MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Dr. Graham Pascoe’s comprehensive history of the Falkland Islands is now available

Volume 3 (1852-1982): 732 pages, with maps, tables, 229 illustrations in colour and black & white.

The Falklands Saga describes the history and legal status of the Falkland Islands in four A4 volumes, with illustrations, tables of population and shipping, and a compendium of hundreds of historical and legal documents, in English and also (where different) in their original languages, Spanish, French, German, Latin or Dutch. There is a full apparatus criticus: each volume contains over 2,500 footnotes, a glossary, an appendix and a bibliography.

“… a work of profound scholarship, rigorous analysis and sound judgement. It will become the new benchmark for serious historical study of the Falkland Islands.” (former Falklands Governor David Tatham, in The Falkland Islands Journal 2022)

Kindle edition ₤19.99 per volume; paperback print-on-demand, ₤79.99 per volume, plus p&p, e.g. under this link or here, on Amazon, or other online outlets, and from bookshops. Prices may vary.

Volume 1 (from the beginning to 1831): 731 pages, maps, tables, 111 illustrations in colour and black & white. ISBN 978-1-80381-687-6; eBook ISBN 978-1-80381-688-3. Geography, climate, landscape, wildlife; discovery, probably by the Portuguese, 1518/19; refutation of myths of discovery by the Chinese, Vespucci or Magellan; early sightings; the French at Port Louis, 1764; the British at Port Egmont, 1766; the First Falklands Crisis: Spain replaces France, 1767; Anglo-Spanish dispute; the Anglo-Spanish agreement, 1771: each side agrees to tolerate the other in the Falklands; the Nootka Sound Convention extends Britain’s rights, 1790; Spain withdraws; start of the Years of Confusion, 1811; the abortive 1824 Argentine expedition; Louis Vernet’s five years in the Falklands, 1826-31.

Volume 2 (1831-1855): 767 pages, with maps, tables, 80 illustrations in colour and black & white. ISBN 978-1-80381-689-0; eBook ISBN 978-1-80381-690-6. The Second Falklands Crisis: Vernet seizes US ships, and leaves the islands; the US removes half the population; 12-year diplomatic breach between Argentina and the US; Argentina sends a garrison; murder at Port Louis, I: Argentine governor murdered by his own troops; Britain reasserts sovereignty, expels the Argentine garrison but allows civilians to remain; Charles Darwin’s 1st visit, 1833; Argentine protests begin; murder at Port Louis, II: Antonio Rivero murders Argentine representatives; Darwin’s 2nd visit, 1834; Argentine protests end; Years of Confusion end, 1850; Convention of Peace ends Argentina’s claim to the Falklands.

Volume 3 (1852-1982): 732 pages, with maps, tables, 229 illustrations in colour and black & white. ISBN 978-1-80381-691-3; eBook ISBN 978-1-80381-692-0. Vernet in Europe; the Patagonian Mission; Argentina confirms consent to Britain’s possession of the Falklands; West Falkland populated; final end of Argentina’s claim to the islands; the First World War: Battle of the Falklands, 1914; first evacuation of children within the islands; the Second World War: Battle of the River Plate, 1939; second evacuation of children, 1942; Britain arbitrates between Argentina and Chile, 1899-1902 and 1964-6; “amateur Argentine invasions”, 1964, 1966, 1968; six Argentine coups; the Heligoland and Chagos connections; the Third Falklands Crisis: the invaders land, 1 April 1982.

Volume 4: 1982 to the present day (forthcoming). The Third Falklands Crisis: the Falklands War, 2 April to 14 June 1982: Invasion, with full transcript of the “invasion phone-in”; third evacuation of children from Stanley to other settlements in the islands; Occupation: life under Argentine occupation; fruitless diplomatic negotiations; the British task force; Liberation: the British forces arrive; the battles; the Argentine surrender; aftermath; the present and the future; international law; United Nations Resolutions; the legal status of the Falklands; rulings by the International Court of Justice on Kuwait and Kosovo; UN Resolution 2625: Falkland Islanders are holders of territorial sovereignty with full external self-determination – the Falklands are not part of Argentina.

Volume 5: Index to Volumes 1-4 (forthcoming). Will contain a cumulative index and a cumulative bibliography to volumes 1-4, and a cumulative list of errata and corrigenda (if any) in all volumes.