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The 20th century was an "extreme era" for France's defense of Saint Pierre and Miquelon: she climbed to the pinnacle of a worldwide colonial empire, suffered the grief of the fall of her homeland, and was also buffeted by the decolonization movement. In the midst of unprecedented changes, the fate of French overseas possessions has become a key issue. In the major international disputes between Saint Pierre and Miquelon in France in the 20th century, the long and unique colonial history played an irreplaceable and significant role. Although the scourge of the 18th century was long gone, the United States and Canada, fearing the fishing competition between Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and its impact on the separatist forces in Quebec, sought to annex these small islands, but it was difficult to move because of the tone of cooperation between Western and North American countries during World War I.
After the fall of mainland France at the beginning of World War II, in order to prevent Nazi Germany from leading the war to the west, the United States recognized the control of the Vichy regime over the French possessions in the western hemisphere and rejected Free France; On the other hand, in July 1940, it promoted the adoption of the Havana Declaration by the countries of the Americas, declaring that they would not hesitate to oppose by force any change in the territorial sovereignty of the Western Hemisphere. Some scholars pointed out that the declaration was intended to "weaken the colonial power of France and place the strategically valuable colonies under the control of the United States in the form of international trusteeship", which was in fact encroaching on the French colonial empire. In December 1941, when the United States entered the war and allied itself with Canada, the military leadership of the two countries believed that to protect the Allied Atlantic routes, it was necessary to preemptively occupy Saint Pierre and Miquelon, "potential enemy territory faintly visible from its shores."
The turbulent situation in the Atlantic Ocean has once again brought the archipelago to the forefront. The Free French movement waged a-for-tat struggle against this. In October 1940, de Gaulle wrote to the United States Government in the name of "the French people who reject the armistice": "Antilles and French Guiana, as well as the islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, are the earliest colonies of France, and if a friendly country like the United States unilaterally decides to occupy these colonies by force, it will inevitably seriously hurt the feelings of the entire French people." In times of crisis, if such a thing were to happen, it would be even more painful and a remorse for France. ”
De Gaulle's remarks emphasized the role of the historic overseas possessions in France's national sentiment and explicitly warned the United States of the consequences of occupying them by force, but the United States did not say no. In the winter of 1941, de Gaulle realized that the United States and Canada were plotting to invade Saint Pierre and Miquelon and was favored by the British, believing that "this is a question of foreign interference in French territory, so I cannot be allowed to hesitate", so he secretly ordered the Free French fleet to take control of the archipelago. By Christmas, the area had been liberated from Vichy.
After that, the United States put pressure on Free France and threatened it by force, De Gaulle made it clear that he would not cede an inch of land, and Roosevelt finally recognized Free France's right to rule the land after weighing it again. This is the famous "Saint Pierre and Miquelon affair".
Using the historical administrative affiliation of the archipelago and the resulting national feelings as the main arguments, de Gaulle succeeded in consolidating Free France's control over Saint Pierre and Miquelon, thereby demonstrating his determination to defend French interests and courage to resist American power.
Rather, the incident marked the beginning of substantive official contacts between the United States and Free France, and de Gaulle himself considered the American attitude on the matter "to be of great significance because it was an official reflection of Washington." As "the first diplomatic conflict between Free France and the United States in World War II", this event can be described as "the beginning of a series of major entanglements between Charles de Gaulle and the United States", and it also gave this long-suffering archipelago a new significance in the history of Franco-American relations in the 20th century.
After the turmoil of the Second World War, although the islands had a solid guarantee of political belonging, they clashed with Canada in economic activities. Both Saint Pierre and Miquelon and Newfoundland's economies are based on fishing, and the two are themselves in competition. French fishermen also enjoyed fishing rights on parts of the coast of Newfoundland under 18th-century treaties, and economic friction between the two sides began with the advent of peace in the 19th century.
By the 60s of the 20th century, as fishery resources tended to decline and the prospects of oil and gas resources development appeared, Canada and France gradually disputed the delimitation of exclusive economic zones. In 1972, the two countries agreed on the territorial sea and the extent of fisheries, but with the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, the 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone became an international trend, and the conflict between the two sides over this issue has escalated.
In the 80s of the 20th century, negotiations between the two countries finally broke down, and Canada banned the French side from fishing in its waters and detained French fishing boats that violated the regulations. France immediately lodged a strong protest and retaliated by arresting the Canadian-flagged fishing vessel. Saint-Pierre locals launched the "Cod Crusade" and went to Canada to fish in the closed waters with great fanfare. The two countries later agreed to renegotiate.
Due to the difficulty of reaching an agreement, France and Canada submitted the dispute over the delimitation of maritime areas to the International Court of Arbitration in March 1989. By a decision of 10 June 1992, the Tribunal retained and extended the northern and western boundaries of Saint Pierre and Miquelon of the 1972 Treaty Agreement, while delimiting a narrow corridor-shaped exclusive economic zone to the high seas in the southern and southeastern parts of the archipelago.
The decision focused not only on legal and geographical issues, but also on historical factors in particular, such as the crucial role of political affiliation in the independent legal status of the islands in the argument for the geographical proximity of the islands to Newfoundland, citing the relevant provisions of the Treaty of Utrecht of 1713 and the Treaty of Versailles of 1783, stating that "historical evidence also confirms that these French islands have long been considered to be adjacent to Newfoundland". Charles V. Cole, a scholar of the law of the sea, wrote that the international arbitration tribunal fully took into account the relevant historical treaties in its rulings, proving the profound impact of these treaties.
In any case, the presence of this overseas territory provides France with a considerable exclusive economic zone. Looking at the St. Pierre and Miquelon incident in the 20th century and the Franco-Canadian maritime boundary dispute, two major international events involving Saint Pierre and Miquelon, it is not difficult to find that the early modern colonial history provided France with an important legal basis for fighting for relevant political and economic interests.
On the one hand, the production and life of French immigrants continue unceasingly, making the local population composition, cultural tone and administrative affiliation a foregone conclusion; On the other hand, the two Paris Peace Treaties affirmed France's control at the level of international law, making it recognized by Britain and later the United States and Canada. Over time, international events in the 20th century have become history, further highlighting the unique status and value of the archipelago, and reflecting the complex feelings of the French about its colonial past.
The practical value of Saint Pierre and Miquelon to France from a historical perspective: the history of more than 500 years of French colonization has made Saint Pierre and Miquelon form quite special attributes: in the encirclement of English-speaking countries in North America, it has a political status that belongs to France; France is widely spread on many continents, and it has a geographical location in northeastern North America.
The complex historical changes have shaped the archipelago's dual "French" and "North American" characteristics, and its practical value for France today is mainly derived from these two aspects. Placing this archipelago in the context of the North American region, the French cultural characteristics formed in the process of colonial history are of fundamental significance for its existence and development today.
As a "corner of France at the doorstep of the Americas", it is not only very different from Newfoundland, which belongs to the same physical geographical unit, but also unique in the whole of North America. Saint-Pierre has a strong French coastal town style, and there are many landmarks to reminisce about.
Many flags symbolize the region flutter throughout the island: blue backgrounds and waves symbolize the sea, among which is the three-masted sailing ship "Grande Hermine", which carried the explorer Cartier to the archipelago in 1536, symbolizing the seafaring tradition; On the side of the flagpole from top to bottom are Basque, Breton and Norman underprints, indicating the ancestral origin of most of the island's inhabitants.
The cathedral of la Cathédrale Saint-Pierre dates back to the town's founding in 1690, when the first building survived wars in the 18th century and was destroyed by fire in 1902. In 1907, a Basque-style church was erected on the site, with a spire made of Alsatian sandstone and rhyolite native to Saint-Pierre. When General de Gaulle visited the islands in 1967, he added stained-glass windows to the transept as gifts.
In addition, the "Guns Corner" (la Pointeaux Canons) near the port takes its name from the ancient fortress that fought against the British landing in the early 18th century. Over time, the landmark here is a red and white lighthouse built in 1862 that has long guided ships large and small from all over the world. Most of the islanders are descendants of historical French fishermen, who brought with them the traditional European culture to take root on these small islands of the North American "New World".
Every year in mid-August, the town of Saint-Pierre hosts a week-long festival of la Fêtebasque, which is rich in traditional Basque music, dance, sports, costume processions, feasts and other folk events. In their free time, locals play lapelotebasque and compete with teams from mainland France.
The restaurants in Saint-Pierre serve traditional French and Basque cuisine, featuring a wide range of locally produced seafood, especially cod, which is of special significance to the archipelago. These historical cultural features indicate that traditional culture is still alive today.
In the face of the decline of regional fishery resources, these historical human characteristics have provided the archipelago with a large number of unique and high-quality resources for the development of tourism, and the local government can open up diversified economic resources.
For tourists from the United States, Canada and other American countries, the presence of Saint Pierre and Miquelon allows them to experience a different French style without crossing the ocean. Lonely Planet, an English-speaking travel guide, puts it from a tourist's perspective: "Locals kiss each other on the cheek and pay their bills in euros, countless pastry shops smell sweet, and French cars crowd narrow one-way streets." It's a world far from Newfoundland. ”
Lonely Planet also specifically wrote: "The inhabitants here take their nationality very seriously – and some even feel that it is their duty to maintain a French foothold in the New World." In essence, these human characteristics are the product of the colonialist activities of French immigrants in North America since modern times, that is, French immigrants occupy North American land and multiply, forming a social culture in line with France.
This culture became a strong link between this overseas territory and mainland France, providing a solid basis for the islands to resist the intervention of English-speaking countries in North America and maintain the political identity of France, and making the archipelago an important window for displaying the French political system and socio-cultural identity in North America.
On the whole, today's Saint Pierre and Miquelon are of great practical value to France. Whether it is the development of tourism, the vitality of the regional economy, or as a strategic island to support France's global layout, the role of this archipelago in modern and contemporary times is closely related to the shape of history: 5 centuries of French colonization activities have made the area form a significant human character in North America, and the French political attributes that have been preserved through the changes of the times have given it unique geostrategic value, exerting its unique influence in the dual characteristics of "French" and "North American".
Theory and Practice of International Maritime Delimitation
"The Dilemma and Path of Arctic Governance from the Perspective of Fisheries"
LonelyPlant, ed., Canada (LonelyPlant Travel Guide Series), translated by Lingsiquan Translations, Sanlian Books, 2009, p. 497.