Tombelaine
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Tombelaine () is a small
tidal island A tidal island is a raised area of land within a waterbody, which is connected to the larger mainland by a natural isthmus or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide, causing the land to switch between being ...
off the coast of
Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
in
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. It lies a few kilometres north of
Mont Saint-Michel Mont-Saint-Michel (; Norman: ''Mont Saint Miché''; ) is a tidal island and mainland commune in Normandy, France. The island lies approximately off France's north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is i ...
. At
low tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...
, the island can be reached on foot (with a guide) from the coast of
Cotentin The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...
, to the northeast, and from Mont Saint-Michel. The
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
island lies just to the south of the course of the
Sélune The Sélune () is an 85 km long river in the Manche department, Normandy, France, beginning near Saint-Cyr-du-Bailleul. It empties into the bay of Mont Saint-Michel (part of the English Channel The English Channel, also known as the C ...
river, which has to be forded to access the island from Cotentin. It is by , and high. Administratively, it is in the commune of
Genêts Genêts () is a commune in the department of Manche, in northwestern France. It was the port of the oppidum Ingena (now Avranches), the main settlement of the Abrincatui.
.


Name

According to one
folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...
, the name is a
contraction Contraction may refer to: Linguistics * Contraction (grammar), a shortened word * Poetic contraction, omission of letters for poetic reasons * Elision, omission of sounds ** Syncope (phonology), omission of sounds in a word * Synalepha, merged ...
of “the tomb of Hélène”, referring to a supposed daughter of King Hoël buried on the rock. The name could also come from ''tumulus belenis'' (“
tumulus A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...
of Belenos”, a
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
god), or from the
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
words meaning “the little mountain”, in comparison to Mont Saint-Michel, once called ''Mont Tombe''.


History

In the 11th century, two monks from Mont Saint-Michel were hermits on Tombelaine. In 1137, Bernard du Bec founded a
priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...
on the island, and it became a pilgrimage site . On 11 February 1423, during the
Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of England and France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy of Aquitaine and was triggered by a c ...
, Tombelaine was occupied by the English as a base from which to attack Mont Saint-Michel. In the 16th-century
French religious wars French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), a ...
,
Gabriel, comte de Montgomery Gabriel de Lorges, Count of Montgomery, Lord of Lorges and Ducey (5 May 153026 June 1574), was a French nobleman of Scottish extraction and captain of the Scots Guard of King Henry II of France. He is remembered for mortally injuring Henry II i ...
, leader of the
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
armies, occupied the island. In 1666, the marquis de la Chastrière ordered the destruction of the island's fortifications, in case these be used again by the English. At the end of the 19th century, a legend about a
Marquis de Tombelaine
was created as part of the burgeoning tourist industry around Mont Saint-Michel. The island was purchased by the state in 1933, and was declared a
historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
by a decree of 1936. It became a bird reserve in 1985..


References

{{Authority control Islands of Normandy Tidal islands of France Landforms of Manche