Early Sovereignty Concerns in the North American Arctic

By the middle of the 20th century, much in the Arctic had changed from the days when Henry VII sent John Cabot on his voyages of discovery in the late 15th century. Between 1903 and 1906, the Norwegian Roald Amundsen and his 47-ton herring boat Gjoa became the first team to successfully navigate the Northwest Passage.  The feat sparked a hero’s welcome in Norway and took place over the course of more than three years on a journey during which they were frequently locked in and drifted with the ice. American explorer Robert Peary allegedly became the first man to reach the North Pole. Business interest in the region was growing: in 1920, the American Vihljalmur Stefansson predicted widespread future use of Arctic air routes and stated his belief that submarine freighters which could travel under the ice would become economical in the Arctic.  By World War I, the Arctic was acknowledged to be a critical region strategically, important not only as a potential sea route but for air transport, military purposes and energy security. The Arctic countries, therefore, began to place increasing importance on establishing a legal basis for their sovereignty claims in the region.

During World War I, the Canadians successfully claimed Ellesmere Island, located to the West of Greenland, from Denmark by establishing a post office on the island as a sign of effective occupation. In 1922, Canada established the Eastern Arctic Patrol, which in 2010 continues to be cited as evidence of lasting Canadian occupation of the far northern continental territories.  In 1928, Canada preempted Norway's claims to the Arctic islands north of Canadian shores when it paid $67,000 for the maps of Norwegian explorer Otto Sverdrup.  Canadian claims to the Arctic Archipelago were also strengthened by a 1933 Permanent Court of International Justice ruling that granted Denmark ownership of Greenland, stating that not all territory had to be occupied by a country to grant that country sovereignty over it.  Today, Canada enjoys effective sovereignty over the Arctic Archipelago.

In order to protect their Arctic claims, nations followed Canada’s example and increasingly looked to shore up their legal claim to sovereignty by establishing outposts and patrols in the region. In addition, they began to enforce national laws – for instance, the Canadians began to enforce whaling regulations in the Arctic. In Greenland, the Danes established Sirius sledge patrols that continue to monitor the country for unwanted visitors in 2010. The Canadians responded to the Danish Sirius patrols with the establishment of the small but well-respected Canadian Rangers division, which to this day employs almost exclusively Inuit to monitor Canada's vast northerly region.  The 1926 Arctic Islands Preserve Act protected traditional hunting and fishing rights for the Canadian Inuit and further established the case for Canadian sovereignty in the region. By the early twentieth century, the Arctic nations clearly recognized that at some point in the future they were likely to have to defend their claims to Arctic lands in a court of law. Already, they were starting to build their case.