Jersey Battle of Flowers

The tradition & historical record

The Jersey Battle of Flowers is an annual carnival held in the Channel Island of Jersey on the second Friday and Saturday of August. The festival consists of music, funfairs, dancers, majorettes and a parade of flower floats alongside various street entertainers. It was inaugurated in 1902 to celebrate the coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The largest attendance to date is thought to be that of 1969 when 60,000 people were present. Current spectator numbers are around 20,000. The major floats are usually produced by the parishes of Jersey. The 'Battle' itself originally consisted of dismantling the floats to provide floral ammunition for a literal battle of flowers between participants and spectators, but this aspect has long been abandoned. Since 1989, a nighttime Moonlight Parade with the floats festooned in lights has been introduced. The Moonlight Parade ends with a fireworks display. Recent years have seen higher turnouts to the moonlight parade, which attracts locals as well as tourists possibly due to its party atmosphere. ¹

The first Battle of Flowers was held on 9 August 1902 on Victoria Avenue, Saint Helier. The First World War interrupted the tradition and it was not until 1928 that the Battle was revived at Springfield where it was held until 1938. The threat of war meant the 1939 event was abandoned and it was not until 1951 that the event was revived back on Victoria Avenue, where it was held for many years on the last Thursday in July (since moved to its current date). In 1964 the event was attended by around 50,000 people. The ongoing outbreak of coronavirus in 2020 and 2021 caused the very first cancellation of the Battle since its revival in 1951. ¹

Prizes are awarded in numerous categories, with their names in French, for floats of different sizes and types. Listed here are the main prizes with the Prix d’Honneur being the overall winner. ¹

Top Prize Winners of 2022 Jersey Battle of Flowers ¹

Prix d’Honneur: The Optimists Club – "When Movies Were Movies" Prix d'Excellence: Parish of Grouville – "Ghost Train" Prix D’Honneur de Papier: Parish of St Saviour – "Huang Long" Grand Prix des Fleurs: Parish of St Clement – "C’est Magique" Prix de Mérite: Friends of Galaad – "Wimbo wa Ngoma" Spectators' Award: The Optimists Club – "When Movies Were Movies" Prix D'Honneur Junior: Parish of St Lawrence Juniors -"Madhatter's Tea Party" Junior Spectators' Award: Parish of St Lawrence Juniors -"Madhatter's Tea Party" Battle of Flowers did not take place in 2020 or 2021 due to Covid ¹

Winners of 2019 Jersey Battle of Flowers ¹

Prix d’Honneur: The Optimists Club – "Oliver" Prix d'Excellence: Parish of St Peter – "Music Evolution" Prix D’Honneur de Papier: Parish of St Helier – "Save the Bees" Grand Prix des Paroisses: Parish of St Clement – "A Polar Paradise" Grand Prix des Fleurs: Whiteside Family and Friends – "The Spirit of America" Prix de Mérit: Friends of Galaad – "This Ol' House" ¹

Winners at the 2018 Battle of Flowers included: ¹

Prix d'Honneur: The Optimists Club – "In Flanders Fields" Prix d'Excellence: Parish of St Clement – "Into the Woods" Prix D’Honneur de Papier: Parish of St Helier – "The Willow Pattern" Grand Prix des Paroisses: Parish of Trinity – "La Cage aux Folles" Grand Prix des Fleurs: Whiteside Family and Friends – "Neverland" Prix de Mérite: Grouville Juniors – "Thrill'ar" Spectators' Award: The Optimists Club – "In Flanders Fields" Design Award (over 30 ft): The Optimists Club – "In Flanders Fields" Design Award (under 25 ft): Grouville Juniors – "Thrill'ar" Best Illuminated Float (over 30 ft): Parish of St. Helier – "The Willow Pattern" Best Illuminated Float (under 25 ft): Grouville Juniors – "Thrill'ar" ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jersey Battle of Flowers”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

Jersey Battle of Flowers is carnival in the Channel Islands, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²

The source record links this tradition to 1 external register, which can be verified through the citation. ²