thirty women to appease vengeful spirits.

In Music

Irish musician, composer and singer Enya's 2015 album Dark Sky Island was inspired by Sark's designation as the first 'dark sky island'. Certain songs on the album, the title track especially, explore the stars, skies and nature.

Television

The 1986 television adaptation of Mr Pye by Mervyn Peake and starring Derek Jacobi was filmed on the island. The original short story is also set on Sark.

Sark featured in the 6th episode of the fourth series of The New Statesman, The Irresistible Rise of Alan B'Stard and also in the Jersey-based television detective series Bergerac.

Part of the seventh episode of the second series of World War II television drama Enemy at the Door takes place in Sark. La Coupée features in a number of scenes.

Sark, and in particular the Gouliot Caves, features in episode 8 of series 3 of the BBC television series Coast.

Sark was featured in Episode 3 of the 2009 ITV television series Islands of Britain, presented by Martin Clunes; islanders involved in the programme included Alan Blythe (Constable) and Rossford de Carteret.

Sark was featured on the ITV2 programme Holiday Showdown where one family chose Sark as their holiday destination.

In episode 2 of the 2009 ITV mini-series Collision, Guy Pearson (played by Nicholas Farrell) says, "I'm moving to the Channel Islands: Sark. No cars on Sark, it'll be heaven."

In John Shuttleworth's Southern Softies (2009), John and his crew cannot find anywhere to stay on the island.

Series 7 and 8 of the BBC television series An Island Parish follows the Anglican priest and Methodist minister on Sark.

See also

• List of Seigneurs of Sark

External links

• Government of Sark webpage
• BBC – Feudal island brings in democracy
• St Peter's Sark