Saint Peter Port, Town Church, Elizabeth College entrance, Castle Pier Lighthouse, Castle Cornet, Victoria Tower, Elizabeth College building, Hauteville House, QE2 Marina
St. Peter Port is a small town (commonly referred to by locals as just "town")[1] consisting mostly of steep narrow streets and steps on the overlooking slopes. It is known that a trading post/town existed here before Roman times with a pre-Christian name which has not survived.
The parish covers an area of 6.5 km2. The
postal code for addresses in the parish starts with GY1.
People from St. Peter Port were nicknamed "les Villais" (the townspeople) or "cllichards" in
Guernésiais.
Geography
St. Peter Port is on the east coast of
Guernsey overlooking
Herm and tiny
Jethou; a further channel separates
Sark and surrounding islets such as
Brecqhou;
Normandy's long
Cotentin Peninsula and, to the south-east,
Jersey are visible in very clear conditions from some of the town's highest vantage points. The parish borders
St. Sampson in the north, The
Vale in the north-west,
St. Andrew in the west and
St. Martin in the south.
The name of the nearest channel is the
Little Russel, in which sits the
Bréhon Tower; that separating Sark is the
Big Russel. Both in width are less than half of Guernsey's greatest length and dotted with coastal rocks and
stacks quite near those islands, some of which are narrowly submerged.
Relief
The land in the north and by the harbour is low-lying but not marshy. In the south, the land gets higher (but not as high as
St Martin's or the
Forest). Grassy, gently terraced cliffs behind sea walls (including projections) topped by trees characterise the southern part of the coast here (by an underground military museum and historic battery at semi-wooded Havelet). In the north is the more built-up Admiral Park development. To the south of the town lies Havelet Bay and the coastal path which leads to the very pretty Fermain Bay after a walk of about 20–25 minutes.
Climate
St. Peter Port has an
oceanic climate (
Cfb) with mild summers and cool winters.
Climate data for St. Peter Port (2010-2020 normals, extremes 1947–present)
Saint Peter Port is subdivided into four cantons:[4]
Canton 1 or North Canton
Canton 2 or Canton of the North-West
Canton 3 or Canton of the South-West
Canton 4 or Canton of the South
In addition, the islands of
Herm and
Jethou belong to the parish,[5] but are not part of any canton. They belong to Electoral district Saint Peter Port South.[6]
Candie Gardens, an award-winning restored Victorian Garden, features statues of
Victor Hugo and
Queen Victoria. The Guernsey Museum at Candie and the
Priaulx Library are both situated within the grounds of the garden respectively.
Cambridge Park is a recreational park that includes Churchill Avenue, ‘a leafy tree-lined pedestrian Avenue’, named after
Winston Churchill and a skate park.[7] In 2014 the parish was a Gold & Category Winner in the RHS
Britain in Bloom competition,[8] followed in 2016 with another Gold medal.[9]
The Market, the Arcade, the High Street, the Pollet, Smith Street, Mill Street and Mansel Street, which are all pedestrian priority and part of the shopping district
Cobbled streets and narrow passageways of the old town
Castle Cornet, the historic fortress that guarded the strategic entrance to the port. The castle was formerly a
tidal island, but since 1859 a
breakwater has connected it to the enlarged
harbour.
German Naval Signals HQ, HQ of the German Naval Commander Channel Islands which was established next to La Collinette Hotel, and was responsible for all radio traffic to and from Germany and the other Islands. The last operational Signals HQ that was running up until 9 May 1945, using the Enigma code machines that were being decoded by the staff at Bletchley Park.[16][17]
Island war memorial at the top of Smith Street[18]
Parish war memorial at the bottom of Smith Street[19]
St Stephens war memorial in St Stephens church[20]
Two
13.5 cm K 09 German World War I Canon near Victoria Tower
The Guernsey Aquarium, situated in fortified tunnels at La Vallette, built during the German occupation. Scheduled to close down permanently next month (October 2019) due to lack of income and funds. As of December 2021, it is now closed. [22]: 126 [23]
Castle Carey was built in 1840 for John Carey. It is a
Gothic revival property, attributed to the architect John Wilson, who designed
Elizabeth College and St James Concert Hall. It was briefly the residence of the
Lieutenant Governor of the Bailiwick of Guernsey and hosted
Queen Victoria and
Prince Albert during their visit to Guernsey in 1859, and the Duke of Cambridge in 1862.
Victor Hugo’s novel Les Travailleurs de la Mer, published in 1866 and dedicated to Guernsey, where he spent 15 years in exile, mentions Castle Carey. The castle stayed in the Carey family until William Wilfred Carey sold it in 1912.[25] During the Second World War, the
Germans occupying Guernsey used Castle Carey as an officers’ club.