Prehistory
Although part of the Roman world, we know very little about the island until the 11th century. The tradition that the Island was called Caesarea by the Romans appears to have no basis in fact. The Channel Islands, then called the Lenur Islands, were occupied by the Britons during their migration to Brittany (5th-6th century). Various saints such as the Celts Samson of Dol and Branwaldr (Brelade) were active in the region, although tradition has it that it was Saint Helier from Tongeren in modern-day Belgium who first brought Christianity to the Island in the 6th century, and Charlemagne sent his emissary to the island (at that time called Angia, also spelt Agna) in 803.

Christianity
The island took the name Jersey as a result of Viking activity in the area between the 9th and 10th centuries. The Channel Islands remained politically linked to Brittany until 933 when William Longsword, Duke of Normandy seized the Cotentin and the islands and added them to his domain; in 1066 Duke William II of Normandy defeated Harold at Hastings to become king of England; however, he continued to rule his French possessions as a separate entity. The so-called Constitutions of King John are the foundation of modern self-government.

Normans
From 1204 onwards the Channel Islands ceased to be a peaceful backwater and were thrown into the spotlight as a potential flashpoint on the international stage between England and France.
In the Treaty of Paris (1253) the King of France gave up claim to the Channel Islands. The claim was based upon his position as feudal overlord of the Duke of Normandy. The King of England gave up claim to mainland Normandy and appointed a Warden, a position now termed Lieutenant-Governor and a Bailiff to govern in his stead. The Channel Islands were never formerly absorbed into the Kingdom of England, however.
Mont Orgueil castle was built at this time to serve as a Royal fortress and military base. During the Hundred Years' War the island was attacked many times and was even occupied for a couple of years in the 1380s. Because of the island's strategic importance to the English Crown the islanders were able to negotiate a number of benefits for themselves from the king. During the Wars of the Roses the island was occupied by the French for seven years (1461-68) before Sir Richard Harliston arrived in the island to claim it back for the English king.

The Feudal Age
During the 16th century the islanders adopted the Protestant religion and life became very austere. The increasing use of gunpowder on the battlefield meant that the fortifications on the island had to be adapted and a new fortress built to defend St Aubin's Bay. The new Elizabeth Castle was named after the queen by Sir Walter Raleigh when he was governor. The island militia was reorganised on a parish basis and each parish had two cannon which were usually housed in the church - one of the St Peter cannon can still be seen at the bottom of Beaumont Hill.
The production of knitwear reached such a scale that it threatened the island's ability to produce its own food and so laws were passed regulating who could knit with whom and when. The islanders also became involved with the Newfoundland fisheries at this time.
Towards the end of the 17th century Jersey strengthened its links with the Americas when many islanders emigrated to New England and north east Canada. The Jersey merchants built up a thriving business empire in the Newfoundland and Gaspé fisheries. Companies such as Robins and the Le Boutilliers set up thriving businesses.

Reformation to Restoration
The Chamber of Commerce founded 24 February 1768 is the oldest in the Commonwealth.
The Code of 1771 laid down for the first time in one place the extant laws of Jersey, and from this time the functions of the Royal Court and the States of Jersey were delimited, with sole legislative power vested in the States.
Methodism arrived in Jersey in 1774, brought by fishermen returning from Newfoundland. Conflict with the authorities ensued when men refused to attend Militia drill when that coincided with chapel meetings. The Royal Court attempted to proscribe Methodist meetings, but King George III refused to countenance such interference with liberty of religion. The first Methodist minister in Jersey was appointed in 1783, and John Wesley preached in Jersey in August 1789, his words being interpreted into the vernacular for the benefit of those from the country parishes. The first building constructed specifically for Methodist worship was erected in St. Ouen in 1809.
The 18th century was a period of political tension between Britain and France as the two nations clashed all over the world as their ambitions grew. Because of its position Jersey was more or less on a continuous war footing.
During the American Wars of Independence there were two attempted invasions of the island. In 1779 the Prince of Nassau was prevented from landing at St Ouen's Bay; on January 6, 1781, a force lead by Baron de Rullecourt captured St Helier in a daring dawn raid, but was defeated by a British army lead by Major Peirson (see the Battle of Jersey). A short lived peace was followed by the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars which, when they had ended, had changed Jersey for ever. In 1799-1800, over 6000 Russian troops were quartered in Jersey after an evacuation of Holland.
The first printing press was introduced to Jersey in 1784.

19th century
English was first permitted in debates in the States of Jersey in 1901 and the first legislation to be drawn up primarily in English was the Income Tax Law of 1928.
Emotionally, the 20th century has been dominated by the Occupation of the island by German troops between 1940 and 1945 which saw about 8,000 islanders evacuated, 1,200 islanders deported to camps in Germany and over 300 islanders being sentenced to the prison and concentration camps of mainland Europe (it depended on Neuengamme). 20 died as a result. The islanders endured near-starvation in the winter of 1944-45, after it had been cut off from German-occupied Europe by Allied forces advancing from the Normandy beachheads, avoided only by the arrival of the Red Cross supply ship Vega in December 1944. Liberation Day - May 9 is marked as a public holiday. The Channel Islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II.
The event which has had the most far reaching effect on Jersey in modern times, is the growth of the finance industry in the island from the 1960s onwards.