The Falkland Islands Company's Aborted project of sheep ranching in Patagonia

Abstract

British presence in Patagonia is an old and generalized fact. Either formally or informally, by means of official or individual initiatives, British subjects, capitals and interests have pointed to Patagonia since its discovery in the 16th century. Because of the marginal condition of Patagonia within the Spanish Empire, the region was openly exposed to the influence of the British Empire, and this situation continued throughout the 19 th century, when Argentina and Chile entered into the scene. The nascent Argentine and Chile nations-state sought to integrate the region to their respective national body by several means but in fact they did not succeed in doing so until the onset of the sheep farming after 1880. With sheep, Patagonia was integrated into the international market in that globalization led by Britain. The sheep farming obeyed a supranational scheme and, with a lag of 20-30 years, repeated in Patagonia the same boom it had had in the Falkland Islands around 1860. Some chapters of the British saga in Patagonia during the 19th century are abundantly reported, while others remain almost unknown and certainly deserve further research, as for instance the intentions of Falkland Islands Company (FIC) to expand over the mainland at the same period.