Once again, we are happy to be able produce what is a bumper issue of the Journal. It never ceases to amaze me where material comes from and the huge interest there is in anything to do with the history of the Falklands. The Museum and National Archives continue to go from strength to strength, and we are indeed fortunate to have two teams of dedicated professionals to support the preservation, recording, presenting and promotion of the history of the Falklands. The first four articles are testament to their activity and reflect the quality of dedicated voluntary work and effort associated with the valuable support given by the FIMA friends and the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust. Please take time to read the various reports – and bear in mind the ongoing contribution of the Dictionary of Falklands Biography – it is a tremendous resource.
We have a huge range of articles. Regular contributor Phil Stone has abstracted some previously unearthed information from the Discovery crew diaries around their time in the Falklands. Most of their comments on Stanley are not encouraging, but he does pick up on the fact that that valuable geomagnetic and other measurements from the Falklands have not been given their due place in the outcomes of a highly significant visit. In an interesting link with another article, Phil mentions a Flagstaff Hill in his article – there is no such formally named place in the Falklands and this highlights the need for a reliable Gazetteer of place-names. Here I am delighted to be able to report a monumental piece of work carried out by Robin Isherwood, updating and checking a comprehensive and accurate register of all place names in the Falklands. Robin, a good friend of the Falklands, has gone through all 29 OS maps and the original Gazetteer, correcting discrepancies and geolocations and entering new additions, including the Falklands 40th Anniversary Liberation place-names. This is a valuable and important resource now lodged in the National Archives website.
Expanding our horizons, it is salutary to be able to remind people what a unique and innovative artefact/model/sculpture Rob Yssel’s “Solar System” is! I am grateful to Nikki Buxton for pulling together the background and detail to this very special artistic and scientific monument. Rob is also well known for the skillful restoration and repainting work he carried out on the Cape Pembroke Lighthouse in the 1990s. More importantly, this unique part of Falklands heritage is in urgent need of restorative attention, and it is encouraging to read of the progress with the Cape Pembroke Lighthouse Restoration Project (see the FIMNT report, p 9). Hopefully our decision to feature part of Catherine Batsford’s excellent painting of the Lighthouse on the front cover will help keep the focus on this project over the next year.
It is particularly rewarding when those who are at the forefront in research of a particular topic decide to use the Journal to publish their findings. In this context the research that John Milsom has been carrying out on the wreck of the Uranie and the subsequent fate of the survivors is absolutely fascinating. It also opens the door to further research on who all was on that ship – and why!
The sudden and unexpected death of Captain Lauritz Carlsen in 1931 caused a huge outpouring of grief and respect in the Falklands. Just why this Norwegian captain should have been recognized as highly as he was is expertly presented by Ian Hart and Stephen Palmer. In that era, ships were virtually the sole means of transport and a vital linkage between people. The Fleurus was one such ship and it is only to be expected that her Captain would have been popular and important. Carlsen was certainly at the upper end of the scale of both these attributes.
Stephen Palmer continues to deliver meticulous and authoritative research on many aspects of Falklands-related life and history. Arthur Grenfell Barton was one such topic and despite the importance he played in the role of the FIC’s contribution to the development of the Falklands, his life has been very little researched. Stephen has opened up a whole new window on his life in a thorough and meticulous investigation into his preserved letters. By connecting with the family, he has been able to source a series of highly interesting photographs and we are happy to reproduce these. Stephen’s article last year on the remarkable bravery of Captain Robert Ryder VC stimulated Bill Featherstone to add some personal reminiscences and more detail to the remarkable achievements of Ryder in this year’s issue.
The connection between the Falklands and Ireland has a long and fascinating history. Last year I gave a picture of how a group of young men had emigrated from Mid-Ulster in the 1960s and made a significant contribution to life and work in the Falklands. It is becoming clearer that there have been earlier examples of migration of Irish people to the islands and Edward Walsh has been fascinated with these connections over many years. In a most interesting piece, Edward has shown how just a single letter concerning one Christopher Murray can open up wider ripples of interest through the whole Falklands’ community.
There has been a huge volume of literature on the 1982 Falklands War and one would wonder how anything further could emerge. Yet the story of how those at Douglas Station were involved in, and experienced the successive waves of military activity from both sides which flowed through, and occupied, the settlement, has never been fully documented. Based on interviews and personal contact from all sides in the conflict (British, Argentinian and civilian) Dr Andre Chissel has made it a personal
crusade to have this story told. He has put a huge amount of work into this project (which will be presented over this issue and next year’s) and some of us on the editorial group have put serious thought and soul-searching into how such a human story should be presented. We were never in doubt about the importance of having the events told and worked closely with Andre and others to overcome the obvious and understandable sensibilities about putting this in print. I hope it will serve as a testament to the resilience of a small group of ordinary people who were subjected to extraordinary pressures and circumstances yet demonstrated the finest human qualities of stoicism and pragmatism to adapt to and overcome their situation. Andre has also written an online book on the events at Ajax Bay during the War and we present details of how to access this. In addition, we also print other three more relevant book reviews and notifications which will be of interest.
It is so rewarding to be able to publish the winning and highly commended entries of the 2023 Jane and Alastair Cameron History prizes. I sincerely thank Chloe Anderson-Wheatley for the effort she and her staff have put into preparing these for publication. The range of topics and the depth and quality of effort put in by the students, with support from their teachers, really shines through. They are all excellent and worthy of publication. If I may use Editor’s privilege to select one, Zoe Clement’s piece on the Noah’s Ark enterprise is long overdue – there is a whole field of history in there and Zoe’s entry should spur others on to come forward with stories around the animals brought in that memorable cargo. This is all the more relevant as, thanks to Chloe’s efforts, we now have a substantial Noah’s Ark archive stored in the Falklands and which is available for research.
FIJ committee meeting held on 24 th June 2024 in the 1982 room, Historic DockyardMuseum, Stanley. Left to right: Tasmin Tyrrell, Chloe Anderson-Wheatley, Jim McAdam, Geraldine McAdam, Nikki Buxton. Photo – Sandra Alazia.
I was fortunate enough to be able to get to the Falklands this winter to participate in Farmer’s Week, and Geraldine and I took the opportunity to have our regular FIJ committee meeting with those members present in the Islands (see picture above). These meetings are always very special and help keep the strong bond between those living in the Falklands and dedicated to producing the Journal and those based further afield. I feel this is one of the great strengths of the FIJ and why it has continued to flourish and thrive.
I hope readers will find the range, scope and quality of the material presented of great interest and it will further enhance what a fascinating history is embodied in this relatively small group of islands populated by a very special group of people.
I express my gratitude to the editorial and production team, all of whom give freely of their time to help produce the Falkland Islands Journal.
Commemorative stamp issue
I have some spare copies of the first-day cover commemorating the 50th anniversary of the FIJ stamp issue, released in 2017 and now withdrawn. Please contact me if interested (£15 including postage).
Back issues
Back issues of the FIJ can be obtained from the Museum Shop in Stanley. The full set of back issues on a memory stick are available in Stanley from the Museum Shop, the Capstan Gift Shop or the Pod Gift Shop. Overseas they are available from the Editor
Our sponsors
I would like to put on record our gratitude to our sponsors for this issue. South Atlantic Trading (Roy McGill) had shipped the journals to the Islands free of charge for many years, but have now ceased their freight forwarding activities. We gratefully acknowledge their support and are very happy to announce that Richard James International have agreed to provide and sponsor this service. The Falkland Islands Company continues its long history of support by selling copies at no profit in their outlets in the Falklands and Synergy Information Systems Ltd produce the back issue memory sticks and sponsor the colour printing.
Jim McAdam