La houge Bie - communications support

La Hougue Bie - Communication Support for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Visitors
27 June 2007

La Hougue Bie has a regular programme of guided tours throughout the season but communication support is available for deaf and hard of hearing visitors on a request basis.

Pat Bougeard can help with communication and can be booked for tours via the Jersey Heritage Trust on email Jackie.George@jerseyheritagetrust.org, fax (01534) 633301, telephone (01534) 633379 or type talk 18001 (01534) 633379.

Entrance to La Hougue Bie is at the concessionary rate of £4.80. A group discount of 15% is also available at £4.10. Children under 6 go free and local students have free access with their Flashcards. Pat’s tour is free, but donations are most welcome.

Pat is available any mornings up to 1pm, Monday to Friday, and Saturday afternoons. She will also be available for afternoons on Monday to Saturday between 24 July to 1 September.

History of La Hougue Bie

La Hougue Bie is a Neolithic ritual site that was in use about 6,000 years ago. It is one of the largest and best-preserved passage graves in Europe. Although it is generally referred to as a tomb, we know that it had a much more complex role than simply a place in which the dead were buried. Like a modern church it had a number of different ritual and ceremonial functions, which were carried out in it and around it throughout the year.

The passage grave itself was discovered in 1924 during excavations. The great mound, which covers the passage grave was explored for the first time as part of a major excavation project carried out in the mid 1990s. This led to the spectacular discovery of a massive stone structure lying beneath the grass-covered mound, which has enabled us to fully understand the structure and evolution of the whole monument.

La Hougue Bie seems to have been recognised as a pagan site from early times and was christianised, as many sites are, by the building of an early medieval chapel on its summit. The chapel, which became known as Notre Dame de la Clarté (Our Lady of the Dawn), was built in the twelfth century, possibly replacing an older wooden structure.

On the 10 March 1942 the German forces started to build a battalion command bunker into the western side of the Neolithic mound and over the next few years a total of 70 trenches were dug in the grounds. The bunker is now a memorial dedicated to the suffering and courage of the thousands of men, women and children who were transported to the Channel Islands as forced workers during the Second World War. The memorial reflects on the circumstances surrounding this tragic episode of our history.

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