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South America and South Atlantic Islands
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands (British Overseas Territory) |
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Last reviewed: 6 September 2007 |
Country information
HISTORY
The first landing on South Georgia was that of Captain James Cook in 1775. Thereafter, South Georgia was much visited by sealers of many nationalities who reaped a rich harvest from the immense number of fur seals and elephant seals that frequented the shores. Britain annexed South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) by Letters Patent in 1908. Since then, the Islands have been under continuous British occupation, apart from a short period of illegal Argentine occupation in 1982. Throughout much of the last century South Georgia was the centre of land-based whaling in the Southern Hemisphere and whaling stations operated under licence from the British administration.
