Barracks were built at Rozel in 1809 to accommodate 68 troops when the threat of an attack on the island by the French was still very real.
As historian Philip Ahier recorded in his 1978 book Historical Hotels and Inns of Jersey, the barracks saw a different kind of activity in 1816.
- A French transport named La Belane left France via St Malo to take 110 French people to seek their fortunes in French Canada. The vessel had the misfortune to strike the Dirouilles, the rocks off the north coast of Jersey; 40 persons lost their lives. Of the remaining 70 some were rescued by fishing boats moored at Rozel and many were lodged at the Barracks, while others were found temporary accommodation in the houses close by. The regiment then quartered at the Barracks was a detachment of the 8th Royal Veteran Battalion who gave their messes, beds and clothing to the unfortunate survivors. The sous-Prefet of St Malo wrote a letter of thanks to the Lieut-Governor, expressing his grateful thanks for what had been done for those shipwrecked souls.
For a time the barracks were the residence of Lieut-Governor Sir Colin Halkett, while today's Government House on St Saviour's Hill was being prepared as a replacement for the old residence in King Street.
The barracks lay disused and derelict for many years before they were acquired by Charles Sharpe and his wife from Yorkshire, who converted them into a hotel. They sold the property to the owners of St Brelade's Bay Hotel in 1974. It is no longer a hotel, but a multi-million pound private residence
1964 tourism guide advert
