Studia Maritima

The Cod Wars were a series of confrontations in the 1950s and 1970s between the United Kingdom and Iceland regarding fishing rights North Atlantic. The conflict ended in 1976, when the United Kingdom accepted a 200 nautical-mile Icelandic exclusive zone. With increases in fishing ability enabled by steam trawlers in the latter part of the 19th century, pressure was exerted on boat owners and skippers to exploit new grounds. Large catches in Icelandic waters meant voyages across the North Atlantic became more regular. In 1893 Denmark, which had governed Iceland and the Faroe Islands tried to establish a fishing limit zone around their shores. United Kingdom finally accepted the Danish rights only in the territorial waters which had been only 3 nautical miles wide. In 1952 independent Republic of Island established 4 mile wide territorial water and in 1958 tried to widen them to 12 miles. It caused the conflict called “the first cod war”. It lasted from 1 September until 12 November 1958 to 11 March 1961. Many incidents followed, such as the one on 4 September, when the Icelandic patrol vessel Aegir attempted to take a British trawler, but was thwarted when frigate Russell intervened, and the two vessels collided. Eventually Britain and Iceland came to a settlement, which stipulated that any future disagreement between Iceland and Britain in the matter of fishery zones would be sent to the International Court of Justice in the Hague. In total the 37 Royal Navy ships and 7 000 sailors protecting the fishing fleet from six Icelandic gunboats and their 120 crew members. The Second Cod War between the United Kingdom and Iceland lasted from September 1972 until the signing of a temporary agreement in November 1973. The reason was creating by Iceland 50 nautical-mile exclusive fishery zone. Finally, after the months of international tense as well as many incidents and collision the agreement was reached. According the document the UK accepted the Icelandic annexation in exchange for permission to catch 150 000 tons of fish until 1975. The Third Cod War lasted from November 1975 until June 1976. The conflict occurred when Iceland had declared that the ocean up to 200 nautical miles from its coast. The British government did not accept the large increase to the exclusion zone. The confrontation, which was the most hard fought of the Cod Wars, saw British fishing trawlers have their nets cut by the Icelandic Coast Guard and there were several incidents of ramming by Icelandic ships and British trawlers, frigates and tugboats. Finally the agreement was reached where the UK had accepted the Icelandic expansion while receiving a temporary allowable catch for its fishing fleet. During the Cod Wars Iceland achieved its overall aims, to the detriment of the already declining British fisheries, severely affecting the economies of northern fishing ports in the United Kingdom.