Select a region
A US citizen has said he is looking forward to "building a future with the island" after becoming Jersey's newest Seigneur - with the proceeds of the ancient feudal title sale going towards humanitarian relief work in Ukraine.
The ancient title of 'Seigneur du Fief ès Poingdestre' was acquired by James Kaye, from Coloado, for an undisclosed sum.
Mr Kaye travelled across the Atlantic to appear before the Royal Court in person to acquire this important part of Jersey's history.
The sale of the title was conducted by sealed bid through lawyers appointed to handle the transaction, and there was a £25,000 minimum reserve price.
Pictured: Sue de Guelle (left) and Mel Guest (right) who made up the Parslows team which helped James Kaye (centre) acquire his new title.
On purchasing the title, Mr Kaye said: "I’m incredibly honoured to be a small part of the rich and beautiful history of Jersey and very much look forward to building a future with the island."
He has also agreed to lend to the Jersey Archive a parchment detailing the family tree of the Le Quesne family who held the title of the Fief since the 1400s.
Earlier this year, on the death of his father, Jerseyman Sam Le Quesne became Seigneur of the Fief ès Poingdestre – and he saw an opportunity.
He said: "It is an unearned privilege which has come to me purely because I was born as the person who would inherit that title.
"To me it’s something which doesn’t fit with my world view but there is a definite value in it for people who want to become part of that tradition and who are fascinated by it."
Mr Le Quesne explained that he wanted to use the sale of the title to make a contribution where it was most needed.
"I realised that it had a monetary value. Various people have said to me that they know people who would be interested and just to let them know the details," he added.
Mr Le Quesne explained why he had taken the decision to donate the proceeds of the sale, once legal fees and other costs had been deducted, to Jersey Overseas Aid’s humanitarian relief work in Ukraine: "I have such incredible admiration for the way the Ukrainian people have responded to what’s been happening to them.
"They have not yielded to one of the most tyrannical and oppressive forces that we’ve seen for a long time, and I just think that anything that can possibly be done to show financial and moral support for them needs to be done."
Pictured: Sam Le Quesne became Seigneur of the Fief ès Poingdestre after his father died earlier this year. (Jon Guegan)
The title of Seigneur du Fief ès Poingdestre is one of the few in the island never to have been previously sold, passing down 19 generations by natural descent.
While the title – attached to the island’s most northerly fief from Sorel down to Sion – no longer comes with land, residential rights or property, it retains significant ceremonial value.
The completed sale of Mr Le Quesne’s title did not require the formal consent of the Crown but it did need to be formalised by a unique contract passed before the Royal Court.
It was entitled to be purchased by anyone in the world, regardless of gender or nationality and the title therefore did not require the holder to be a Jersey resident.
"We were delighted to represent our client in what was a very out of the ordinary transaction," said Advocate Carl Parslow, Managing Partner of Parslows.
He added: "It was a privilege to be involved in this interesting legal matter, especially as our client was willing to travel all the way across the Atlantic in order to appear before the Royal Court in person to acquire an important part of Jersey's history."
New Seigneur of St. John revealed
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.