Whaling
Whaling was a large industry from the beginning of the 20th century in Antarctica as countries such as Norway and Great Britain established whaling systems in the Antarctic. Too much whaling in the northern seas depleted the whale populations in the north, driving people south to maintain the lucrative industry.
Britain vs. South American Antarctica
Although several countries have had bases in Antarctica at different points in history, the biggest stakeholders in history have been Great Britain, Chile, and Argentina.
Britain staked claims to islands such as the Falklands some other islands close to Antarctica through their imperial expansion. Argentina viewed Britain’s claims on the islands as an infringement on their sovereignty and became interested in Antarctica as well. Seeing Britain as making imperial moves, Chile and Argentina banded together for a South American Antarctica, making claims such as land continuity for their sovereignty despite ongoing territorial disputes between Chile and Argentina since the beginning of their countries.
International Geophysical Year and the Antarctic Treaty
As other countries gained more of an interest in Antarctica for economic reasons, Britain began to create a narrative of Antarctica as a land of science. As science in Antarctica expanded, nations involved in Antarctic science created the Antarctic Treaty to maintain the peace in Antarctica and to keep it a place of international cooperation.
Despite this front of international cooperation, due to the fact that a country’s admission into the group is dependent on economic wealth to conduct scientific research severely limited the countries that could join in a post-World War II economy. As talks of mineral deposits in Antarctica emerged, more countries began to view the cohort with skepticism, pushing the Antarctic group to put off any form of resource extraction in Antarctica until 2048. While the Antarctic Treaty is praised as an international scientific success, it is backed by political and economic motives very rooted in national ideas.
A look into what the rapid politicalization of Antarctica left behind:
These stations and many more are abandoned by the nations and are left to be buried under Antarctic snow. More recently, some of these abandoned bases have been given to other countries as a way to “repurpose” the bases.
Further Readings
Child, Jack . “Miniature Messages: The Semiotics and Politics of Latin American Postage Stamps.” Durham: Duke University Press, 2008: 124-160
Howkins, Adrian. Frozen Empires: An Environmental History of the Antarctic Peninsula. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
Howkins, Adrian. “”Have You Been There?” Some Thoughts on (Not) Visiting Antarctica.” Environmental History 15, no. 3 (July 2010): 514-519.
Howkins, Adrian. “Reluctant Collaborators: Argentina and Chile in Antarctica during the International Geophysical Year, 1957-58,” Journal of Historical Geography 34, (2008): 596-617
Jensen, Marie and Vereda, Marisol. “The Origins and Development of Antarctica Tourism Through Ushuaia as a Gateway Port” in M. Schillat et al., Tourism in Antarctica (2016).
Last, Alex, host. “The Antarctic Whale Hunters.” BBC (podcast). November 27, 2018. Accessed May 9, 2020. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3cswsp5
