Norman law and the island

The seigneurs remained with their Duke

When continental Normandy was conquered by the French king in 1204, the seigneurs and communities of the Channel Islands remained with John, whom they knew as their Duke. Individual families sometimes chose differently and lost their island fiefs, but the constitutional choice of the islands was clear.

This loyalty preserved the pre-existing legal relationships of insular Normandy. The English Crown did not replace them with an entirely new English system. Later royal charters confirmed the islanders’ ancient laws, liberties, privileges and situations already in existence.