Royal Militia of the Island of Jersey

Royal Militia of the Island of Jersey
Badge of the Royal Militia of the Island of Jersey (1901-1946)
Active	1337–1946, 1987–present
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Militia (United Kingdom)
Role	Military engineers
Garrison/HQ	Royal Engineer's Yard, Mount Bingham, St. Helier (present day).
Battle honours	Battle of Jersey 1781 The Great War 1914-1918.

Formed in 1337, the Royal Militia of the Island of Jersey can claim to be the oldest sub unit of the British Army, although, because it is not a regiment, and was disbanded for decades in the late 20th century, it is not the most senior.

A militia force was organised in accordance with the order on 24 July 1203 of King John to provide a “sufficiency of men and money to defend the Island from the enemy “. In 1214 Eustace the Monk, a pirate, based in Sark arrived under orders from the King of France to harry the Channel Islands. In Guernsey Eustace met a newly raised and locally armed defence force comprising the whole manhood of the Island. This could be considered to be militia. Jersey would almost certainly have made the same preparations.

In 1336, the exiled King David II of Scotland, from his base in France, raided the island of Jersey. The following year, in response to the threat of a repeat of this incursion, King Edward III ordered Thomas de Ferrers, Warden of the Isles, to levy and equip a militia of "all men capable of bearing arms, and to form them into companies of thousands, hundreds and twenties, and to lead them well-armed and arrayed for the defence of the islands". This created an organised, compulsory and unpaid, Island militia.

Jersey was invaded by French troops in 1461. They were supporters of the Lancastrian force during the War of the Roses, as was the Governor of Mont Orgueil, who had surrendered the castle to the French. The militia was not strong enough to retake the castle and instead controlled half of the Island with their base in Grosnez Castle where they stayed until 1468 when the invaders were expelled by a Yorkist English army led by Richard Harliston, supported by the militia commanded by the Seigneur of Saint Ouen and after a siege of Mont Orgueil that lasted 19 weeks. The help given by the St Ouen militia earned them the honour to parade on the right flank of future militia parades.