Relations with the United Kingdom
A hymn composed by Reverend C McDonald Hobley of Christ Church Cathedral, Stanley.This special issue of Falkland Islands monthly review marks the visit to the Falkland Islands of Lord Chalfont, minister of state at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. It includes an itinerary of the visit, as well as the text of an interview, where the minister is questioned as to the future of the islands, by Mr AG Burton of the Executive Council and Mr RV Goss of the Legislative Council. Islanders' concerns are usefully viewed in the context of Britain's re-evaluation of its relationships with overseas territories and colonies in the decades following the Second World War.
The exchange detailed below outlines a continuing theme of the islanders' life: the facilitation of better relations with the mainland of Argentina, while living under the Union Flag.
Lord Chalfont: I’m very glad to hear you say that you see a great advantage in better communications, a great advantage in the Falkland Islanders learning Spanish, a great advantage in better relations generally with the Argentine ...
Mr Barton: Yes, sir, because after all, 20 years ago or more both my sons went to school in the Argentine and the Argentine did them proud, they became bilingual ... but then – although the Argentine claim to the Falklands still existed - it wasn’t so hot as it has been these last two or three years.
In 1982, fourteen years after this exchange, a military junta in Argentina under General Galtieri invaded the islands, both to boost a weak hold on power and to fire nationalist sentiment. Needless to say, the hope of better relations between Falkland Islanders and Argentina was destroyed for years to come.
On display here is a hymn composed by Reverend C McDonald Hobley of Christ Church Cathedral, Stanley. It emphasises the Falkland Islanders' loyalty to the mother country of Britain and how their hearts remain British.
Please note that every effort has been made to trace the estate of Reverend C McDonald Hobley. Please contact us at specialcollections@kcl.ac.uk if you are the copyright holder.
In this exhibition
- Rogues and rebels
- Colonialism
- Liberation?
- British emigration to Latin America
- The Falkland Islands: a question of sovereignty
- Early exploration of the islands
- A claim to British sovereignty
- Island life
- Relations with the United Kingdom
- Conflicting claims and war
- The Panama canal and the influence of the United States in Latin America
- Indigenous peoples
- Latin America observed
- 'That land so rich'
- Bibliography