The Minquiers are a group of islands and rocks, about south of Jersey. The Minquiers forms part of the Bailiwick of Jersey. They are administratively part of the Parish of Grouville. At low tide, the rock shelf around the Minquiers has a larger surface area than Jersey itself but at high tide only a few of the main heads remain above water. The largest of these is Maîtresse, which is about long and wide and has about ten stone cottages in various states of repair; these are the most southerly buildings in the British Isles. However, they have no permanent inhabitants, though fishermen, vraic collectors, yachtsmen, kayakers, and even radio amateurs make summer landfall. In August 2018, one of the twenty buildings on the islands was sold to private individuals using a Jersey company. Only five sales have been recorded in 50 years.
Name
The etymology of the name is disputed, and could either come from the Breton languageminihi meaning a sanctuary, or from minkier meaning a seller of fish.
A small company of Wehrmacht soldiers on the Minquiers were among the last to surrender in the Second World War. A French fishing boat, skippered by Lucian Marie, approached the island of Minquiers and anchored nearby. A fully armed German soldier approached and asked for help saying "We've been forgotten by the British, perhaps no one on Jersey told them we were here, I want you to take us over to England, we want to surrender". This was on 23 May 1945, three weeks after the war in Europe ended.
In a noted incident in July 1970, the former French Prime Minister Félix Gaillard, who served in that office from 1957 until 1958, disappeared during a yachting journey; his body was found in the sea off Les Miniquiers some days after his disappearance.
Resolution of disputed status
In 1950 Britain and France went to the International Court of Justice for friendly discussions to decide to which country the Minquiers and Ecrehos belonged. The French fished in the waters, but Jersey exercised various administrative rights. The ICJ considered the historical evidence, and in its judgment of 17 November 1953 awarded the islands to Jersey. In 1998 some French 'invaded' the Minquiers on behalf of the 'King of Patagonia' in 'retaliation' for the British occupation of the Falkland Islands. The Union Jack was restored the next day.
Les Minquiers in literature
Notably, The Minquiers are mentioned at length by Victor Hugo in his novel Ninety-Three, about the French Revolution. He mentions how treacherous they are, and says that their combined area is bigger than mainland Jersey itself. Hugo lived in both Guernsey and Jersey at various points in his life, and so was familiar with local lore. The British/French dispute over Les Minquiers is a plot element in Nancy Mitford's novel Don't Tell Alfred, as an occasional cause for dispute between the 'two old ladies' - France and Britain. The Minquiers feature in the seafaring adventure novel The Wreck of the Mary Deare, by Hammond Innes, and its 1959 film adaptation.
