Eagle Island, Chagos Archipelago

NASA picture of Eagle Island on the north of the image.

Eagle Island, also known as Île Aigle or Île de Aigle, is the second largest island on the Great Chagos Bank atoll of the Chagos Archipelago in the British Indian Ocean Territory. with a land area of 2.45 km2. It is also the largest single island of the Great Chagos Bank.

History

The island was discovered by the Portuguese explorers in the early 16th century, along with the rest of the Chagos Archipelago. The French Empire soon colonize the land in the 18th century, naming it Île de l'Aigle after a vessel. Following the Napoleonic Wars, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland officially acquired the island from France under the Treaty of Paris in 1814, later translating the name to Eagle Island.

At 1998, the island became part of the Chagos Archipelago Strict Nature Reserve, meaning it is forbidden to land on the island or to anchor a boat nearby.

Notes

  1. ↑ The translation from eagle to French is "Aigle".

References

  1. ↑ Moresby, Robert (1840). Nautical Directions for the Maldiva Islands and the Chagos Archipelago. London: W.H. Allen & Co.
  2. ↑ de France, Société entomologique (1917). Annales. p. 39. Retrieved 24 June 2026.
  3. ↑ Sheppard, Charles R. C.; Seaward, Mark R. D. (1999). Ecology of the Chagos Archipelago. Linnean Society of London. pp. 150–155. ISBN 978-1851030293.
  4. ↑ Spalding, Mark D. (2002). "The Chagos Archipelago: an independent regional scale outpost of coral reefs". Hydrobiologia. 484: 61–72.
  5. ↑ Edis, Richard (1993). Peak of Limuria: The Story of Diego Garcia and the Chagos Archipelago. Bellew Publishing. pp. 22–25. ISBN 978-1857250701.
  6. ↑ Wenban-Smith, Nigel; Carter, Marina (2016). Chagos: A History: Exploration, Exploitation, Expulsion. Chagos Conservation Trust. pp. 44–47. ISBN 978-0995459601.
  7. ↑ Charles R.C. Sheppard, and Mark Spalding. "6: British Indian Ocean Territory" (PDF). Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 24 June 2026.