Darwin, Falkland Islands
Encyclopedia
Darwin is a settlement in Lafonia
on East Falkland
, lying on Choiseul Sound
, on the east side of the island's central isthmus
, 2.5 miles (4 km) north of Goose Green
. It was known occasionally (and still is from time to time) as Port Darwin.
Attractions in Darwin include a corral
, the Galpon building which was home to nineteenth century gaucho
s, the Argentine Military Cemetery
, and birdlife both in the Sound and the pond
. There is also a small race course here, for local amateur and hobby horse riders.
It is named after Charles Darwin
, who carried out a zoological survey of the Falkland Islands
on the Beagle
's second voyage. Darwin was said to have spent the night here.
Approximately quarter of a century after Charles Darwin's visit, the settlement of Darwin was founded. The first building,erected in 1859, was the vicarage. It was started as the centre for sheep farming in Lafonia, which it remained until 1922. The farm was then transferred to Goose Green
, south of Darwin and separated by the Boca Wall of peat
, which grew to overshadow Darwin. Darwin was initially the haunt of gaucho
s, and cattle farmers, but sheep farming came to dominate the area, and Scottish shepherds were brought in.
A few years later, the first large tallow works in the islands (though not the first) was set up by the FIC in 1874. It handled 15,891 sheep in 1880.
From the 1880s, until 1972, Darwin and Fox Bay
had their own separate medical officers. Nowadays, most medical care is based in Stanley.
A telephone line was constructed between Darwin and Stanley in 1906, with the ship Consort landing poles on the coast. The Darwin line was finished in 1907, at a length of 49.5 miles (79.7 km). The line was initially only for business, but the public could make calls from time to time. It suffered a few breakages in the early years of operations.
There are two listed buildings here, the galpon and the Stone Corral.
Darwin and environs saw heavy fighting in the Falklands War
during the Battle of Goose Green
. A large number of Argentine casualties were buried near here.
On the morning of May 28, British troops from the 2nd PARA Regiment took Darwin Hill after fierce fighting with Argentine forces.
The GADA
detachment, unaware of the situation, observed several platoons advancing down the southern slopes of the ridge. Identifying them as British, GADA 601 section engaged them in direct-fire mode. The 35 mm bursts blocked the advance of the leading companies
of the 2nd PARA Regiment, who suffered a number of casualties. C Company bore the brunt of the Argentine fire, the Headquarters section of C Company was effectively put out of action and 20 % of the Company were injured, including the commander, Major Hugh Jenner, and his signallers. The rear platoon, attached from A Company, was forced to remain behind Darwin Hill for the rest of the battle.
The last direct-fire mission of GADA 601’s section targeted the Darwin school-house, a position recently taken by troops of D Company. The building was already on fire due to the use of white phosphorus grenades by the British, it was then systematically destroyed by 35 mm rounds and burnt to the ground, resulting in further casualties for the paratroopers.
The British advance from this area was eventually halted on the orders of Major Chris Keeble who decided to stop the advance in order to consolidate his position.
Shortly after, the GADA position was subjected to mortar fire, and the power generator
of the guns was damaged beyond repair. A later Harrier strike was inaccurate and failed to hit the GADA 601 position, as corroborated by a British account of the action. The mortar barrage, however, forced the section to seek shelter. With the garrison now isolated and surrounded, the Argentine commanding officer chose to surrender the following day.
Lafonia
Lafonia is a peninsula forming the southern part of East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands.-Geography and geology:Shaped like the letter "E", it is joined to the northern part of the island by a 1.5-mile narrow isthmus; were this isthmus to be severed, Lafonia would be the third...
on East Falkland
East Falkland
East Falkland the largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, has an area of and a coastline long. Most of the population of the Falklands live in East Falkland, almost all of them living in the northern half of the island...
, lying on Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound is a stretch of sea in the Falkland Islands. It runs parallel to Eagle Passage and is between Lafonia and the north of East Falkland. Lively Island is in its mouth....
, on the east side of the island's central isthmus
Isthmus
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...
, 2.5 miles (4 km) north of Goose Green
Goose Green
Goose Green is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It lies on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, south-southwest of Darwin. With a population of about 70, it is the second largest settlement of the Falkland Islands.Goose Green has a shop...
. It was known occasionally (and still is from time to time) as Port Darwin.
Attractions in Darwin include a corral
Corral
Corral is a town, commune and sea port in Los Ríos Region, Chile. It is located south of Corral Bay. Corral is best known for the forts of Corral Bay, a system of defensive batteries and forts made to protect Valdivia during colonial times. Corral was the headquarters of the system...
, the Galpon building which was home to nineteenth century gaucho
Gaucho
Gaucho is a term commonly used to describe residents of the South American pampas, chacos, or Patagonian grasslands, found principally in parts of Argentina, Uruguay, Southern Chile, and Southern Brazil...
s, the Argentine Military Cemetery
Argentine Military Cemetery
The Argentine Military Cemetery, , is a military cemetery on East Falkland that holds the remains of 237 Argentine combatants killed during the 1982 Falklands War...
, and birdlife both in the Sound and the pond
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
. There is also a small race course here, for local amateur and hobby horse riders.
History
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, who carried out a zoological survey of the Falkland Islands
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
on the Beagle
HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
's second voyage. Darwin was said to have spent the night here.
Approximately quarter of a century after Charles Darwin's visit, the settlement of Darwin was founded. The first building,erected in 1859, was the vicarage. It was started as the centre for sheep farming in Lafonia, which it remained until 1922. The farm was then transferred to Goose Green
Goose Green
Goose Green is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It lies on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, south-southwest of Darwin. With a population of about 70, it is the second largest settlement of the Falkland Islands.Goose Green has a shop...
, south of Darwin and separated by the Boca Wall of peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
, which grew to overshadow Darwin. Darwin was initially the haunt of gaucho
Gaucho
Gaucho is a term commonly used to describe residents of the South American pampas, chacos, or Patagonian grasslands, found principally in parts of Argentina, Uruguay, Southern Chile, and Southern Brazil...
s, and cattle farmers, but sheep farming came to dominate the area, and Scottish shepherds were brought in.
- "In 1871, many shepherds situation on the Falkland Island Company's main farm at Darwin were of ScottishScottish peopleThe Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
origin, and members of the Free Kirk of ScotlandFree Church of Scotland (1843-1900)The Free Church of Scotland is a Scottish denomination which was formed in 1843 by a large withdrawal from the established Church of Scotland in a schism known as the "Disruption of 1843"...
. Finding a growing need for a minister of their own, they undertook, with the assistance of the Company to employ a minister for Darwin, and in 1872, Rev Yeoman took up the appointment. In 1873, an iron constructed church was brought from EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and erected at Darwin. About this time, it was estimated that one third of the Falklands' population belonged to the Presbyterian church.
- "As Stanley grew, the Darwin minister visited the town occasionally and held services in the infants' school."
A few years later, the first large tallow works in the islands (though not the first) was set up by the FIC in 1874. It handled 15,891 sheep in 1880.
From the 1880s, until 1972, Darwin and Fox Bay
Fox Bay
Fox Bay is the second largest settlement on West Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It is located on a bay of the same name, and is on the south east coast of the island...
had their own separate medical officers. Nowadays, most medical care is based in Stanley.
A telephone line was constructed between Darwin and Stanley in 1906, with the ship Consort landing poles on the coast. The Darwin line was finished in 1907, at a length of 49.5 miles (79.7 km). The line was initially only for business, but the public could make calls from time to time. It suffered a few breakages in the early years of operations.
There are two listed buildings here, the galpon and the Stone Corral.
Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
during the Battle of Goose Green
Battle of Goose Green
The Battle of Goose Green was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces. Goose Green and its neighbour Darwin are settlements on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. They lie on Choiseul Sound on the east side of the island's central isthmus...
. A large number of Argentine casualties were buried near here.
On the morning of May 28, British troops from the 2nd PARA Regiment took Darwin Hill after fierce fighting with Argentine forces.
The GADA
GADA 601
The 601st Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group , historically known as GADA 601 is the main anti-aircraft artillery unit of the Argentine Army. Its headquarters are based just north of Mar del Plata. Its name was changed to GAA 601 Teniente General Pablo Ricchieri in 1999...
detachment, unaware of the situation, observed several platoons advancing down the southern slopes of the ridge. Identifying them as British, GADA 601 section engaged them in direct-fire mode. The 35 mm bursts blocked the advance of the leading companies
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
of the 2nd PARA Regiment, who suffered a number of casualties. C Company bore the brunt of the Argentine fire, the Headquarters section of C Company was effectively put out of action and 20 % of the Company were injured, including the commander, Major Hugh Jenner, and his signallers. The rear platoon, attached from A Company, was forced to remain behind Darwin Hill for the rest of the battle.
The last direct-fire mission of GADA 601’s section targeted the Darwin school-house, a position recently taken by troops of D Company. The building was already on fire due to the use of white phosphorus grenades by the British, it was then systematically destroyed by 35 mm rounds and burnt to the ground, resulting in further casualties for the paratroopers.
The British advance from this area was eventually halted on the orders of Major Chris Keeble who decided to stop the advance in order to consolidate his position.
Shortly after, the GADA position was subjected to mortar fire, and the power generator
Diesel generator
A diesel generator is the combination of a diesel engine with an electrical generator to generate electrical energy....
of the guns was damaged beyond repair. A later Harrier strike was inaccurate and failed to hit the GADA 601 position, as corroborated by a British account of the action. The mortar barrage, however, forced the section to seek shelter. With the garrison now isolated and surrounded, the Argentine commanding officer chose to surrender the following day.