| Name: | James Lawrie Monfries |
|---|---|
| Sex: | Male |
| Wife: | Charlotte Chamberlain |
| Daughter: | Annie Chamberlain Monfries |
Other information in the record of Annie Chamberlain Monfries
from Channel Islands Births and Baptisms
| |
| Name: | |
| Gender: | |
| Birth Date: | |
| Birthplace: | |
| Father's Name: | |
| Mother's Name: | |
James Laurie Monfries on Alderney
We now know a little more of James’ earlier history.
Name: James Lawrie Monfries
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 12 May 1818
Christening Place: , CARRINGTON, MIDLOTHIAN, SCOTLAND
Father's Name: Alexander Monfries
Mother's Name: Maron Ingles
Name: James Lawrie Monfries
Gender: Male
Christening Date: 12 May 1818
Christening Place: , CARRINGTON, MIDLOTHIAN, SCOTLAND
Father's Name: Alexander Monfries
Mother's Name: Maron Ingles
In 1851 he was married to Charlotte and working on Alderney in the Channel
Islands. In the 1850s and 1860s Alderney, like Guernsey, saw extensive
Government Works on strategic fortifications against the French – 13 forts, a
protective harbour of refuge, a breakwater and in particular Fort Albert
(originally Fort Touraille, but renamed after Prince Albert’s death in 1861), built
in a unique state-of-the art polygonal design with fortifications arranged in a
defensive ring. This was the prototype of the ‘Palmerston Forts’ built along the
English coast from Plymouth to Dover after the report of the Royal Commission
on the Defence of the United Kingdom in 1859 (also known as ‘Palmerston Follies’,
since they required significant expenditure and were thought by many to be an
overkill response: William Gladstone, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, resigned
in protest at what he saw as a waste of public money). James and Charlotte must
have moved to Guernsey around 1856, since at least five of their surviving
children were born there, and then to Pwill-y-Pant ten years later. If their
marriage was around 1849–1850, it is strange that we know of no child born in
Alderney or before 1856/1857 (Charlotte Laura).
There is also still the mystery of Charlotte’s first marriage. The 1841 Census
places a ‘Charlotte Hall’ in Guernsey but only 17 years old (if her birth date of
1824 is correct), and a ‘William Hall’ aged 20, and a there is a record of a
marriage in that year: is this them?
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