Sark
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{{Infobox Country
|native_name = Sèr <br /> Sercq<br /> Sark
|common_name = Sark
|image_flag = Flag of Sark.svg
|image_coat = Escudo_de_Sark.svg
|image_map = Uk map guernsey.png
|map_caption = The location of the [[Bailiwick of Guernsey]]
|national_motto =
|national_anthem =
|official_languages = [[English language|English]], [[French language| French]]
|regional_languages = [[Sercquiais]]
|capital = La Seigneurie<sup>1</sup><!-- enables coordinates -->
|latd=49 |latm=26.4 |latNS=N |longd=2 |longm=21.7 |longEW=W
|government_type =
|leader_title1 = [[List of Seigneurs of Sark|Seigneur of Sark]]
|leader_name1 = {{nowrap|[[John Michael Beaumont]]}}
|sovereignty_type = Part of the [[Guernsey|Bailiwick of Guernsey]]<br />{{nobold|<small>([[Crown dependency]] of the British Crown)</small>}}
|established_event1 = [[Elizabeth I of England]] granted the fief to [[Hellier de Carteret]]
|established_date1 = 1565<!-- year of grant-->
|area_rank =
|area_magnitude =
|area_km2 = 5.45
|area_sq_mi = 3.39
|percent_water =
|population_estimate = 600
|population_estimate_rank =
|population_estimate_year =
|population_census =
|population_census_year =
|population_density_km2 = {{#expr:600/5.45round2}}
|population_density_sq_mi =
|population_density_rank =
|currency = [[Pound sterling]]<sup>2</sup>
|currency_code = GBP
|time_zone = [[GMT]]
|utc_offset =
|time_zone_DST =
|utc_offset_DST = +1
|cctld = [[.gg]]{{spaces|2}}<small>(Guernsey)</small>
|calling_code = 44
|calling_code_note = [[Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom#Crown dependencies|(0)1481]]
|image_map2 = Sark-aerial.jpg
|map_caption2 = Aerial view of Sark; North is to the left, Little Sark in the upper right and Brecqhou below it.
|footnote1 = Residence of the head of government. Sark has no capital
|footnote2 = See [[Guernsey pound]], notes and coins not legal tender outside Guernsey
}}
'''Sark''' ({{lang-fr|Sercq}}; [[Sercquiais]]: ''Sèr'') is a small [[island]] in the southwestern [[English Channel]]. It is one of the [[Channel Islands]], is part of the [[Bailiwick]] of [[Guernsey]], and as such is a British [[crown dependency]]. It has a population of about 600. Sark's main industries are [[tourism]], crafts and finance. Sark has an area of two square miles (5.45 km²). Sark was the last European territory to abolish what some called classic [[feudalism]].
==Geography==
[[Image:Trident VI à Maseline Harbour (Sercq).jpg|thumb|left|Trident VI at Maseline Harbour]]
Sark consists of two main parts, Greater Sark and Little Sark to the south. They are connected by a narrow [[isthmus]] called [[La Coupée]] which is just nine feet (3 m) wide with a drop of {{convert|300|ft|m}} on either side. Protective [[railing]]s 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, built in 1945 by [[Germany|German]] [[prisoner of war|prisoners of war]] under the direction of the [[Royal Engineers]].
The highest point on Sark is {{convert|374|ft|m}} above sea-level. A [[Windmills in the Channel Islands|windmill]], dated 1571 is found here, the sails of which were removed during World War I. This location is also the highest point in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Little Sark had a number of mines as well as a source of [[galena]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mindat.org/locentry-5464.html|title=Galena from Le Pelley's Shaft, Little Sark, Channel Islands}}</ref> At Port Gorey, the ruins of silver mines<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uk-fusion.com/content/view/917/48/|title=Sark (Channel Islands}}</ref> can still be seen. Just off the south end of Little Sark is the "Venus Pool", a natural swimming pool, and the "Adonis Pool".
Sark also claims jurisdiction over the island of [[Brecqhou]], only a few hundred feet west of Greater Sark. It is a [[private island]] that is not open to visitors. Since 1993 Brecqhou has been owned by David Barclay, one of the [[Barclay brothers]], identical twins, who are better known as co-owners of ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''. They contest Sark's control over the island.
==Politics==<!-- This section is linked from [[List of Seigneurs of Sark]] -->
Sark was considered the last [[feudalism|feudal state]] in [[Europe]]. Formally, the Seigneur holds it as a fiefdom from the Queen, reenfeoffing the land owners on the island with their respective parcels. The political consequences of this construction were abolished in the recent years, particularly in the reform of the legislative body, Chief Pleas, which took place in 2008. (see section "Chief Pleas")
===Seigneur===
[[Image:Seigneurie - Sark.JPG|thumb|left|The Seigneurie]]
From 1980 [[John Michael Beaumont]] has been the twenty-second Seigneur of Sark.
The [[List of Seigneurs of Sark|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, changed little since they were enacted in 1565 under Queen [[Elizabeth I of England|Elizabeth I]]. The Seigneur retained the sole right on the island to keep pigeons and was the only person allowed to keep an unspayed female dog.<ref name="sarklaw">Sark Government{{ref|sarkgovlaw|Law and Custom}}</ref><ref name="ind"/>
===Tenants===
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, 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===
[[Image:Sark La Coupee.jpg|thumb|right|La Coupée is the narrow isthmus which links Greater and Little Sark]]
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 the Deputy Seneschal
*The Prevôt (Sheriff of the Court and of Chief Pleas) and the Deputy Prevôt
*The Greffier (Clerk) and the Deputy Greffier
*The Treasurer (Finances)
*The [[Constable]] (the senior policeman and administration) and the [[Vingtenier]] (the junior policeman)
Seneschal, Prevôt, Greffier and Treasurer are chosen by the Seigneur, 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.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/downloads/government/0603minutes.pdf| title=Minutes EXTRAORDINARY MEETING of the Chief Pleas held on the 8th day of March, 2006| format=pdf| pages=8| quote=Proposition 1| accessdate=2008-02-21}}</ref> Not everyone favoured the changes: many people wanted to keep feudalism completely.{{Fact|date=February 2008}}<!-- following is deadlink and not in archive.org:<ref name="The Guardian">[http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,329430189-103639,00.html Article from] ''[[The Guardian]]''</ref> --> 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 resrved for elected Tenants, 56% of the inhabitants expressed a preference in a totally elected legislature. <ref name="Sark Website Opinion Polls"> {{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/downloads/government/0609ers_opinionresults.pdf| title=ISLAND OF SARK – TEST OF OPINION ON COMPOSITION OF THE CHIEF PLEAS| format=pdf| quote=for 28 Open Seats...234 ... for 12 Seats for Deputies, 8 Seats for Tenants, 8 Open Seats...184| date=2006-09-07| accessdate=2008-05-05}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/downloads/government/0610minutes.pdf| title=Minutes of the meeting held in the Assembly Room, Sark on 4 October 2006| format=pdf| pages=3| accessdate=2008-02-21}}</ref> 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 80% 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 2008-2012 and that a binding referendum should then decide whether this composition should be kept or replaced by 28 Conseillers.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/downloads/government/0704minutes.pdf| title=MINUTES of the EASTER MEETING of CHIEF PLEAS Held in the Assembly Room, Sark on 11–12 April 2007| format=pdf| pages=4,7,13| accessdate=2008-02-21|quote=}}</ref> 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. <ref name="BBC News - 9. April 2008"> {{cite web| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/guernsey/7339172.stm| title= ''Sark democracy plans are approved'' - an article by BBC News| accessdate=2008-05-05|}}</ref>
In 2003, Chief Pleas voted to vary the longstanding [[ban (law)|ban]] on [[divorce]] in the island by extending to the Royal Court of Guernsey power to grant divorces.{{Fact|date=February 2008}}
The list of current Officers of the Island of Sark:
* Seneschal - [[Lieutenant Colonel]] Reginald John Guille
* Deputy Seneschal - Jeremy La Trobe-Bateman
* Prevôt - Alfred William John Adams
* Deputy Prevôt - Kevin Neil Adams
* Greffier - Trevor John Hamon
* Treasurer - Mrs Wendy Kiernan
==History==
[[Image:Carriage - Sark.jpg|thumb|right|A horse-drawn carriage on Sark]]
[[Image:Guernsey-Sark.png|thumb|right|Sark in relation to the other islands of Bailiwick of Guernsey]]
In the thirteenth century, Sark was used as a base of operations by the French [[pirate]] [[Eustace the Monk]] after he served [[John of England|King John of England]]. Although populated by [[monasticism|monastic]] communities in the medieval period, Sark was uninhabited in the 16th century and used as a refuge and raiding base by [[English Channel|Channel]] pirates. [[Helier de Carteret]], Seigneur of [[Saint Ouen, Jersey|St. Ouen]] in [[Jersey]], received a charter from [[Queen Elizabeth I]] to colonise Sark with 40 families from [[Saint Ouen, Jersey|St. Ouen]] on condition that he maintain the island free of pirates.
An attempt by the newly settled families to endow themselves with a constitution under a [[Bailiff (Channel Islands)|bailiff]], as in Jersey, was put down by the authorities of Guernsey who resented any attempt to wrest Sark from their bailiwick.{{Fact|date=February 2008}}<!-- exact cite needed -->
During [[World War II]], the island was [[Occupation of the Channel Islands|occupied by the Nazis]] from 1940–1944, as were the other [[Channel Islands]], and was the site of [[Operation Basalt]].
===Recent history===
====One-person invasion attempt====
In 1990 an unemployed [[France|French]] [[nuclear physicist]] named [[André Gardes]] attempted a singlehanded invasion of Sark, armed with a [[semi-automatic weapon]]. The night Gardes arrived he put up some signs declaring his intention to take over the island the following day at noon. He was arrested by the Island's part time police officer while sitting on a bench, changing the gun's magazine, whilst he waited for noon to arrive.<ref name="ind">{{cite web| url=http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article1928079.ece| title=Lost world: the last days of feudal Sark| date=2006-10-26| publisher=[[The Independent]]| accessdate=2008-02-22}}</ref><ref>[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-9390711.html "Grave affair. (Andre Gardes tries to take over Sark in the Channel Islands)"], ''[[The Economist]]'', [[September 1]], [[1990]]. Online at Highbeam.com.</ref>
====Transition to elected government====
On [[4 July]] [[2007]] Sark began to dismantle its [[feudal system]] on the premise that this was necessary to comply with the [[European Convention on Human Rights]]. The majority of the island's [[legislature]] could be elected by 2009.<ref>[http://www.economist.com/world/britain/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9482912&CFID=1790521&CFTOKEN=53694926 Democratic Revolution], ''[[The Economist]]'', [[July 14]] – [[July 20]], [[2007]]</ref> On [[January 16]], [[2008]] and [[February 21]], [[2008]], the Chief Pleas approved a law which introduces a 30-member chamber, with 28 elected members and retaining only two unelected members. On [[9 April]] [[2008]], the [[Privy Council of the United Kingdom|Privy Council]] approved the Sark law reforms,<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/guernsey/7339172.stm Sark democracy plans are approved], ''[[BBC News Online]]'', [[9 April]] [[2008]]</ref> and the first [[elections]] under the new law will be held in December 2008 and the new chamber will first convene in January 2009.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1704703,00.html A Revolution Not Televised], ''[[Time (magazine)|Time.com]]'', [[January 17]], [[2008]]</ref><ref>[http://podcast.timesonline.co.uk/serve.php/1503/thebugle13.mp3 After 443 years, Sark gets democracy], ''[[The Bugle]]'', Episode 13, January 2008. The Bugle is a satirical podcast of the [[Times Online|''Times'' Online]].</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/guernsey/7258214.stm Sark agrees switch to democracy], ''[[BBC News Online]]'', [[22 February]] [[2008]]</ref>
==Sercquiais==
[[Sercquiais]] (''Sarkese'', or sometimes called ''Sark-French'') is a dialect of the [[Norman language]] still spoken by older inhabitants of the island.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/multilingual/jerriais.shtml#A| title=BBC - Voices - Multilingual Nation / Jèrriais and Sercquiais today| author=Dr Mari C Jones| quote=1998 it was estimated that, at that time, fewer than 20 out of the Island's 600 permanent inhabitants (3.3%) were still able to speak Sercquiais| accessdate=2008-02-21}}</ref> Its use has declined in recent years due to a large influx of people who have moved to Sark,<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/multilingual/jerriais_history.shtml#A| title=BBC - Voices - Multilingual Nation| accessdate=2008-02-21}}</ref> and the ongoing anglicisation of the island.
==Education==
Sark has one school, the Sark School, which takes residents from the ages of 5 to 15.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/index.cfm?fuseaction=gov.content&cmid=552| title=Sark Tourism - Isle of Sark, Channel Islands / General Information| accessdate=2008-02-21}}</ref>
Pupils wishing to obtain a [[General Certificate of Secondary Education|GCSE]] or A-level qualification usually finish their education in [[Guernsey]] or [[Jersey]]. Students may also enroll in [[United Kingdom]] boarding schools.
==Transportation==
The [[island]] is a [[car-free zone]] where the only vehicles allowed are [[Carriage|horse-drawn vehicles]], [[bicycle]]s, [[tractor]]s, and battery-powered buggies or [[motorised bicycle]]s for elderly or disabled people. Passengers and goods arriving by ferry from Guernsey are transported from the wharf by tractor-pulled vehicles.
There is no airport on Sark. The closest airports are:
* [[Guernsey Airport]]
* [[Jersey Airport]]
==Religion==
[[Image:Church - Sark.jpg|thumb|right|St. Peter's Anglican church]]
Sark has an [[Anglican]] church (St. Peter's, built 1820) and a [[Methodist]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ci-methodist.org.uk/Sark/index.htm|title=Sark Methodist Church<!-- Bot generated title -->}}</ref> 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.<ref>''Methodism in the Channel Islands'', Moore, London, 1952</ref> In the mid-1800s there was a small [[Plymouth Brethren]] assembly. Its most notable member was the classicist [[William Kelly (Guernsey and Blackheath)|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<ref>''Channel island Churches'', McCormack, 1986 ISBN 0850335418</ref> 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 6th century. According to the ''vita'' of Magloire, the monastery housed 62 [[monk]]s and a school for the instruction of the sons of noble families from the [[Cotentin]]. Magloire's [[relic]]s were venerated at the monastery until the mid-9th century when [[Viking]] raids rendered Sark unsafe and the monks departed for Jersey, taking the relics with them.
==Sport==
Sark competes in the biannual [[International Island Games Association|Island Games]].
==Clameur de Haro==
Among the old laws of the Channel Islands is the old [[Normans|Norman]] custom of the [[Clameur de haro|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 language|French]] and cry out ''"Haro, Haro, Haro! À mon aide mon Prince, on me fait tort!"''<ref name="sarklaw"/> (''"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.<ref name="ind"/>
==See also==
*[[List of Seigneurs of Sark]]
*[[Sark national football team]]
==Notes and references==
===Inline===
{{reflist|2}}
===General===
*{{note|sarkgovlaw|Law and Custom}} {{cite web| url=http://www.sark.info/index.cfm?fuseaction=gov.content&cmid=555| title=Isle of Sark, Channel Islands / Government| publisher=sark.info| accessdate=2008-02-21}}
*[[John Sack]]. Report from Practically Nowhere, 1959 ISBN 0-595-08918-6
== Further Reading ==
* Lars Cassio Karbe: ''Das politische System der Insel Sark. Modelle europäischer Zwergstaaten – die normannische Seigneurie Sark (Sercq)''. Frankfurt am Main 1984. (ISBN 3-8204-7483-8) (politics/society)
* A. H. Ewen u. Allan R. de Carteret, ''The Fief of Sark'', Guernsey Press, Guernsey, 1969 (history)
==External links==
{{commonscat|Sark}}
*[http://www.sark.info/index.cfm?fuseaction=gov.index Official government site]
*[http://www.sark.info/index.cfm Official Sark tourism site]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/guernsey/5405268.stm BBC – Feudal island brings in democracy]
*[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ca08458e-a50d-11dc-a93b-0000779fd2ac.html Sark fears threat of Barclays fiefdom], [[Financial Times]], 7 December 2007
*[http://www.zuidenwind.nl/films/index.php?taal=en&type=1&id=25 Documentary about Sark]
*[http://www.cipostcard.co.nz/sark/skcoupee.htm Pictures of La Coupée]
{{coord|49|25|59|N|2|21|39|W|display=title}}
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[[Category:Sark|Sark]]
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