The remains of a 14th century castle, presumed to have been a refuge against French invasions. The remains consist of a narrow moat and a main gateway, some low wall structures can also be seen. Other buildings of interest in the area date from the German occupation during world war 2 - these include a tall range-finder tower, which was part of Hitler's 'Atlantic Wall'.

The Remains of Grosnez Castle - Saint Ouen visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'The Remains of Grosnez Castle' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Jersey.

The remains of Grosnez Castle overlook the sea on the northwest end of Jersey Island in the Channel Islands, near to the village of Saint Ouen. The name of the castle is not a derivative of the French for 'big nose', but rather the Norse for 'grey headland' (grar nes).

Grosnez Castle was built from local granite around 1330 by Sir John des Roches. It stands on top of a 60m cliff, which provided defences on 3 sides. A large ditch was dug to provide some protection from the only land approach. This led to a large gatehouse and portcullis. Despite this strong natural position, the castle had no sally ports for counter attack, an no access to water, making it vulnerable to prolonged siege.

Grosnez Castle was captured twice by the French in the 14th century and then finally demolished by the French around the 1460's. The gatehouse is the most striking remaining feature, featuring on the Jersey 50 pence coin. A naval signal station was established at Grosnez in 1806 providing communications with Guernsey.

Grosnez Castle
Grosnez,
Les Landes,
St. Ouen,
Jersey JE3 2AB

Grosnez Castle is just north of Les Landes Race Course, about 4.5km north of Saint Ouen.