• kilinrax@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Actually the first colonists were French. The claim was transferred to Spain via a pact between the Bourbon kings of both countries. The Spanish name for The Falklands actually derives from the French, Îles Malouines, named after Saint-Malo/Sant-Maloù.

    The Argentinians only ever occupied the islands for six months, for a penal colony - which ended via mutiny, not military expulsion. They’ve otherwise been under continuous British occupation since 1833, barring the 1982 war.

    I’m English, and by no means pro-English colonialism, but the Argentine claim is spurious nonsense.

    • AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      According to Wikipedia, The French and English colonized two separate islands within months of each other, though the French are credited with being there first. Historians apparently disagree on whether or not the two settlements knew the other was there for the first year.

      The English have the longest claim that was never relinquished, since the French gave their settlement to Spain years after the French and English set up the original two colonies.