Guernsey, officially Bailiwick of Guernsey, is a dependency of the British Crown located in the channel of the Channel, specifically to the west of the coasts of Normandy, France. The territory includes the island of Guernsey and its neighboring islands Alderney, Sark and Herm, as well as other very small islands, such as Jethou, Brecqhou, Burhou, Lihou and other islets. The head of state, his duke, is the British queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom represented by the lieutenant governor. There is also a Bailiff or bailiff with parliamentary and judicial functions. Guernsey is integrated into the archipelago of the Channel Islands, of which the Bailiwick of Jersey also forms part.
Although his defense is the responsibility of the United Kingdom the bailiwick is not part of it, but a possession of the British Crown. As a result, although for the purposes of displacement it is within the Union, it is not part of the European Union. It has a population of 65 345 people and the capital is Saint Peter Port. In the year 933, the island was taken by the Duchy of Normandy in northern France. When in 1066 the Normans invaded England, Normandy and England were united under a monarchy. During the Middle Ages, England lost almost all of its feudal possessions on the European continent, but it has retained its islands in the English Channel, including Guernsey. Like the island of Jersey and the other Channel Islands, Guernsey's economy is based on financial services, tourism and agriculture.
A ferry service connects the islands with Great Britain and France. The native population has French as its mother tongue, more precisely a subdialect of the Norman dialect. In this way the native population usually calls its island Dgèrnésiais. However, at present the most used language is English.