The list of shipwrecks in the Channel Islands lists some of the ships that wrecked on or sank in the waters of the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey. The list includes ships that sustained a damaged hull, which were later refloated and repaired.
There are at least 700 identified shipwrecks and another 100 unidentified, in Bailiwick of Guernsey waters alone.
Jersey experiences some of the largest tidal ranges in the world, up to 12 metres; Guernsey has slightly less dramatic tides. The mass of water moving in and out gives rise to fast moving currents. Alderney has the Alderney Race, which can run up to about twelve knots during equinoctial tides. These combined with the numerous smaller islands, offshore reefs, and isolated rocks extending up to from the main islands, as well as the Islands' location close to the English Channel shipping channels, has resulted in thousands of shipwrecks over the centuries.
The Bailiwick of Guernsey comprises the islands of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm and a number of smaller islands, islets and rocks. See List of islands of the Bailiwick of Guernsey for a complete list of their smaller islands.
Les Casquets or (The) Casquets ( ); is a group of rocks 13 km west of Alderney and are part of an underwater sandstone ridge. Other parts which emerge above the water are the islets of Burhou and Ortac. Little vegetation grows on them.
The Bailiwick of Jersey comprises the island of Jersey and a number of smaller islets and rocks, most of which are covered at high tide. See List of islands of the Bailiwick of Jersey for a complete list of their smaller islands.
Les Écréhous NE of Jersey consists of two reefs which form an extensive shoal area long and wide.
Les Minquiers S of Jersey, its largest island is only 50 metres by 20 metres, but at low water, Les Minquiers has a land area greater than 100km².
The deliberate wrecking of ships has not been a Channel Island trait, although the recovery of goods from a natural wreck has always been undertaken. Smuggling and Privateer's have abounded in the Islands' waters over many centuries.
Modern navigation systems have helped reduce the number of disasters, but shipping still receive warnings of waters around the Channel Islands.
Key
12th to 18th centuries YearShip FlagLocationNarrativeCoordinates 3rd Century Asterix unknown flag Guernsey St Peter Port harbor. It is thought to be a Roman cargo vessel and was probably at anchor or grounded when the fire broke out. 1120 White Ship () Henry I Les Casquets In 1120, the White Ship, carrying Prince William, son of Henry I of England with three hundred fellow passengers: 140 knights and 18 noblewomen; his half-brother, Richard; his half-sister, Matilda the Countess of Perche; his cousins, Matilda of Blois; the nephew of the German Emperor Henry V; the young Earl of Chester and most of the heirs to the great estates of England and Normandy, was being rowed back to England by a drunken crew when it hit the Casquets rocks and sank. There was only one survivor. 1565 John of Sandwich Pirate Guernsey The ship was wrecked on the coast of Guernsey. The crew, confessing to be pirates, were imprisoned in Castle Cornet from which the commander and his officers escaped. One of the crew was hanged as an example. 1592 Makeshift () Elizabeth I Alderney Pinnace-yacht, sank off Alderney Channel Islands. Artifacts from this wreck is featured in the Alderney Museum and is managed by the Alderney Maritime Trust. 1666 () Open Sea The French East India Company ship was one of four sent to colonise Madagascar. She left for home on 20 February and within days of her destination of Le Havre, she was attacked by an English corsair and sank off Guernsey on 9 July 1666. At the time she was reported to be carrying a valuable cargo worth £1,500,000.1701 Michael unknown flag Les Casquets The sailing vessel hit the Casquets rocks, several sailors managed to get ashore and sheltered in some huts. They were found just before they starved to death. 1712 ( Royal Navy) Les Casquets The fourth rate frigate was escorting a convoy from Guernsey to England when it was wrecked on Les Casquets, west of Alderney, with no recorded lives lost. 1721 ( Royal Navy): Guernsey 20-gun sixth rate launched in 1711 and wrecked in 1721. The ship struck a rock "half a musket shot" off Castle Cornet Guernsey on 7 December 1721, and 21 hands were lost including the Captain Fuzzard. The loss was attributed to the "ignorance of the pilot". 94 of the ship's company were saved. Amongst those rescued was the ship's surgeon, Mr Forkington, "who was laid up with the gout, but made shift to swim to a rock not far distant, and the cold baths that endangered his life, hath effectively cured his said distemper." The pilot was tried and found guilty, and was sentenced to three years imprisonment and loss of pay. 1744 ( Royal Navy) Les Casquets The first rate ship of the line foundered between the Channel Islands and the French coast with the loss of her crew of about 900 men. ) 1747 Cerf () Minquiers Frigate constructed and based in Saint Malo (Brittany, France). Probably privateer. Sank in the mist at the Minquiers on 25 January 1747. 1777 ( Royal Navy): Guernsey Shipwreck of new cutter of 12 guns 'Sprightly' capsized with loss of life, (Lt William Hills) off Les Hanois reef west of Guernsey Channel Islands, whilst chasing a smuggler. 1779Valentine ( British East India Company) Brecqhou The East Indiaman sailing from Shannon to London was lost off Brecqhou, Channel Islands, on 16 November 1779 in a gale. 1795 ( Royal Navy) Alderney The frigate hit the Hannouaux (Hanois) rocks off the coast of Alderney and was driven into Braye bay on 29 December 1795. The crew got ashore without loss, however two rescuers drowned.
19th century