Cape Pembroke ( es, Cabo San Felipe) is the easternmost point of the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...
, and is on
East Falkland
East Falkland ( es, Isla Soledad) is the largest island of the Falklands in the South Atlantic, having an area of or 54% of the total area of the Falklands. The island consists of two main land masses, of which the more southerly is known as La ...
. There is an automated lighthouse here.
Lighthouse
An automated lighthouse on Cape Pembroke was built in 1855, and rebuilt in 1906, and was restored in the 1990s. Previously, the nearby
Billy Rock offshore had claimed fifteen ships, and there were unlit markers here.
The original light used
rape seed
Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...
oil, but as it burnt a thousand gallons a year, sea lion oil was attempted as a substitute. When it was rebuilt in 1906, it was converted to paraffin and worked by clockwork. After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
a less romantic structure was built to the east.
A small lighthouse keepers cottage used to stand here. The lighthouse itself is now a
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
Farm and James Smith
In the late nineteenth century, Cape Pembroke peninsula was a small farm, which the islands' government leased to James Smith of
Stanley
Stanley may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Film and television
* ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film
* ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy
* ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short
* ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...
. There were few such small farms in the islands and James Smith was ardent in his support of agrarian reform.
''Atlantic Conveyor'' memorial
In June 2007,
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, (Edward Antony Richard Louis; born 10 March 1964) is a member of the British royal family. He is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the youngest sibl ...
unveiled a memorial to the , a merchant ship requisitioned by the British military during the Falklands Conflict of 1982. the ship was attacked by Argentine fighters and the resultant explosions killed 12 sailors. Whilst under tow after the event, she sunk off the north eastern coast of the Falkland Islands.
Gallery
Cape Pembroke breakers.jpg, Breakers crashing over Cape Pembroke on the eastern side of East Falkland
Atlantic Conveyor memorial at Cape Pembroke.jpg, A memorial unveiled in 2007 to the SS ''Atlantic Conveyor'' at Cape Pembroke in the Falkland Islands
References
External links
*
{{Authority control , additional=Q3378557
Pembroke, Cape
History of the Falkland Islands
Lighthouses in South America
Lighthouses completed in 1855
Lighthouses completed in 1906
1855 establishments in South America
1855 establishments in the British Empire