Undecided dreams : France in the Antarctic, 1840-2021

• Published in: Polar Record
• Main Author: Martin-Nielsen, Janet
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: KTH, Filosofi och historia 2021
• Subjects: Antarctica; France; Sovereignty; Environment; Science; Philosophy; Filosofi; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Dumont d'Urville; Dumont-d'Urville; Jules; Antarc*; Polar Record
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-300834; https://doi.org/10.1017/S0032247421000140

This paper traces France's role in the Antarctic from 1840, when explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville discovered the slice of the white continent he named Terre Adelie, to the present day. Since World War II, Terre Adelie has been the site of a host of performances of sovereignty: the French have built bases, drawn maps, conducted scientific investigations and erected plaques. But France's commitment to Terre Adelie has been tested and has fallen into crisis several times. The history of France in Antarctica is a tale of ambition, ambivalence, trade-offs and political strategy. This paper aims to elucidate this story, focusing on the concept of sovereignty and the nexus of scientific and political interests. I argue that France's relationship with the Antarctic has been characterised by continual tension, by peaks and troughs and by brinkmanship on the part of actors with their own stakes. While there is broad agreement that Terre Adelie serves a fundamental national interest, I show that France's ambitions on the white continent are far from decided. With its focus on France, which has largely been left out of the growing body of literature on the Antarctic, this paper contributes to building a robust historical understanding of Antarctic claims. QC 20210929