Marginalia: Clipperton Island/Île de la Passion
Marginalia is a series about enigmatic islands. They may be remote, isolated, and scarcely known, or they may be nearby, even in eye-shot of many. What they all have in common is that they exist beyond the edges of the ordinary. This is the first in the series. A new island story will be published every month or two. Subscribe to receive an alert when a new one is released.
In the vast expanse of the eastern Pacific Ocean lies Clipperton Island. This remote and enigmatic atoll has captivated explorers, scientists, and governments for centuries. We will delve into the fascinating history, geography, and ecological importance of this isolated speck of land, exploring its tumultuous past, unique features, and the complex web of geopolitical intrigue.
What’s unusual about Clipperton Island/Île de la Passion? It might be easier to say what is not unusual. Its discovery is uncertain. It has been claimed by three countries. Although there was no source of fresh water and scant potential for agriculture, it had about one hundred residents and a governor.
It later had a self-proclaimed king who raped and murdered his “subjects” before he met his fate at the hands of one of them. It has been visited by a US President, used by the US military during WWII as a weather station and munitions storage. It is periodically visited by scientists, sport fishers, radio enthusiasts, and castaways.
It was claimed by a micro-nation in 1980.
Location
Latitude: 10º 18’ N
Longitude: 109º 13’ W
The eastern Pacific Ocean, about 930 miles southwest of Mexico City, and about 1640 miles south of San Diego, California.
Environment
For the most part, Clipperton is an uncomfortable place to visit and a pretty miserable place to try and live.
Geology — It is an 8.9 sq km (3.4 sq mi) atoll, a volcanic and coral island in the shape of a ring, with a 7.25 sq km (2.8 sq mi) lagoon in its center. The lagoon varies in depth, having shallow areas near the shore and pools 43–72 m (141–236 ft) deep.
Within the confines of the lagoon, there are 10 islets, islands within the island. The ones known as the Egg Islands were used for egg collection to augment food supplies. The highest point on the atoll is Clipperton Rock, 29 m (95 ft) above sea level. A lighthouse was eventually built on this point.
The lagoon was initially open to the sea but was closed off sometime around the middle of the 19th century, progressively decreasing the salinity of its surface layer. The closure turned the lagoon into a meromictic lake, one with layers that vary in salinity, oxygen, and chemistry, increasing the eutrophication of the surface.
In the deeper levels of the lagoon, the water lacks oxygen and is high in toxic and flammable hydrogen sulfide. While the lagoon initially had clams and corals, their only presence now is in fossil form.
Weather — Oceanic tropical, with typical low temperatures of 20–32°C (68–90°F) and highs up to 37.8°C (100.0°F) with high humidity (85–95%). Rainfall is plentiful, at 3,000 to 5,000 mm (120 to 200 in) per year. The atoll is periodically buffeted by storms.
Flora and fauna — There are several species of fish, coral, and sponges surrounding the atoll that are unique to Clipperton. The atoll is a nesting area for 13 species of birds and another 26 species have been seen, their guano deposits over time resulting in mining interests in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It has been reported that the island is “covered with birds,” and that following rains, a heavy ammonia smell emerges from the guano.
Seals were seen on the atoll in the early 1800s, as well as nesting sea turtles, but there were no later sightings. Pigs were introduced around 1900, eventually being eradicated in the 1950s.
A rat population was established around 1999–2000 after a shipwreck, resulting in a greatly reduced bird population due to their predation on chicks and eggs. Other than rats, the only land animals are two reptiles (gecko and skink) and the bright orange Clipperton crabs.
The flora are largely of two types: ground vines and coconut palms. The amount of grass covering the land has cycled back and forth. The crabs feed on the leaves, and when there were hogs, they fed on the crabs. With the crab population reduced, the grass coverage grew. When the hogs were eradicated, the grass coverage declined. Now rats have reduced the crab population, the grasses returned.
The coconut trees grow in rows, likely a result of guano mining trenches. It is believed that many of the plants today were introduced by human activity.
Discovery and Claims
The atoll is known by several names: Clipperton Island, Clipperton Atoll, and Clipperton Rock, all of which refer to English pirate John Clipperton who sailed past it or perhaps used it as a base in the 18th century. However, the official name of the island claimed by France is Île de la Passion.
Discovery is not clear, and has variously been attributed to Ferdinand Magellan, Álvaro de Saavedra Cerón, and Hernán Cortés, all of whom described an island they saw when passing west, each giving it a different name.
Others may have seen it, but the first one to actually log its location was French explorer Michel Dubocage on April 3, 1711. Because the day of its sighting was Good Friday, he named it Île de la Passion, or Passion Island, claiming it for France.
Dubocage created the first map of the island, but its first recorded landing was not until 114 years later when American sea captain Benjamin Morrell mapped the island and described its vegetation in great enough detail that his work is referred to today.
Several nations have claimed the atoll. Although Spanish explorers noted it in their ship’s logs in the early 16th century, none of them bothered formally claiming it before Dubocage did so for France 200 years later.
When Mexico declared its independence from Spain, it assumed ownership of Spanish land, including the atoll, in 1821. Its justification was that it had been recorded in the logs of Spanish ships in the early 16th century.
Although 5400 km (3355 miles) from Tahiti, and 1280 km (795 miles) to mainland Mexico, Napoleon III saw fit to include it as part of the French Protectorate of Tahiti in 1858.
Ignoring any claims by Spain, France, or Mexico, a US company filed a claim with the US government to mine phosphate there. Its permit was denied, but the company sent a couple dozen men and began mining in 1895, sending the phosphate to Honolulu. The activity drew the scrutiny of both France and Mexico.
French naval personnel arrived to see an American flag and three Americans. They told the Americans to lower the flag. The American response was that they were not claiming the atoll, they were only there to mine. Within a few weeks, Mexico sent marines, who raised the flag of Mexico, claimed the island, and evicted the Americans. This did not go well with France.
The original mining company was transferred to another company, which resumed mining through an agreement with Mexico. In 1898, Mexico made a claim against the original company for profits made 1895–1897.
The First (and Last) Governor
Mexico began colonization around the turn of the century, creating a military presence, building a lighthouse, and appointing Captain Ramón Arnaud as Governor.
Understandably, Arnaud was somewhat less than keen about going to an atoll with no source of fresh water, meager prospects for food, and completely dependent on supply ships from the mainland. He was told that he had been personally selected by President Porfirio Díaz and that his ability to speak Spanish, English, and French made him ideally suited to the duties of protecting Mexico’s interests with the US and France.
He unenthusiastically agreed and assumed governorship of the atoll in 1905. With supply ships arriving every two months from Mexico, the island grew to about 100 inhabitants.
As the Mexican revolution (1910–1920) grew, the regularity of the supply ships decreased, and by 1914, the island’s residents were desperate. A ship wrecked on the island in February of that year, and four of its crew volunteered to row a salvaged lifeboat the 1280 km (795 miles) to Acapulco. This was an extraordinarily brave offer.
In the best conditions, rowing 24 hours a day and making about 2.5 knots, it would take about two weeks. Any headwinds, rough seas, illness or exhaustion would present enormous setbacks. Having adequate supplies of food and water would also be difficult, especially setting out from a location where their scarcity was the very reason for the journey. Once in Acapulco, they would have to arrange for rescue by an available vessel.
It was months later that the USS Cleveland arrived to rescue them. The captain of the Cleveland offered to take the residents back to Acapulco, but Governor Arnaud declined, believing that regular supply shipping would soon resume.
The captain tried to impress upon Arnaud how bad the situation in Mexico had become, also telling him of the outbreak of WWI. However, Arnaud chose to remain, along with the military personnel and their families. The Cleveland eventually rescued only Gustav Schultz, German representative of the mining company who it was said, had “lost his mind.”
Arnaud’s assumption that supply ships would return was tragically wrong. In 1915, as food stores were depleted, there was a scurvy outbreak resulting in the death of many colonists. The situation became critical.
After saying that he saw a ship, Arnaud commanded three reluctant soldiers to set out with him by canoe in an attempt to meet with it. There are conflicting accounts, but some believed that Arnaud had experienced a hallucination.
If the ship was real, it sailed on, unaware of their presence. The assertion that there was no ship was supported by Arnaud’s widow when after rescue, she said that a fight broke out among the men in the canoe and that it had overturned in the surf. All four of the men drowned.
At this time, all the men on the atoll but one, lighthouse keeper Victoriano Álvarez, had perished. He was alone with 15 women and children. He proclaimed himself King of Clipperton Island and declared that the women were his property.
Food supplies completely ran out and the remaining residents survived by eating seabirds, eggs, an occasional fish, and a coconut each week to help ward off scurvy. The value of the coconut for that purpose was limited to preventing death, as they all had a degree of scurvy. The youngest had rickets and could not walk. Amazingly, the two widows gave birth to healthy babies during this time.
After casting all of the firearms but one rifle into a deeper section of the lagoon, Álvarez asserted his power over the women at gunpoint. He would have one of them live with him in his hut for a period of time. When one woman refused, he shot and killed her.
To some degree, he left Alicia Rovira Arnaud alone. He had shown her a level of respect as someone who took up leadership of the island after the death of her husband. However, knowing that if they were rescued, she would tell others what he had done, he repeatedly told her that if a ship we to come to the atoll, he would kill her.
Álvarez took a special interest in Tirza Rendón and victimized her frequently. He commanded her to come live in his hut and she was furious about it, but did so. A few days after she did, Arnaud went to the see Álvarez. There are conflicting accounts. One has it that she went to try and make some kind of peace with him. Another is that she and Rendón planned an end to their suffering. When she arrived at his hut, Álvarez was roasting a gull over a fire when Rendón picked up a hammer and struck him in the head, knocking him unconscious.
Overcome by the suffering and trauma that had been inflicted on the women, she struck him again with such force that she killed him. She then repeatedly stabbed him.
In reaction to the scene and what had so quickly occurred, the women ran out of the hut. As they did, they saw the USS Yorktown offshore. If it had been spotted only a little earlier in the day, Álvarez would have likely followed through on his promise to kill them all.
The survivors, now only four women and seven children, were rescued by the crew of the Yorktown. Letters from a lieutenant aboard the Yorktown describe the adult survivors as looking much older than their age and the children as much younger.
Arnaud, who was 29 at the time was mistakenly believed to be about 40, and a 12 year old child was thought to be 8 years old. The children were unaccustomed to the foods they were offered. All of the survivors began to thrive on the return journey to Mexico. The Yorktown crew was so taken by them that they took up a collection to support them.
Clipperton Island was now officially uninhabited.
Clipperton Island Case
With a history of merely using Clipperton as the need suited them, the United States and the United Kingdom made no formal claims on Clipperton. Spain no longer pursued ownership, but Mexico and France both maintained that it was theirs.
In 1909, a treaty was established between the two countries. In the treaty, France and Mexico agreed to binding international arbitration, administered by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy. Several years later, in 1931, he issued his decision in what became known as the Clipperton Island Case. The atoll was declared a French possession.
Mexican public perception was that the King was not impartial, favoring France over Mexico. The President of Mexico, Pascual Ortiz Rubio, sought the advice of international law experts regarding the outcome, but eventually accepted the decision.
On 26 January 1935, Clipperton Island became Île de la Passion, a legal possession of France.
FDR Visit
In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited Clipperton while on a fishing trip to the Galápagos Islands and various Central and South American stops. He and his party fished for sharks, and some crew took a Smithsonian scientist ashore to collect specimens and conduct observations.
FDR made a previous attempt to visit in 1934 after a westbound trip through the Panama Canal en route to Hawai’i, but he was unable to do so because the seas were too rough to launch a small boat.
US Military
In 1944, after running two vessels aground and overcoming several logistical problems, the US Navy established a presence on the island. Heavy equipment, supplies, and at least one Jeep were offloaded and used to establish a weather station. Munitions were brought in and personnel were armed in case of invasion by Japanese forces.
After the weather station and US presence were firmly established, the US informed the governments of Mexico, France, and the United Kingdom. France was not happy and sent a letter protesting the violation of its international sovereignty.
The US agreed to let the French operate the station or to turn it over when it was no longer needed. This may have been disingenuous, as there were also US seaplanes arriving there, discussion of building a landing strip, and active prevention of French efforts to send personnel there.
The Navy departed in October 1945, exploding some ordnance and leaving some behind.
20th and 21st Century Intentional and Unintentional Visits
Due to the treacherous surf and numerous shoals, the atoll has been temporary safety for many castaways over the years. An 1897 account tells of the wreck of the British cargo ship Kinkora. The crew was able to salvage enough food and water to survive in a degree of comfort.
They were spotted by a nearby vessel whose captain, ignoring all the customs of the sea, offered to take them to the mainland for $1500. Outraged, eight of the men rowed to Acapulco and arranged for their shipmates to be rescued.
Five American fishermen survived being stranded on Clipperton in 1948 for six weeks.
Twenty-three men who survived the sinking of a tuna clipper found refuge on Clipperton, drinking lagoon and coconut water and eating birds. They were rescued by another fishing vessel.
In 2010, the “Sichem Osprey,” a Maltese-flagged chemical tanker carrying xylene, tallow, and soybean oil ran aground before being successfully refloated after lightening.
Researchers frequently visit the island to study the flora and fauna, assess ocean conditions, and study the ecology of the island and its surrounding waters. There are active studies of the shark populations.
There are other types who visit Clipperton. Amateur radio groups favor it because of its remoteness, ease of permitting, and the novelty of its environment and backstory. Fishing and diving are rewarding, though difficult because of remoteness.
Claim by the Government of the Republic of Molossia
Without being deterred in the slightest by the competing claims on Clipperton, the findings of the Clipperton Island Case, or the remoteness from its “homeland,” The Republic of Molossia made a claim to Clipperton in 1980.
You may have never heard of Molossia. It is a Nevada-based, unofficial micro-nation, describing itself as “a sovereign, independent nation, located in and completely surrounded by territory of the United States,” and “…one of the smallest nations on earth.”
The website of the Republic invites visitors to “Swim in the lagoon, scale the coconut trees, look for buried treasure left behind by old Captain Clipperton. Explore the tuna fishing station, search for signs of the garrisoned Mexican troops, check out the lighthouse, snorkel around the reefs, and take in a little fishing.”
Present and Future Concerns
Notwithstanding its designation as one of the most pristine of Pacific Islands, Clipperton’s beaches are littered with plastic flotsam and jetsam. Although under regulation, because of its remoteness, the area is fished without oversight. Shark finning has occurred.
Various short-term 20th and 21st-century visits have left debris, contaminants, and invasive flora and fauna. One researcher reported visiting Clipperton shortly after a visit by Jacques Cousteau and his team, finding trash left by them.
As the prospect of seafloor mining develops, ownership of Clipperton will need to be reaffirmed, and its oversight will need to be increased. The 200 nautical mile Clipperton Marine Protection Zone and Exclusive Economic Zone claimed by France will mean little if there is no enforcement or consequence for ignoring it.
Perhaps the government of France might consider declaring the island and the seas around it as a marine conservation area, like the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the world’s largest protected marine area. However, enforcing this would be difficult, especially considering the need for international cooperation.
Clipperton Island is a place where human endeavor, geopolitics, and ecological conservation converge in a unique and complex way. Its remote location, tumultuous history, and ecological importance make it an object of fascination.
Its future remains uncertain, with challenges ranging from pollution to invasive species and beyond. As the world continues to grapple with issues of environmental conservation and international cooperation, the fate of Clipperton Island serves as a microcosm of larger global dilemmas.
© 2024 — Craig D. Lewis
