Ground of Fire

The Ground of Fire ( Tierra del Fuego in Spanish) is the name given to the Archipel which is in the extreme-south of the South American continent . Divided between the Argentinian and the Chile, it is composed of a principal island - the large Ground island of fire, often called “Ground of fire” itself - and of a great quantity of smaller islands.

Geography

Localization

Located at the junction of the oceans the Antarctic in the Atlantic South, in the Peaceful East and in the West, the archipelago of the Earth of Fire is separated from the Patagonie and the the Andes by the Magellan Strait. In the South, the Passage of Drake separates the islands from the continent the Antarctic.

The Cape Horn is the southernmost point of the archipelago. In the East, the large Ground island of fire is separated from the island of the States by the Détroit the Mayor. The archipelago extends on nearly 400 km to North in the South and on more than 700 km of West in East.

Principal islands

The archipelago is composed of several hundreds of islands, the majority very cut out and presenting many Fjord S, for an total surface area of approximately 70 000 km ².

The largest island, the large Ground island of Fire, 48 measurement; 100 km ². This island is mountainous on its Western side (the Cordillera Darwin culminates with the Mont Darwin with 2 488 m of altitude) and consist of a plain along its Atlantic facade.

The two larger islands in the West of the archipelago are Santa Inés and the island of Desolation.

The Canal Beagle separates the large island from the islands Hoste and Navarino.

Still more at the South of the Navarino island, across Bay of Nassau, is located a small made up archipelago inter alia islands Wollaston, islands Hermite and the island Horn, southernmost, on which is located the Cape Horn.

Border

See also: Land borders enters Argentina and Chile

The archipelago is divided between the Argentine and the Chile. More exactly, the large Ground island of fire is divided between Chile in the West (approximately two thirds of the island) and Argentina in the East (the remaining third) according to the meridian line 68° 36 ' 38" West since 1881. The Canal Beagle form then the border enters the two countries. At the end of the strait, three islands, Lennox, Nueva and Picton, were the object of a territorial disagreement which began about 1840 and which led almost the two countries to an armed conflict in 1978. After mediation of the the Vatican, a treaty was signed the May 2nd 1985 which assigned the sovereignty of Chile on the three small islands.

The Argentinian part belongs to the province of Tierra del Fuego , the Chilean part being divided between the province of Tierra del Fuego (in North) and of Antártica Chilena (in the South), both in the area of Magallanes there of Antártica Chilena .

History

Before the arrival of Europeans, the area was inhabited by Amerindian S since nearly 12.000 years. The Selknam S were primarily hunters-gatherers, whereas the Yagan S and Alakaluf S were wandering fishermen living in the many channels. They is besides the fires lit by those, and which were visible since the ocean, which gave its name to the archipelago. This name was chosen by Ferdinand Magellan, the first European to reach the islands and to cross the strait which bears its name, in 1520.

The navigators supposed that the Earth of Fire was a continent until in 1578, when Sir Francis Drake went back sufficiently to the south to be convinced that it was surrounded by water.

At the time of the first voyage of the HMS Beagle in 1830, four Ground natives of fire were captured to be presented in front of the King and the Queen of the United Kingdom, where they reached a relative celebrity besides. The three survivors turned over out of Ground of Fire with the Beagle in company of Charles Darwin.

At the 19th century, the Europeans installed on these islands (stockbreeders, fishermen, owners of mines) there perpetrated terrible massacres, reducing to almost nothing the populations autochtones. The missionaries who collected the survivors involuntarily contributed to their decline by deculturation and in their transmitting imported diseases.

Since, institution in Free zone, then the discovery of layers of Natural gas and Pétrole allowed a revival of the saving in this area.

More recently, a form of ecotourism developed; Ushuaia leave cruisings towards the Cape-Horn, in the channels fuégiens, and towards the National park of the Earth of Fire.

Inhabitants

The Ground archipelago of fire is populated rather little.

Argentinian side, the principal city is Ushuaia, 50.000 inhabitants, on southern bank of the large island, bathed by the channel of the Beagle. On the Atlantic side the town of Rio Grande is located.

Chilean side, both plus big cities are Porvenir (on the large island, bathed by the Magellan Strait, inhabited by 5.400 people) and Puerto Williams, on the Navarino island. Puerto Williams, approximately 1.500 inhabitants, are slightly more in the South that Ushuaia and of this fact holds the title of village more in the South of planet (if one does not regard the scientific stations of the Antarctic as villages).

Works

Adios, Tierra del Fuego , Jean Raspail (French writer, general consul of the Royaume of Araucanie and Patagonie), Robert Laffont ( 2001 ), ISBN 2221095170
Which remembers the men , Jean Raspail, Robert Laffont, ( 2001 ) ISBN 2221095170
Tiera del Fuego , Francisco Coloane (Chilean writer) Phébus, ( 2005 ) ISBN 2859408746
the Gulf of the sorrows , Francisco Coloane, Phébus, ( 1997 ) ISBN 2859404791
Cape Horn , Francisco Coloane, Phébus, collection Libretto ( 2005 ) ISBN 2752900813
Riding only , Patricio Manns, Phébus, collection Libretto ( 1996 ) ISBN 2859406247

Internal bonds

Argentinian Province of the Earth of Fire
Chilean Area of the Earth of Fire

External bonds

Official site of the Argentinian province of Tierra del Fuego
El On (South): Patagonie, Ground of Fire
: Forwarding of exploration out of Ground of Fire
: Travel and discovered of the Earth of Fire

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