History of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (June 2019) |
| |||||
Motto: Leo Terram Propriam Protegat (Latin: Let the lion protect its own land) |
The history of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is relatively recent. When European explorers discovered the islands, they were uninhabited, and their hostile climate, mountainous terrain, and remoteness made subsequent settlement difficult. Due to these conditions, human activity in the islands has largely consisted of sealing, whaling, and scientific surveys and research, interrupted by World War II and the Falklands War.
17th to 19th century
The
Sir
In 1756, the island was sighted and named 'San Pedro' by the Spanish vessel León under Captain Gregorio Jerez sailing in the service of the French company Sieur Duclos of
These early visits resulted in no
The mariner Captain
The group of
South Georgia's coast and waters have been surveyed by a number of expeditions since those of Cook and Bellingshausen. In particular, the extensive oceanographic investigations carried out by the Discovery Committee from 1925 to 1951 yielded an enormous amount of scientific results and data, including the discovery of the Antarctic Convergence. The first land-based scientific expedition on South Georgia was the 1882–83 German Polar Year expedition at Moltke Harbour, Royal Bay.
During the late 18th century and throughout the 19th century, South Georgia was inhabited by English and
The sealers pursued their trade in a most unsustainable manner, promptly reducing the fur seal population to near extermination. As a result, sealing activities on South Georgia had three marked peaks in 1786–1802, 1814–23, and 1869–1913 respectively, decreasing in between and gradually shifting to elephant seals taken for oil. More efficient regulation and management were practised in the second sealing epoch, 1909–64.
During the 19th century, the effective, continuous and unchallenged British possession and government for South Georgia was provided for by the British
20th century
In the early 20th century South Georgia experienced a new rush of economic activity and settlement. Following a 1900 advertisement by the
South Georgia became the world's largest
The spread of Norwegian whaling industry to Antarctica in the early 20th century motivated Norway, right after its independence from
Britain's 1908 Letters Patent established constitutional arrangements for its possessions in the South Atlantic, including the formal annexation of the South Sandwich Islands. The Letters Patent listed these possessions as "the groups of islands known as South Georgia, the South Orkneys, the South Shetlands, and the Sandwich Islands, and the territory known as Graham's Land, situated in the South Atlantic Ocean to the south of the 50th parallel of south latitude, and lying between the 20th and the 80th degrees of west longitude". In 1917 the Letters Patent were modified, applying the "sector principle" used in the Arctic; the new scope of the Falkland Islands Dependencies was extended to comprise "all islands and territories whatsoever between the 20th degree of west longitude and the 50th degree of west longitude which are situated south of the 50th parallel of south latitude; and all islands and territories whatsoever between the 50th degree of west longitude and the 80th degree of west longitude which are situated south of the 58th parallel of south latitude", thus reaching the South Pole. The 1908 Letters Patent were not disputed by Argentina at the time, but in 1948 Argentina conceived an argument that they were invalid on the grounds that they allegedly encompassed parts of the South American mainland as well as the Falklands, making the latter dependencies of themselves.[11][12][13]
All whaling stations on South Georgia operated under whaling leases applied for by each company and granted by the Governor of the Falkland Islands and Dependencies. On behalf of the Compañía Argentina de Pesca, the application was filed with the British Legation in Buenos Aires by the company's president Pedro Christophersen and Captain Guillermo Nuñez, a technical advisor and shareholder in the company who was also Director of Armaments of the Argentine Navy.
From 1906 on the Argentine company was operating in compliance with its whaling and sealing leases granted by the Falklands Governor. That continued until Grytviken was sold to Albion Star (South Georgia) Ltd. in 1960, closed in 1964, and eventually purchased by Christian Salvesen Ltd.
Carl Anton Larsen, the founder of Grytviken was a naturalised Briton born in Sandefjord, Norway. In his application for British citizenship, filed with the British Magistrate of South Georgia and granted in 1910, Captain Larsen wrote: "I have given up my Norwegian citizens rights and have resided here since I started whaling in this colony on 16 November 1904 and have no reason to be of any other citizenship than British, as I have had and intend to have my residence here still for a long time." His family in Grytviken included his wife, three daughters and two sons.
As the manager of Compañía Argentina de Pesca, Larsen organised the construction of Grytviken ― a remarkable undertaking accomplished by a team of 60 Norwegians since their arrival on 16 November until the newly built whale oil factory commenced production on 24 December 1904. Larsen also established a meteorological observatory at Grytviken, which from 1905 was maintained in cooperation with the Argentine Meteorological Office under the British lease requirements of the whaling station until these changed in 1949.
Larsen chose the whaling station's site during his 1902 visit while in command of the ship Antarctic of the
Larsen was also instrumental, with his brother, in introducing Reindeer to South Georgia in 1911 as a resource for hunting for the people employed in the whaling industry.[14]
Most of the whalers were Norwegian, with an increasing proportion of Britons. During the whaling era, the population usually varied from over 1000 in the summer (over 2000 in some years) to some 200 in the winter. At the height of the whaling industry about 6000 men, mostly Norwegians and Swedes, worked at the stations and, with the men working on the whale-catchers, factory ships and supply vessels, there could be three times the population when the whaling fleets were at anchor in the harbours.[15] The first census conducted by the British Stipendiary Magistrate James Wilson on 31 December 1909 recorded a total population of 720, including 3 females and 1 child. Of them, 579 were Norwegian, 58 Swedes, 32 Britons, 16 Danes, 15 Finns, 9 Germans, 7 Russians, 2 Dutchmen, 1 Frenchman and 1 Austrian. In subsequent available censuses the population was 1337 (24 April 1921[16]), and 709 (26 April 1931,[17] includes the South Shetland Islands).
Managers and other senior officers of the whaling stations often lived together with their families. Among them was Fridthjof Jacobsen whose wife Klara Olette Jacobsen gave birth to two of their children in Grytviken; their daughter
There are some 200 graves on the island dating from 1820 onwards, including that of the famous
Another Antarctic explorer with a special place in South Georgia's history was
A
During the
Sovereignty dispute and Falklands War
According to the Papal Bull Inter caetera, issued by Pope Alexander VI on 4 May 1493, the dividing line between the crowns of Spain and Portugal had found the longitude 36 º 8'O, cutting South Georgia (according to other sources in longitude 35 º W). But with the entry into force of the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494, the island was in the Portuguese hemisphere. Regarding the South Sandwich Islands, both the bull and the Treaty were within the Portuguese hemisphere.
The first official announcement of an Argentine claim of South Georgia was made in 1927 at the International Postal Bureau in Bern. The first definitive Argentine claim of sovereignty over the South Sandwich Islands was made in 1938, when the President of Argentina ratified the 1934 Cairo Postal Convention. Since then, Argentina has maintained her claims of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands but repeatedly (in 1947, 1951, 1953, 1954 and 1955) refused to have them resolved by the International Court of Justice or by an independent arbitral tribunal.
The Argentine naval station
Joined by the corvette
On 25 April 1982 the Royal Navy damaged and captured the Argentine submarine Santa Fe at South Georgia. The Argentine garrison in Grytviken under Lieut.-Commander Luis Lagos surrendered without returning fire, as did the detachment in Leith Harbour commanded by Captain Alfredo Astiz on the following day. Nowadays the date of 26 April is celebrated as Liberation Day, a public holiday in SGSSI.[7]
One of the most famous and legendary signals of the entire Falklands War was made by the British forces' commander after the Argentine surrender at Grytviken: "Be pleased to inform Her Majesty that the White Ensign flies alongside the Union Jack in South Georgia. God save the Queen."[19]
Finally, the Argentine personnel were removed from the South Sandwich Islands by HMS Endurance on 20 June 1982. The recapture of South Georgia, even more remote than the Falkland Islands, and in foul weather conditions proved a major boost to British ambitions in the Falklands War, and a blow to those of Argentina.
Due to evidence of an unauthorised visit to Thule Island, the closed station
Since the Falklands War, the United Kingdom maintained a small garrison of Royal Engineers on South Georgia until March 2001,[citation needed] when the island reverted to civilian rule. However, Argentina continues to claim South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
Recent history
In 1985, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands ceased to be
Due to its remote location and harsh
.Since the 1990s, the islands have become a popular tourist destination, with cruise ships visiting on a fairly regular basis. To protect the territory's unique environment, on 23 February 2012 its government created the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Marine Protection Area, one of the world's largest marine reserves, comprising 1.07 million square kilometres (0.41×10 6 sq mi).[20][21]
Old maps
- L'Isle, Guillaume de & Henry A. Chatelain. (1705/19). Carte du Paraguai, du Chili, du Detroit de Magellan. Paris. (Map featuring Roché Island.)
- Seale, Richard W. (ca. 1745). A Map of South America. With all the European Settlements & whatever else is remarkable from the latest & best observations. London. (Map featuring Roché Island.)
- Jefferys, Thomas. (1768). South America. London. (Map featuring Roché Island.)
- Joseph Gilbert. (1775). Isle of Georgia with Clerke's Isles and Pickersgill's Isle. Plan with panorama. In: Charts, and views of headlands, taken during Captain Cook's Second Voyage, 1772–1774. British Library.
- Cook, James. (1777). Chart of the Discoveries made in the South Atlantic Ocean, in His Majestys Ship Resolution, under the Command of Captain Cook, in January 1775, W. Strahan and T. Cadel, London.
- A. Arrowsmith. (1794). Map of the World on a Globular Projection, Exhibiting Particularly the Nautical Researches of Capn. James Cook, F.R.S. with all the Recent Discoveries to the Present Time. London.
See also
Notes
- ^ )
- ISBN 979-8-88676-403-1
- ISBN 9780691156583. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
- ^ Capt. Francisco de Seixas y Lovera, Descripcion geographica, y derrotero de la region austral Magallanica. Que se dirige al Rey nuestro señor, gran monarca de España, y sus dominios en Europa, Emperador del Nuevo Mundo Americano, y Rey de los reynos de la Filipinas y Malucas, Madrid, Antonio de Zafra, 1690. (Narrates the discovery of South Georgia by the Englishman Anthony de la Roché in April 1675 (Capítulo IIII Título XIX page 27 or page 99 of pdf); Relevant fragment.)
- ^ Alexander Dalrymple. A Collection of Voyages Chiefly in The Southern Atlantick Ocean. London, 1775. pp.85-88.
- ^ Alan Gurney. Below the Convergence: Voyages Toward Antarctica, 1699–1839. New York: Penguin Books, 1998.
- ^ a b Public Holidays 2013. Public Holidays 2014. Archived 6 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands Gazette No. 2, 13 June 2013. p. 3.
- ^ R.K. Headland. Chronological List of Antarctic Expeditions and Related Historical Events. Cambridge University Press, 1989. 730 pp.
- ^ Odd Gunnar Skagestad. Norsk Polar Politikk: Hovedtrekk og Utvikslingslinier, 1905–1974. Oslo: Dreyers Forlag, 1975
- ^ Thorleif Tobias Thorleifsson. Bi-polar international diplomacy: The Sverdrup Islands question, 1902–1930. Master of Arts Thesis, Simon Fraser University, 2004.
- ^ National Interests and Claims in the Antarctic, p. 19, Robert E. Wilson
- ^ R.K. Headland, The Island of South Georgia, Cambridge University Press, 1984.
- ^ The Ross Dependency. The Geographical Journal, Vol. 62, No. 5 (Nov. 1923), pp. 362–365.
- hdl:10535/6453.
- ^ R. Fox. Antarctica and the South Atlantic: Discovery, Development, and Dispute. British Broadcasting Corp., 1985. p. 31
- ^ Falkland Islands:Report of Census, 1921. London: Waterlow & Sons Ltd., 1922. 12 pp.
- ^ Falkland Islands:Report of Census, 1931. Stanley, Falkland Islands: Government Printing Office, 1931. 15 pp.
- ^ Carol Fowl. Unplanned epics – Bligh's and Shackleton's small-boat voyages, website of the National Maritime Museum, first published in the magazine Sailing Today, Issue 75, July 2003.
- ^ "Remarks on the recapture of South Georgia", Margaret Thatcher Foundation
- ^ Marine Protected Areas Order 2012. South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands Gazette, 29 February 2012.
- ^ South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands: Marine Protected Area Management Plan
References
- Capt. Francisco de Seixas y Lovera, Descripcion geographica, y derrotero de la region austral Magallanica. Que se dirige al Rey nuestro señor, gran monarca de España, y sus dominios en Europa, Emperador del Nuevo Mundo Americano, y Rey de los reynos de la Filipinas y Malucas, Madrid, Antonio de Zafra, 1690. (Narrates the discovery of South Georgia by the Englishman Anthony de la Roché in April 1675 (Capítulo IIII Título XIX page 27 or page 99 of pdf); Relevant fragment.)
- William Ambrosia Cowley, Cowley's Voyage Round the Globe, in Collection of Original Voyages, ed. William Hacke, James Knapton, London, 1699.
- George Forster, A Voyage Round the World in His Britannic Majesty's Sloop Resolution Commanded by Capt. James Cook, during the Years 1772, 3, 4 and 5 (2 vols.), London, 1777.
- James Cook, A Voyage Towards the South Pole, and Round the World. Performed in His Majesty's Ships the Resolution and Adventure, In the Years 1772, 1773, 1774, and 1775. In which is included, Captain Furneaux's Narrative of his Proceedings in the Adventure during the Separation of the Ships. Volume II. London: Printed for W. Strahan and T. Cadell, 1777. (Relevant fragment)
- Capt. Isaac Pendleton, South Georgia; Southatlantic Ocean: Discovered by the Frenchman La Roche in the year 1675, 1802, reproduced by A. Faustini, Rome, 1906. (The second map of South Georgia; Pendleton was misled about the nationality of la Roché who, being an Englishman born in London, had a French father.)
- South Georgia, Topographic map, 1:200000, DOS 610 Series, Directorate of Overseas Surveys, Tolworth, UK, 1958.
- Otto Nordenskjöld, Johan G. Andersson, Carl A. Larsen, Antarctica, or Two Years Among the Ice of the South Pole, London, Hurst & Blackett, 1905.
- R.K. Headland, South Georgia: A Concise Account. Cambridge: British Antarctic Survey, 1982. 30 pp.
- R.K. Headland, The Island of South Georgia, Cambridge University Press, 1984. ISBN 0-521-25274-1
- Roger Perkins, Operation Paraquat, Picton (Chippenham), 1986, ISBN 0-948251-13-1(Describes the Argentine invasion and defeat of 1982)
- ISBN 1-903657-08-3
- Historia de las Relaciones Exteriores Argentinas, Obra dirigida por Carlos Escudé y Andrés Cisneros, desarrollada y publicada bajo los auspicios del Consejo Argentino para las Relaciones Internacionales (CARI), GEL/Nuevohacer (Buenos Aires), 2000.
- Capt. Hernán Ferrer Fougá. El hito austral del confín de América. El cabo de Hornos. (Siglos XVI-XVII-XVIII). (Primera parte). Revista de Marina, Valparaíso, 2003, No. 6.