Introduction

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Background:

The islands, which have large bird and seal populations, lie approximately 1,000 km east of the Falkland Islands and have been under British administration since 1908 - except for a brief period in 1982 when Argentina occupied them. Grytviken, on South Georgia, was a 19th and early 20th century whaling station. Famed explorer Ernest SHACKLETON stopped there in 1914 en route to his ill-fated attempt to cross Antarctica on foot. He returned some 20 months later with a few companions in a small boat and arranged a successful rescue for the rest of his crew, stranded off the Antarctic Peninsula. He died in 1922 on a subsequent expedition and is buried in Grytviken. Today, the station houses scientists from the British Antarctic Survey. Recognizing the importance of preserving the marine stocks in adjacent waters, the UK, in 1993, extended the exclusive fishing zone from 12 nm to 200 nm around each island.

Geography

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Location:	Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America
Geographic coordinates:	54 30 S, 37 00 W
Map references:	Antarctic Region
Area:	total: 3,903 sq km land: 3,903 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of 11 islands
Area - comparative:	slightly larger than Rhode Island
Land boundaries:	0 km
Coastline:	NA km
Maritime claims:	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climate:	variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow
Terrain:	most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes
Elevation extremes:	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m
Natural resources:	fish
Land use:	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)
Irrigated land:	0 sq km
Natural hazards:	the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also subject to active volcanism
Environment - current issues:	NA
Geography - note:	the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th century, live on South Georgia

People

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Population:

no indigenous inhabitants note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March 2001 replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited

Government

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Country name:	conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands conventional short form: none abbreviation: SGSSI
Dependency status:	overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina; administered from the Falkland Islands by a commissioner, who is concurrently governor of the Falkland Islands, representing Queen ELIZABETH II
Legal system:	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply; the senior magistrate from the Falkland Islands presides over the Magistrates Court
Diplomatic representation in the US:	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Diplomatic representation from the US:	none (overseas territory of the UK, also claimed by Argentina)
Flag description:	blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands coat of arms centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a shield with a golden lion centered; the shield is supported by a fur seal on the left and a penguin on the right; a reindeer appears above the shield, and below it on a scroll is the motto LEO TERRAM PROPRIAM PROTEGAT (Let the Lion Protect its Own Land)

Economy

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Economy - overview:

Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. There is a potential source of income from harvesting finfish and krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK, sale of fishing licenses, and harbor and landing fees from tourist vessels. Tourism from specialized cruise ships is increasing rapidly.

Communications

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Telephone system:	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken
Radio broadcast stations:	0 (2003)
Television broadcast stations:	0 (2003)
Internet country code:	.gs
Internet hosts:	193 (2007)

Transportation

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Ports and terminals:

Grytviken

Military

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Military - note:

defense is the responsibility of the UK

Transnational Issues

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Disputes - international:

Argentina, which claims the islands in its constitution and briefly occupied them by force in 1982, agreed in 1995 to no longer seek settlement by force

History of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

South Georgia
The Island of South Georgia was first said to have been sighted in 1675 by Anthony de la Roche, a London merchant, and was named Roche Island on some early maps. It was rediscovered in 1775 by Captain James Cook, who after dismissing his find as "not worth the discovery," went on to survey and map the island, make the first landing, claim the territory for the Kingdom of Great Britain, and name it "the Isle of Georgia" in honour of King George III.

Throughout the 19th century it was a sealers' base and, in the following century, a whalers' base until whaling ended mid-century. The first land-based whaling station, Grytviken, was set up in 1904 and was in operation until 1965. The seven whaling stations, all on the North coast with its sheltered harbours, starting in the West are:

Prince Olav Harbour (from 1911 factory-ship, land-based station 1916 to 1934)
Leith Harbour (1909 to 1965)
Stromness (from 1907 factory-ship, land-based station 1912-1931, repair yard to 1960/1961)
Husvik (from 1907 factory-ship, land-based station 1960 to 1960, out of operation 1930 to 1945)
Grytviken (1904 to 1965)
Godthul (1908 to 1929, only a rudimentary land base, main operations on factory-ship)
Ocean Harbour (1909 to 1920)

The church at Grytviken.

During WW2, the Royal Navy deployed an armed merchant vessel to patrol South Georgian and Antarctic waters against German raiders, and two four-inch shore guns (still present) protecting Cumberland Bay and Stromness Bay, and manned by volunteers from among the Norwegian whalers.

The Falklands War was precipitated on 19 March 1982 when a group of Argentineans, posing as scrap metal merchants, occupied the abandoned whaling station at Leith Harbour on South Georgia. On April 3 the Argentine troops attacked and occupied Grytviken. Among the commanding officers of the Argentinian Garrison was Alfredo Astiz, a Captain in the Argentine Navy who, years later, was convicted of felonies committed during the Dirty War in Argentina. The island was recaptured by British forces on 25 April (Operation Paraquat).

The research station at King Edward Point, near the former Norwegian whaling station of Grytviken, was originally established as an administrative centre and residence of the British Magistrate in 1909, then expanded as a research facility in 1949/1950 by the British Antarctic Survey (until 1962 called Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey), became a small military garrison after the Falklands war. This returned to civilian use in 2001 and is operated by the British Antarctic Survey.

South Sandwich Islands
The islands were initially named "South" Sandwich Islands to distinguish them from the then "Sandwich Islands" now known as "Hawaii". The southern eight islands were discovered by James Cook in 1775. The northern three by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen in 1819. They were named after the 4th Earl of Sandwich, 1st Lord of the Admiralty.

The United Kingdom claimed South Georgia in 1775 and formally annexed both South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in 1908, grouping them with other British held territory in Antarctica as the Falkland Islands Dependencies. Argentina later claimed the islands in dispute with the UK (See Sovereignty of the Falkland Islands).

Argentina challenged British sovereignty in the Islands on several occasions. From January 25, 1955 through summer of 1956 Argentina maintained the summer station Teniente Esquivel at Ferguson Bay on the Southeastern coast of Thule Island. From 1976 to 1982, Argentina maintained a naval base named Corbeta Uruguay, at Port Faraday, in the lee (southern East coast) of the same island. Although the British discovered the presence of the Argentine base in 1978, no effort was made to remove them until after the Falklands War. The base was eventually removed on June 20, 1982.

Last update on 14 March 2008