History of the Kerguelen Islands

The history of the Kerguelen Islands is a history of an archipelago that remained uninhabited and undiscovered for virtually its entire existence so far, with its first human inhabitation only settling on the islands in the 19th century.

Initially only a temporary settlement for whalers and sealers, the Kerguelen Islands saw an influx of inhabitants in the 1850s and 1860s from the colony of. The commencement of the saw another influx of inhabitants, the majority of which were  fleeing for the approaching German Army.

With the independence of the Republic of the Southern Indian Ocean Islands in 1956, the archipelago's capital of Port-aux-Français became the capital city of the newly-founded nation. As the Republic's largest and most populous archipelago it grew into a modern and relatively accessible archipelago, and a rich one at that after the discovery of oil fields.

First appearance on maps
The Kerguelen Islands' first appearance are on a map by from 1754, where they are titled as "Ile de Nachtegal". This was 18 years before the islands' official discovery in 1772. The map, titled "Carte des Terres Australes comprises entre le Tropique du Capricorne et le Pôle Antarctique où se voyent les nouvelles découvertes faites en 1739 au Sud du Cap de Bonne Esperance", locates Ile de Nachtegal at 43°S, 72°E, about 6 degrees north and 2 degrees east of the accepted location of Grande Terre.

It is possible this early name was based off 's ship "De Zeeuwsche Nachtegaal".

First official discovery
The islands were discovered by the Breton-French navigator Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec on 12 February 1772. The next day Charles de Boisguehenneuc landed and claimed the island for the French crown.[4] Yves de Kerguelen organised a second expedition in 1773 and arrived at the " baie de l'Oiseau " by December of the same year. On 6 January 1774 he commanded his lieutenant, Henri Pascal de Rochegude, to leave a message notifying any passersby of the two passages and of the French claim to the islands.[5] Thereafter, a number of expeditions briefly visited the islands, including that of Captain James Cook in December 1776, who verified and confirmed the passage of de Kerguelen by discovering and annotating the message left by the French navigator.[5] In 1874–1875, British, German and U.S. expeditions visited Kerguelen to observe the transit of Venus.[6]

The islands were discovered by Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec, a navigator, on 12 February 1772. One 13 February 1772, a day after the discovery by de Kerguelen-Trémarec, Charles de Boisguehenneuc landed and claimed the archipelago for the French crown.

A second expedition was organised by de Kerguelen-Trémarec in 1773, where they arrived at the "Baie de l'Oiseau" by December of the same year. On 6 January 1774 he commanded, his lieutenant, to leave a message notifying any passersby of the two passages, as well as of the French claim on the islands. Thereafter, a number of expeditions briefly visited the islands, including that of Captain in December 1776, who verified and confirmed the passage of de Kerguelen-Trémarec by discovering and annotating the message left by the French navigator.

In 1874–1875, British, German and U.S. expeditions visited Kerguelen to observe the.