Businessman donates his royal books to the Priaulx Library

‘I thought it was a scam when I had the publishers St James’ House call me, because you see so many stories about that, I did so much research into them. It was so out of the blue when they asked me if I was interested,’ said Mr Martel, owner of Avant Garden Bronzes.

‘To have a full page of my profile is beyond my comprehension, I can’t believe it.

‘One of my ancestors, Nicolas Martel, has a board displayed in the maritime museum at Castle Cornet so it’s wonderful that I can be another part of the island’s history.'

He said that when St James’ House reached out over King Charles’ birthday commemorative album, he had no hesitation.

‘It’s another unbelievable book and it’s fantastic to be in it. You had to go through all sorts of due diligence to be in both books and I guess they had to do lots of their own research into everybody,’ he said.

‘The Queen’s book I know was sent to every member of parliament, to the House of Lords and around the Commonwealth, so my page is in some very important bookshelves around the world. It also brings Guernsey into it and Jersey isn’t in it,’ he said.

He said that one of his friends had taken photos of him which featured in the book and included backdrops of Castle Cornet and Le Guet.

‘I think they reached out to me because I advertise heavily in UK newspapers and magazines. My adverts are quite bold and I think they were looking for bold and colourful people,’ he said.

‘The Priaulx Library has been a massive part of my life so I think it’s fitting that these books should stay here, it’s also prosperity for the island. I’m absolutely delighted,’ he said.

Chief librarian Sue Laker said she was also delighted that the Priaulx Library had received the books from Mr Martel.

‘The books will be displayed during holidays and during any royal visits, anniversaries, birthdays and the like. We preserve a lot of the printed heritage for the island and we keep a lot of things for perpetuity.’

Anyone can enrol with the Priaulx and check out their family or local history. 'We’re part-library and part-archive,’ she said.

Numerous editions of the Guernsey Press dating back as far as its launch in 1897 can be located on a computer at the library.

It is looking to run a summer exhibition from early July which will feature glass plates found by staff during a clean up in January.