Edinburgh of the Seven Seas "The Settlement" | |
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Coordinates: 37°4′2.2″S12°18′36″W / 37.067278°S 12.31000°W | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
British overseas territory | Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha |
Island | Tristan da Cunha |
First inhabited | 1816 |
Named | 1971 |
Founded by | William Glass |
Named for | Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh |
Capital of | Tristan da Cunha |
Population (January 2020) | |
• Total | 312 |
Time zone | UTC+0 (GMT) |
Area code | +88 |
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas is the only settlement on the island of Tristan da Cunha, a part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean. Locally, it is referred to as The Settlement or The Village. [1]
The settlement was founded on the island of Tristan da Cunha in 1816 by a Sergeant William Glass from Kelso, Scottish Borders after the UK annexed Tristan da Cunha. A military garrison was maintained on the islands as a guard against any French attempts to rescue Napoleon, who was imprisoned on Saint Helena. The military garrison remained until the end of World War II.
It is named after Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, the second son of Queen Victoria, in honour of his visit to the island in 1867. [2]
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas is the only major settlement of Tristan da Cunha, and contains a small port, the Administrator's residence, and the post office. It was damaged in a volcanic eruption on the island in 1961, which forced the entire population to abandon the settlement and evacuate to Calshot, Hampshire in the UK. The eruption destroyed the settlement's crayfish factory.
After the return of most of the islanders in 1963, the settlement was rebuilt. The harbour at Edinburgh was named Calshot Harbour, after their temporary home during the eruption. [3]
The archipelago has a wet oceanic climate under the Köppen system with mild temperatures, but consistent moderate to heavy rainfall and very limited sunshine, due to the persistent westerly winds. Under the Trewartha classification, Tristan da Cunha has a humid subtropical climate due to the lack of cold weather, and it has a mild oceanic climate (Cfb) according to the Köppen climate classification, with an absence of extreme temperatures. The number of rainy days is comparable to the Aleutian Islands at a much higher latitude in the northern hemisphere, while sunshine hours are comparable to Juneau, Alaska, 20° farther from the equator. Frost is unknown below elevations of 500 metres (1,600 ft) and summer temperatures are similarly mild, never reaching above 25 °C (77 °F). Sandy Point on the east coast is reputed to be the warmest and driest place on the island, being in the lee of the prevailing winds.
Climate data for Tristan da Cunha | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 23.7 (74.7) | 24.4 (75.9) | 24.4 (75.9) | 22.4 (72.3) | 20.3 (68.5) | 18.7 (65.7) | 17.8 (64.0) | 17.3 (63.1) | 17.1 (62.8) | 18.4 (65.1) | 22.4 (72.3) | 21.8 (71.2) | 24.4 (75.9) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 20.4 (68.7) | 21.2 (70.2) | 20.5 (68.9) | 18.9 (66.0) | 16.9 (62.4) | 15.3 (59.5) | 14.4 (57.9) | 14.2 (57.6) | 14.3 (57.7) | 15.4 (59.7) | 17.0 (62.6) | 18.9 (66.0) | 17.3 (63.1) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 17.9 (64.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 17.9 (64.2) | 15.4 (59.7) | 14.6 (58.3) | 13.1 (55.6) | 12.2 (54.0) | 11.9 (53.4) | 12.0 (53.6) | 13.0 (55.4) | 14.6 (58.3) | 16.5 (61.7) | 14.8 (58.6) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.4 (59.7) | 16.2 (61.2) | 15.3 (59.5) | 11.9 (53.4) | 12.3 (54.1) | 10.9 (51.6) | 10.0 (50.0) | 9.6 (49.3) | 9.7 (49.5) | 10.6 (51.1) | 12.2 (54.0) | 14.1 (57.4) | 12.4 (54.3) |
Record low °C (°F) | 10.9 (51.6) | 11.8 (53.2) | 10.3 (50.5) | 9.5 (49.1) | 7.4 (45.3) | 6.3 (43.3) | 4.8 (40.6) | 4.6 (40.3) | 5.1 (41.2) | 6.4 (43.5) | 8.3 (46.9) | 9.7 (49.5) | 4.6 (40.3) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 93 (3.7) | 113 (4.4) | 121 (4.8) | 129 (5.1) | 155 (6.1) | 160 (6.3) | 160 (6.3) | 175 (6.9) | 169 (6.7) | 151 (5.9) | 128 (5.0) | 127 (5.0) | 1,681 (66.2) |
Average rainy days | 18 | 17 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 26 | 24 | 22 | 18 | 19 | 252 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 79 | 77 | 75 | 78 | 78 | 79 | 79 | 79 | 78 | 79 | 79 | 80 | 78 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 139.5 | 144.0 | 145.7 | 129.0 | 108.5 | 99.0 | 105.4 | 105.4 | 120.0 | 133.3 | 138.0 | 130.2 | 1,498 |
Percent possible sunshine | 31 | 35 | 38 | 38 | 35 | 34 | 34 | 32 | 33 | 33 | 32 | 29 | 34 |
Source 1: Worldwide Bioclimatic Classification System [4] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: Climate and Temperature [5] [6] |
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Climate chart (explanation) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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There is one road, nicknamed the "M1", which connects the town with Potato Patches (or The Patches), the primary agricultural area, and is used by the few private cars on the island. [7] Paved paths provide walking access to buildings around town. A bus service called Potato Patches Flier (using a 24-seat Isuzu mini school bus from Cape Town, South Africa [8] ) is available free to pensioners to travel to the Patches and stops along the road. [9]
All motor vehicles on the island have Tristan da Cunha plates consisting of "TDC" followed by two or three digits. [10]
The settlement has a small harbour named after the village of Calshot, where the population of Tristan da Cunha stayed following the volcanic eruption, with berths accessible by small vessels only. The island has around 10 scheduled ship visits per year for tourists and island residents to travel to/from the island on multi-day trips from South Africa or Namibia. [11]
Graphic artist Rolf Weijburg produced an etch of Edinburgh of the Seven Seas [12] and other places on the island of Tristan da Cunha. [13]
The island's local affairs are managed by the Island Council, a 14-member administration that meets six times a year and is elected every three years. [14]
The town is home to the island's emergency services, which comprise one ambulance (a Toyota Hilux operated by Camogli Hospital), one fire engine (a Land Rover Defender with a small ladder) and one police car (Land Rover Series). [9]
The town administration also has a vehicle for official use. [9]
Most buildings in town are single-story, with the largest being the factory and the tallest being St Joseph's Church.
Saint Helena is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa. St Helena has a land area of 122 square kilometres and is part of the territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which includes Ascension Island and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
This article deals with traffic in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, that is all forms of traffic in the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
Tristan da Cunha, colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately 2,787 kilometres (1,732 mi) from Cape Town in South Africa, 2,437 kilometres (1,514 mi) from Saint Helena, 3,949 kilometres (2,454 mi) from Mar del Plata in Argentina, and 4,002 kilometres (2,487 mi) from the Falkland Islands.
Tristan da Cunha is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha and has a history going back to the beginning of the 16th century. It was settled by men from military garrisons and ships, who married native women from Saint Helena and the Cape Colony. Its people are multi-racial, descended from European male founders and mixed-race and African women founders.
Jamestown is the capital city of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, located on the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is also the historic main settlement of the island and is on its north-western coast. Before the development of the port at Rupert's Bay, it was the island's only port and the centre of the island's road and communications network. It was founded when colonists from the English East India Company settled on the island in 1659 and was briefly occupied by the Dutch East India Company in 1673 before being recaptured. Many of the buildings built by the East India Company in the 18th century survive and give the town its distinctive Georgian flavour.
Brava is an island in Cape Verde, and is part of the Sotavento group, in the central Atlantic Ocean. At 62.5 km2 (24.1 sq mi), it is the smallest inhabited island of the Cape Verde archipelago, but at the same time the greenest. First settled in the early 16th century, its population grew after Mount Fogo on neighbouring Fogo erupted in 1680. For more than a century, its main industry was whaling, but the island economy is now primarily agricultural.
Inaccessible Island is a volcanic island located in the South Atlantic Ocean, 31 km (19 mi) south-west of Tristan da Cunha. Its highest point, Swale's Fell, reaches 581 m (1,906 ft), and the island is 12.65 km2 (4.88 sq mi) in area. The volcano was last active approximately one million years ago and is now extinct.
Calshot is a coastal village in Hampshire, England, at the west corner of Southampton Water where it joins the Solent.
Nightingale Island is an active volcanic island in the South Atlantic Ocean, 3 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi) in area, part of the Tristan da Cunha group of islands. They are administered by the United Kingdom as part of the overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
Queen Mary's Peak is the summit of the island of Tristan da Cunha, in the South Atlantic Ocean. It has an elevation of 2,062 metres (6,765 ft) above sea level. It is named after Mary of Teck, the Queen consort of King George V. It is the highest point of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, and of any British overseas territory with a permanent population. Queen Mary's Peak is ranked 17th by topographic isolation.
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory located in the South Atlantic and consisting of the island of Saint Helena, Ascension Island, and the archipelago of Tristan da Cunha. Its name was Saint Helena and Dependencies until 1 September 2009, when a new constitution came into force, giving the three islands equal status as three territories, with a grouping under the Crown.
Tristan da Cunha is an archipelago of five islands in the southern Atlantic Ocean, the largest of which is the island of Tristan da Cunha itself and the second-largest, the remote bird haven, Gough Island. It forms part of a wider territory called Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which includes Saint Helena and Ascension Island.
Conrad Jack Glass is a Tristanian police inspector and civil servant who was Tristan da Cunha's former Chief Islander from 2007 to 2010. Glass is the first islander to have written a book about the island: Rockhopper Copper (2005).
St. Joseph Church is a Roman Catholic church in the town of Edinburgh of the Seven Seas on the island of Tristan da Cunha, one of those that make up the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in the Southern Atlantic Ocean.
The geology of Saint Helena resulted from the long-running volcanic activity of the Saint Helena hotspot. Most of the island was formed beginning 14 million years ago. Volcanism on the island ceased seven million years ago, leading to long-running erosion and the formation of deep, v-shaped valleys along with steep coastal cliffs. Some geochemists have observed significant trace element variations between South Atlantic islands and proposed that deep-ocean sediments may have mixed into the magma which formed Saint Helena.
St. Mary's Church is a religious building belonging to the Church of England in the town of Edinburgh of the Seven Seas on the island of Tristan da Cunha, one of those that make up the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in the Southern Atlantic Ocean.
The Camogli Hospital is a public hospital located in Edinburgh of the Seven Seas on Tristan da Cunha. The building was replaced by a new building in 2017 to meet NHS standards.
The Tristan da Cunha–Gough Islands shrub and grasslands is a terrestrial ecoregion which covers the Tristan da Cunha archipelago and Gough Island in the South Atlantic Ocean. The islands' remote location gave rise to many endemic species.
Potato Patches, also known as Patches Plain or, colloquially, The Patches, is an agricultural area and uninhabited rural settlement in Tristan da Cunha, in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom, in the South Atlantic Ocean.
Sean Gilbert Peter Burns was a British civil servant. He served as Administrator of Tristan da Cunha on three occasions from 2010 to 2013, 2016 to 2020, and from 2022 until his death in 2023. Burns had previously served as Administrator of Ascension.
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