Saturday 30 August 2014

St Peter Port harbour, Guernsey

Let's stay on the British Isles for a moment. This card is from a swap with Monica a couple of years ago. She actually used a matching stamp as well!!


Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey, is a possession of the Crown in right of Guernsey in the English Channel, off the coast of Normandy. As a bailiwick, Guernsey embraces not only all ten parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Alderney and Sark – each with its own parliament – and the smaller islands of Herm, Jethou and Lihou. Although its defence is the responsibility of the United Kingdom, the Bailiwick is not part of the United Kingdom but rather a possession of the British Crown. It lies within the Common Travel Area of the British Isles and is not a member of the European Union, but has a special relationship with it, being treated as part of the European Community for the purposes of free trade in goods. Together, the Bailiwick of Guernsey and Bailiwick of Jersey form the geographical grouping known as the Channel Islands.

Saint Peter Port is the capital of Guernsey as well as the main port. The population in 2001 was 16,488. As well as being a parish, St. Peter Port is a small town consisting mostly of steep narrow streets and steps on the overlooking slopes. It is known that a trading post/town has existed here since before Roman times, the pre-Christian name of which has not survived into the modern era.

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