Falklands Day is the celebration of the first sighting of the Falkland Islands by John Davis in 1592, and is commemorated on 14 August. It was once seen as the National Day of the Falklands but has largely been replaced by Liberation Day which commemorates the end of the Falklands War.
Falkland Islands Day was celebrated last Wednesday 14 August with a reception at Government House in Stanley hosted by Governor Nigel Haywood. The date marks the first recorded sighting of the Falklands on 14 August 1592 by English explorer John Davis who captaining the 120-ton vessel ‘Desire’ in that month was blown by a storm into ‘certaine Isles never before discovered’. Davis account was published in 1600 in London by Richard Hakluyt.
The Falkland Islands, lying about 560km off the mainland of South America, comprise two large islands, East and West Falkland, and a swarm of other islands ranging from substantial ones off the western edge of West Falkland to smaller islets and reefs scattered all along the coasts.