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Comes with the territory

The map: From palm-fringed islands to Arctic wastelands, European countries still enjoy toeholds of sovereignty. Sean Johnson tours what's left of their imperial legacy

Sean Johnson
Saturday 27 February 1999 00:02 GMT
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Great Britain

The Cayman Islands 1 the British Virgin Islands 2 Anguilla 3 and Montserrat 4

The only remaining British territories to resist the postwar push for de-colonisation. Montserrat's status as a self-governing dependency was tested in 1997 when volcanic eruptions devastated the island. Troops and aid were quickly sent, but Clare Short, the International Development Secretary, wondered if the islanders, most of whom had lost everything, might be "wanting golden elephants next".

Bermuda 5 When Sir George Somers was shipwrecked in 1609, he unwittingly founded Britain's oldest colony. Government passed to the Crown in 1684. In 1995, a majority voted in favour of remaining a Dependent Territory.

Turks and Caicos islands 6 After centuries under varied colonial ownership, these idyllic islands with a population of barely 14,000 now stand as a British Crown Colony under a Constitution of 1988.

British Antarctic Territory 7 The South Shetland and South Orkney islands were claimed for Britain by explorers in the 19th century. They cover an area of nearly 2 million sq km and are home to 70 researchers.

British Indian Ocean Territory 8 The archipelago's 60 sq km of land was ceded to Britain after the Napoleonic Wars. Diego Garcia is the only inhabited island with a 3,000-strong joint British- US Navy unit that restricts access to the territory.

Falkland Islands 9 The 200-odd islands in the South Atlantic were settled in 1766 by Captain McBride's crew for eight years before they were withdrawn for lack of money. Britain never relinquished sovereignty, holding the islands from 1833 until 1982, when the Argentine invasion prompted the dispatch of a Task Force to reclaim them.

South Georgia 10 Captain Cook made the first landing in 1775 and claimed this mountainous island in the name of King George III. It is home to a small military detachment and research station.

Gibraltar 11 Britain captured this two-and-a-quarter square miles of solid limestone from Spain in 1704. It was ceded to Britain in 1713, but the Spanish have been bent on recovering it ever since. A 1967 referendum voted 12,000 to 44 in favour of retaining ties with Britain.

Pitcairn Islands 12 This small, inaccessible, volcanic Island was settled by Fletcher Christian and The Bounty mutineers in 1790. Annexed in 1838, it remains Britain's last Dependent Territory in the Pacific. The 50 residents are governed by a 10-member island council.

St Helena 13 This has the dependencies of Tristan da Cuhna 14 and Ascension island 15. A crown colony since 1834, the island is the only British Dependent Territory to receive budgetary aid.

Holland

Netherlands Antilles and Aruba 16 Curacao, Bonaire, Aruba, St Martin, St Eustatius and the Saba islands 17, linked in 1954, are run by parliamentary democracy and linked to the Netherlands by a governor. Aruba left the Antilles group in 1986.

France

Guadeloupe 18, Martinique 19 and St Barts

Continuously held since 1816, they have been Overseas Departments of France since1946. Their push for independence has been tempered by the financial aid they receive.

French Guiana 20 Settled by the French since1604, it is the only European possession in South America. This Overseas Department was used as a penal colony from 1852 until the Second World War and where the Ariane rockets are launched from.

Reunion 21 This volcanic island, 800 kilometres east of Madagascar, has been in French hands almost continuously since 1638. Its 617,000 inhabitants are a mixture of Europeans, Africans and Asians.

New Caledonia 22 This French Overseas Territory with a population of 196,000 is the world's third-biggest producer of nickel. Discovered by James Cook in 1774, it was settled by France as a penal colony a century later.

French Polynesia 23 An Overseas Territory of four archipelagos and 200,000 inhabitants, it is the world's centre of pearl cultivation with more than 120 farms.

Wallis and Futuna 24 French Protectorate since the mid-19th century and now an overseas territory that consists of just 255 coral-ringed islands.

The French Southern and Antarctic Territories 25 440,000 km sq of polar landscape discovered in the 18th century by French explorers. About 180 researchers currently brave this Overseas Territory where temperatures can fall to -40C.

Saint Pierre and Miquelon 26 A small corner of France facing Canada, the surface area of this territory is only 242sq km and has a population of 6,000.

Spain

Melilla 27 This port was once a Roman coastal base, but fell into obscurity until it was taken by a raiding party in 1496. A Spanish territory ever since, it was used by Franco to launch his civil war forces in 1936. One- third of the 100,000 population is Muslim, but the enclave retains its Spanish feel, with a medieval Castillian-style town and 10,000 troops.

Ceuta 28 Under Spanish control since 1580, Moroccan attempts to retrieve the enclave have become subdued because of Spain's importance as a trading partner.

Portugal

Macao 29 The last outpost of European rule in Asia, Macao was given to Portugal by Chinese princes in 1557. It will be returned to Chinese rule in December this year.

Denmark

Greenland 30 and the Faroe islands 31 Denmark colonised the world's biggest island (2m sq km) more than 250 years ago. The population of 55,000 derives 95 per cent of its export earnings from shrimp-fishing and receives $400m a year from Denmark .

Norway

Svalbard 32 Discovered in 1596, this whaling centre became part of the Norway in 1925. Coal mining is the main industry of the islands.

Jan Mayen 33 Dominated by an ice-covered volcanic cone and black lava cliffs, this was a no-man's land until it become Norwegian in 1929. During the Second World War, it was the only area of Norway not occupied by Germany.

Peter Island, Queen Maud Land and Bouvet island 34 were annexed by Norway between the wars to prevent her whaling industry being shut out by other states. Inhabited by researchers

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