THE Battle of Jersey, the brief, bloody and decisive action fought in the Royal Square in 1781, was the last battle fought on the soil of the British Isles. It was also the battle which prevented this Island from falling into French hands – and hence the transformation of its destiny in ways which are scarcely imaginable.

As most Islanders will be aware, the hero of the action was a young British officer, Major Francis Peirson, who died as he rallied garrison and militia forces to confront Baron de Rullecourt’s invaders.

Peirson’s sacrifice is commemorated in Copley’s great painting of the battle, a copy of which hangs in the Royal Court. The 24-year-old hero, whose body lies in the Town Church, also has the distinction of having a Royal Square pub named after him.

However, given the role which Peirson played in ensuring that Jersey was able to maintain its special identity as a Crown Dependency, it is surely appropriate that a public memorial should be erected in his honour – even if it can be argued that such a move would be a couple of hundred years too late.

The Constable of St Helier, Simon Crowcroft, the Dean of Jersey, the Very Rev Bob Key, and the St Helier Roads Committee certainly believe that a Peirson memorial is long overdue. Accordingly, it is suggested that a suitable public sculpture or some other form of public commemorative art should take its place alongside the town’s other memorials.

Unfortunately, the focus of the battle, the Royal Square, is already a crowded location as far as memorials are concerned. A bust of Lord Coutanche, our wartime Bailiff, can be seen outside the States building, as can a plaque dedicated to Maistre Wace, the great medieval narrative poet.

Then there is the V for victory which was set into the square’s flagstones under the very noses of the Germans during the Occupation – not to mention the gilded statue of George II, a figure who did rather less for the Island than any of those who defeated the French two centuries ago.

Fortunately, there are other places which could easily accommodate a memorial. Among them is the Town Church, which besides being the young major’s final resting place, was close to the heart of the fighting in 1781.

Even if the words ‘better late than never’ must occur in any consideration of a Peirson memorial, this is a project which richly deserves to go ahead.