Trindade and Martim Vaz
Encyclopedia
Trindade and Martim Vaz is an archipelago
located about 1,200 kilometers (740 mi) east of Vitória in the Southern Atlantic Ocean
, belonging to the State of Espírito Santo
, Brazil
. The archipelago has a total area of 10.4 km² (4.0 sq mi) and a population of 32 (Brazilian Navy
personnel). The archipelago consists of six islands; Trindade being the largest island, with an area of 10.1 km² and Martim Vaz the second largest, with an area of 0.3 km² (30 hectare
s).
The islands are of volcanic
origin and have rugged terrain. They are largely barren, except for the southern part of Trindade. They were discovered in 1502 by Portuguese
explorer Estêvão da Gama
and stayed Portuguese until they became part of Brazil at its independence. From 1890 to 1896, Trindade was occupied by the United Kingdom
until an agreement with Brazil was reached. During the period of British occupation, Trindade was known as "South Trinidad".
The small island of Trindade, with an area of 10.3 km², lies at the eastern end of an E-W-trending chain of submarine volcanoes and guyot
s extending about 1,000 km (620 mi) from the continental shelf off the Brazilian coast. The island lies more than halfway between Brazil and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge
near the eastern end of the submarine Vitória-Trindade Ridge.
Trindade is a mountainous, dissected volcanic island with numerous phonolitic lava domes and steep-sided volcanic plugs. The highest summit is Pico Desejado, near the center, 620 meters high. Nearby to the northwest are Pico da Trindade (590 m) and Pico Bonifácio (570 m). Pico Monumento, a remarkable peak in the form of a slightly inclined cylinder, rises from the west coast to 270 m. The youngest volcanism, at Vulcão de Paredão (217 m) on the southeast tip of the island, constructed a pyroclastic cone with lava flows that are no older than the Holocene
(Almeida, 1961). Remnants of the crater of the 200 m high cinder cone are still preserved. Lava flows traveled from the cone to the north, where they formed an irregular shoreline and offshore islands. Smaller volcanic centers of the latest volcanic stage are found in the Morro Vermelho (515 m) area in the south-central part of the island.
There is a small settlement in the north on Enseada dos Portugueses, supporting a garrison of the Brazilian Navy, 32 strong.
The island is the main nesting site of the green sea turtle
in Brazil.
navigators led by Estêvão da Gama
, and, along with Brazil, became part of the Portuguese Empire
.
Many visitors have been to Martim Vaz, the most famous of whom was the English astronomer Edmund Halley, who took possession of the island on behalf of the British Monarchy
in 1700.
HMS Rattlesnake, a 198-ton, 12-gun cutter-rigged sloop, was wrecked on Trindade on 21 October 1781, shortly after Commander Philip d’Auvergne RN, Prince de Bouillon had taken over command. Rattlesnake had been ordered to survey the island to ascertain whether it would make a useful base for outward-bound Indiamen. She anchored, but that evening the wind increased and by seven o’clock she was dragging. Two hours later the first cable parted and Commander d’Auvergne club-hauled his way out, setting main and fore sails, and using the remaining anchor cable as a spring. This successfully put Rattlesnake’s head to seaward. The remaining cable was then cut, and the sloop wore round and stood out to sea. However the ground now shallowed quite rapidly and suddenly Rattlesnake struck a submerged rock. She started filling with water, so, in order to preserve the lives of the crew, she was run ashore. The crew lived on the tiny island for three months until taken off by the Bristol, 50 guns, and a convoy of Indiamen, which fortuitously called there in late December.
Captain La Pérouse
stopped there at the outset of his 1785 voyage to the Pacific.
claimed the island and declared himself as James I, Prince of Trinidad
. According to James Harden-Hickey's plans, Trinidad, after being recognized as an independent country, would become a military dictatorship
and have him as dictator. He designed postage stamps, a national flag, and a coat of arms
; established a chivalric order
, the "Cross of Trinidad"; bought a schooner
to transport colonists; appointed M. le Comte de la Boissiere as Secretary of State
; opened a consular office at 217 West 36th Street in New York; and even issued government bonds to finance construction of infrastructure
on the island. Despite his plans, his idea was ridiculed or ignored by the world.
In July 1895, the British
again tried to take possession of this strategic position in the Atlantic. The British planned to use the island as a cable station. However, Brazilian diplomatic efforts, along with Portuguese support, reinstated Trindade Island to Brazilian sovereignty.
In order to clearly demonstrate sovereignty over the island, now part of the State of Espírito Santo
and the municipality of Vitória, a landmark was built on January 24, 1897. Nowadays, Brazilian presence is marked by a permanent Brazilian Navy
base on the main island.
In August 1914 the Imperial German Navy
established a supply base for its warships off Trindade. On September 14, 1914 the Royal Navy
auxiliary cruiser HMS Carmania fought the German Navy's SMS Cap Trafalgar
off Trindade in the Battle of Trindade
. The SMS "Cap Trafalgar" was sunk by HMS "Carmania", which sustained severe damage herself. Coincidentally, because both ships were 18,000 ton liners
they had disguised themselves as each other before the battle to make it easier to approach ships of the other country's merchant fleet
.
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
located about 1,200 kilometers (740 mi) east of Vitória in the Southern Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, belonging to the State of Espírito Santo
Espírito Santo
Espírito Santo is one of the states of southeastern Brazil, often referred to by the abbreviation "ES". Its capital is Vitória and the largest city is Vila Velha. The name of the state means literally "holy spirit" after the Holy Ghost of Christianity...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. The archipelago has a total area of 10.4 km² (4.0 sq mi) and a population of 32 (Brazilian Navy
Brazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
personnel). The archipelago consists of six islands; Trindade being the largest island, with an area of 10.1 km² and Martim Vaz the second largest, with an area of 0.3 km² (30 hectare
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
s).
The islands are of volcanic
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
origin and have rugged terrain. They are largely barren, except for the southern part of Trindade. They were discovered in 1502 by Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
explorer Estêvão da Gama
Estêvão da Gama (c.1470)
Estêvão da Gama was a Portuguese navigator and explorer, discoverer of the Trindade and Martim Vaz islands .Estêvão da Gama was Vasco da Gama's cousin, son of his cousin Aires da Gama, as explained by Manuel de Faria e Sousa, in its work "Ásia Portuguesa"...
and stayed Portuguese until they became part of Brazil at its independence. From 1890 to 1896, Trindade was occupied by the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
until an agreement with Brazil was reached. During the period of British occupation, Trindade was known as "South Trinidad".
Geography
The individual islands with their respective locations are given in the following:- Ilha Trindade (20°31′30"S 29°19′30"W)
- Ilhas de Martim Vaz (20°30′00"S 28°51′00"W)
- Ilha do Norte, 300 meters north-northwest of Ilha da Racha, 75 meters high. (20°30′00"S 28°51′00"W)
- Ilha da Racha (Ilha Martim Vaz), 175 meters high near the northwest end. The shores are strewn with boulders. (20°30′18"S 29°20′42"W)
- Rochedo da Angulha, a flat circular rock 200 meters northwest of Ilha da Racha, is 60 meters high.
- Ilha do Sul, 1,600 meters south of Ilha da Racha, is a rocky pinnacle. Ilha do Sul is the easternmost point of Brazil. (20°31′00"S 28°51′00"W)
Trindade
Guyot
A guyot , also known as a tablemount, is an isolated underwater volcanic mountain , with a flat top over 200 meters below the surface of the sea. The diameters of these flat summits can exceed ....
s extending about 1,000 km (620 mi) from the continental shelf off the Brazilian coast. The island lies more than halfway between Brazil and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mid-ocean ridge, a divergent tectonic plate boundary located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, and part of the longest mountain range in the world. It separates the Eurasian Plate and North American Plate in the North Atlantic, and the African Plate from the South...
near the eastern end of the submarine Vitória-Trindade Ridge.
Trindade is a mountainous, dissected volcanic island with numerous phonolitic lava domes and steep-sided volcanic plugs. The highest summit is Pico Desejado, near the center, 620 meters high. Nearby to the northwest are Pico da Trindade (590 m) and Pico Bonifácio (570 m). Pico Monumento, a remarkable peak in the form of a slightly inclined cylinder, rises from the west coast to 270 m. The youngest volcanism, at Vulcão de Paredão (217 m) on the southeast tip of the island, constructed a pyroclastic cone with lava flows that are no older than the Holocene
Holocene
The Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...
(Almeida, 1961). Remnants of the crater of the 200 m high cinder cone are still preserved. Lava flows traveled from the cone to the north, where they formed an irregular shoreline and offshore islands. Smaller volcanic centers of the latest volcanic stage are found in the Morro Vermelho (515 m) area in the south-central part of the island.
There is a small settlement in the north on Enseada dos Portugueses, supporting a garrison of the Brazilian Navy, 32 strong.
The island is the main nesting site of the green sea turtle
Green Sea Turtle
The Green sea turtle or green turtle is a large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus Chelonia. Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
in Brazil.
16th to 18th century
The Trindade and Martim Vaz Islands were discovered in 1502 by PortuguesePortugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
navigators led by Estêvão da Gama
Estêvão da Gama (c.1470)
Estêvão da Gama was a Portuguese navigator and explorer, discoverer of the Trindade and Martim Vaz islands .Estêvão da Gama was Vasco da Gama's cousin, son of his cousin Aires da Gama, as explained by Manuel de Faria e Sousa, in its work "Ásia Portuguesa"...
, and, along with Brazil, became part of the Portuguese Empire
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire , also known as the Portuguese Overseas Empire or the Portuguese Colonial Empire , was the first global empire in history...
.
Many visitors have been to Martim Vaz, the most famous of whom was the English astronomer Edmund Halley, who took possession of the island on behalf of the British Monarchy
Monarchy of the United Kingdom
The monarchy of the United Kingdom is the constitutional monarchy of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories. The present monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, has reigned since 6 February 1952. She and her immediate family undertake various official, ceremonial and representational duties...
in 1700.
HMS Rattlesnake, a 198-ton, 12-gun cutter-rigged sloop, was wrecked on Trindade on 21 October 1781, shortly after Commander Philip d’Auvergne RN, Prince de Bouillon had taken over command. Rattlesnake had been ordered to survey the island to ascertain whether it would make a useful base for outward-bound Indiamen. She anchored, but that evening the wind increased and by seven o’clock she was dragging. Two hours later the first cable parted and Commander d’Auvergne club-hauled his way out, setting main and fore sails, and using the remaining anchor cable as a spring. This successfully put Rattlesnake’s head to seaward. The remaining cable was then cut, and the sloop wore round and stood out to sea. However the ground now shallowed quite rapidly and suddenly Rattlesnake struck a submerged rock. She started filling with water, so, in order to preserve the lives of the crew, she was run ashore. The crew lived on the tiny island for three months until taken off by the Bristol, 50 guns, and a convoy of Indiamen, which fortuitously called there in late December.
Captain La Pérouse
Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse
Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania.-Early career:...
stopped there at the outset of his 1785 voyage to the Pacific.
19th to 20th century
In 1893 the American James Harden-HickeyJames Harden-Hickey
James Harden-Hickey was a Franco-American author, newspaper editor, duellist, adventurer and self-proclaimed Prince.-Early life:James Aloysius Harden was born in San Francisco, California on December 8, 1854...
claimed the island and declared himself as James I, Prince of Trinidad
Principality of Trinidad
The Principality of Trinidad was declared in 1893, when the American James Harden-Hickey claimed the uninhabited island Trindade and Martim Vaz in the South Atlantic and declared himself as James I, Prince of Trinidad. According to Harden-Hickey's plans the island would, after being recognized as...
. According to James Harden-Hickey's plans, Trinidad, after being recognized as an independent country, would become a military dictatorship
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship is a form of government where in the political power resides with the military. It is similar but not identical to a stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military....
and have him as dictator. He designed postage stamps, a national flag, and a coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
; established a chivalric order
Chivalric order
Chivalric orders are societies and fellowships of knights that have been created by European monarchs in imitation of the military orders of the Crusades...
, the "Cross of Trinidad"; bought a schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
to transport colonists; appointed M. le Comte de la Boissiere as Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Secretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
; opened a consular office at 217 West 36th Street in New York; and even issued government bonds to finance construction of infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
on the island. Despite his plans, his idea was ridiculed or ignored by the world.
In July 1895, the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
again tried to take possession of this strategic position in the Atlantic. The British planned to use the island as a cable station. However, Brazilian diplomatic efforts, along with Portuguese support, reinstated Trindade Island to Brazilian sovereignty.
In order to clearly demonstrate sovereignty over the island, now part of the State of Espírito Santo
Espírito Santo
Espírito Santo is one of the states of southeastern Brazil, often referred to by the abbreviation "ES". Its capital is Vitória and the largest city is Vila Velha. The name of the state means literally "holy spirit" after the Holy Ghost of Christianity...
and the municipality of Vitória, a landmark was built on January 24, 1897. Nowadays, Brazilian presence is marked by a permanent Brazilian Navy
Brazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
base on the main island.
In August 1914 the Imperial German Navy
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
established a supply base for its warships off Trindade. On September 14, 1914 the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
auxiliary cruiser HMS Carmania fought the German Navy's SMS Cap Trafalgar
SMS Cap Trafalgar
SMS Cap Trafalgar was a German auxiliary cruiser during World War I. The ship holds the dubious distinction of being the first armed merchant cruiser to have been sunk by a ship of the same class, having been destroyed in a furious action in the South Atlantic in September 1914 soon after the...
off Trindade in the Battle of Trindade
Battle of Trindade
The Battle of Trindade was a single-ship action fought during the First World War on 14 September 1914 off the coast of the Brazilian island of Trindade between the Imperial German Navy and the British Royal Navy.-Battle:...
. The SMS "Cap Trafalgar" was sunk by HMS "Carmania", which sustained severe damage herself. Coincidentally, because both ships were 18,000 ton liners
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
they had disguised themselves as each other before the battle to make it easier to approach ships of the other country's merchant fleet
Ship transport
Ship transport is watercraft carrying people or goods . Sea transport has been the largest carrier of freight throughout recorded history. Although the importance of sea travel for passengers has decreased due to aviation, it is effective for short trips and pleasure cruises...
.