their appurtenances. As may easily be believed, the
views from the higher parts of the castle over the bay,
and embracing the town, and Fort Regent, are equally
striking and beautiful.
In war time, this fortress was an important place,
and no doubt presented to the eyes and the ears of
the visitors, a very different aspect from that which it
now presents. Decay appears now to be creeping
over i t : and although a solitary sentinel is still to be
seen, pacing to and fro; and although pyramids of
shot, still occupy their accustomed places, grass and
weeds have forced their way through the interstices;
and the rows of dismounted cannon shew that the
stirring days of war are gone by. May the weeds
long grow, and the rust continue to creep over the
engines of death!
But Elizabeth Castle has its story, which I must
not altogether pass over. It was in the year 1551,
that it was first contemplated to raise a fortress on this
rock; and a few years afterwards (so the legend tells)
the bells of the churches and other sacred things, were
taken, to be converted into funds; and being sent for
Sale to St. Malo, the ship was of course lost, as a
judgment upon this sacrilegious act. This delayed
the erection of the fortress, which however was begun
during the reign of Elizabeth, and was honoured by
her name. Many additions were made to this fortress
in the reign of Charles the First; and it was not till
the year 1665, that the fortifications were completed.
I am not good at describing fortifications, and shall
therefore not attempt any description of this. I will
merely add, that it is an irregular fortification, and
has shewn itself capable of making a vigorous defence,
as was proved in the year 1651, when it was besieged
by the parliamentary forces; and it is said to have
been the last of the king’s fortresses which owned his
authority. When, in Charles’s reign, the young prince
took refuge in Jersey, he was accompanied by Sir
Edward Hyde, afterwards the great Lord Clarendon,
who, it is certain, resided for two years in Elizabeth
Castle, and there wrote a part of his celebrated history,
I must not omit to mention, that on the summit of
a rock situated a little to the south of Elizabeth
Castle, and like it, accessible at low water, may still
be seen the rude remains of a hermitage, which was
once the retreat of a holy man, from whose canonized
name, the town of St. Helier is said to have derived
its own. Elizabeth Castle is not usually visited by
the stranger. It is not included in any of the tours
of the island,” which the guide books recommend him
to take ; but both for its own sake, and for the sake
of the views to be enjoyed from it, a visit certainly
repays him for his trouble.
Strangers arriving in Jersey, and anxious to see
what sort of people they have còme among, generally
inquire, where the inhabitants walk? where is the
promenade ? But in truth, the inhabitants scarcely
do walk ; and there is no promenade : and unless it be
at church, I really do not know where the inhabitants
of Jersey are to be seen. They talk of constructing
a promenade; but I do not think the inhabitants
deserve it. Both to the west and to the east of-the
town, there is a long stretch of find hard sand, at all
times fit for a promenade, unless at full spring tides^;