So.. Did you ever hear about the time that the nation of Iceland beat the United Kingdom in a
war... Three different times.. And that it was a war over fish.. Yeah.. I didn't think so.
Between the late 1940s and 1976, the two island nations of Iceland and the United Kingdom
all but declared war despite the fact that there were almost no casualties, and the former had no
army and just a minimal coast guard. In the waters between these two nations,
three confrontations took place between Great Britain, one of the world Greatest powers,
and Iceland, a small island of just a hundred thousand people. Each time, Iceland won.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, a nation surrounded by hundreds of square miles of ocean on all sides
relies heavily on fish. It has long been Iceland s main food supply and primary export. But of all
the fish, cod was the most important, as it was much like a source of national pride, and even
today Iceland takes its fishing very seriously. It is Iceland s very own watery white gold,
and the country carefully guards its bounty. But in the lead-up to the Second World War,
Icelandic fishermen grew concerned about the amount of British ships in their waters,
which affected how much cod they could catch themselves. Anxiety mounted until, in 1952,
they announced new rules, limiting the Icelandic waters where British fishermen could trawl,
and expanding Icelandic fishery zones from three to four nautical miles from the shore.
The United Kingdom, retaliated by imposing a ban on Icelandic fish in British ports. It
was a costly sanction to the small nation, as the U.K was Iceland s largest export market.
It backfired, however, when the USSR took up the export for the Icelandic fish. In the midst of the
Cold War, the U.S. followed suit, fearing greater Soviet influence in the vitally located state,
and encouraged its European allies to do the same. The sanctions from the UK minimized and Iceland
could maintain their new limits. Eventually, in 1956, Britain capitulated in the first Cod War,
in the wake of a decision from the Organisation of European
Iceland expanded its national waters still further, from four nautical miles to 12,
deep into waters that had previously belonged to no one. NATO, the Western military alliance, was
up in arms, and Britain refused to cooperate. With the backing of virtually every western European
country, Britain insisted they would continue to fish where they had before, under the protection
of Royal Navy warships if necessary. An altercation occurred in November of 1958,
when an Icelandic gunboat fired warning shots at a British trawler.
Eventually, a British ship The HMS Russell, intervened, and pointed out that the gunboat was
well outside the four-mile limit that the British recognized, and were thus in international waters.
The Icelandic captain refused to leave, and ordered his men to man their guns and
approach the trawler with the intent to capture or sink the vessel. Russell, a comparable titan,
made it clear that they would sink the boat if it shot the trawler. A brief stalemate followed,
upon the arrival of more British ships the Icelandic captain backed down.
By early 1961, clashes such as these made the situation more and more untenable. Diplomatic
relations were worsening and the chaperones for the British fishing vessels were getting
expensive. With Iceland threatening to leave NATO, a compromise was drawn
up: The United Kingdom would recognize the 12-mile waters limit, with certain concessions in the
first three years for British fishermen. A new rule was also imposed, that any further fights
over cod between the two countries were to be sent directly to the International Court of Justice.
It was a prudent decision, but one that had little effect: Barely a decade later,
in September of 1972, the Icelandic government extended its fishing limits again, now to 50
miles. In the past, they d been reluctant to assert themselves with military force.
Now, however, All of Iceland s Coast Guard ships were armed with trawl wire cutters. Meaning that
the fishermen would not only lose its catch but also an item valued over $5,000.
Once again, Western Europe opposed, and once again, Iceland held firm,
declaring that they were battling against imperialism and for their economic independence.
Trawlers and Coast Guard vessels were ramming into each other, in attempts to prevent to cable
cutting. Britain s NATO commitments made them unable, legally, to call on the Navy for support.
Vessels were damaged, but, surprisingly, no one was hurt. Under pressure from NATO,
Britain once again capitualted in late 1973. Iceland s determination
had carried it to victory yet again. That might have been that, but legal changes
on the global scale in 1975 provoked Iceland to act again time. Despite the 50-mile limit,
Icelandic fish stocks were under threat from overfishing. So, a 200-mile limit was considered,
and then adopted. British trawlers and fishermen within that limit began clashing with Icelandic
gunboats, and the Royal Navy was brought in again. It was short, but messy, with 35
ramming incidents in six months. Iceland refused to negotiate, eventually severing diplomatic ties
with Britain altogether despite repeated meetings between governmental officals.
Once again, NATO stepped in. Iceland was threatening to leave for good, and these
naval clashes risked getting out of hand. For the third and final time, Iceland asserted itself, and
the United Kingdom caved. The Cod Wars were over. While this is normally labeled as a Bloodless war,
There had been just two casualties: a British fisherman, who had been hit by a towing cable,
and an Icelandic engineer, who was accidentally electrocuted while repairing his hull.
The British economy may not have relied on cod as much as Iceland s,
but the effects were certainly felt. As Britain s fisheries effectively closed, a depression
settled over the country s large northern fishing ports, such as, Hull, and Fleetwood.
Thousands of skilled fishermen, and those in related trades, lost their jobs. Meanwhile,
Iceland s 200-mile zone became the standard, curtailing foreign fishing all over the world.
All of this barely slowed the overfishing of cod, though. In 1998, the World Wildlife
Foundation placed cod on the endangered species list, enacting limits on how much cod people could
catch, no matter where in the world they were located. Iceland might have prevented foreign
powers from fishing in its waters, but even a tiny country with a fighting spirit
was no match for the natural and international limits now placed on its national treasure.