Falkland Islands Heritage: Stanley's Waterfront, the Wreck and 1982

A cathedral consecrated in 1892, an arch of whale jawbones, an iron barque lying in the harbour since 1936, and the memorials of a war fought in 1982. Stanley keeps most of its history within a short walk of the jetty. Here it is in order, with the Falkland Islands guided tours that stop at it.

Stanley's waterfront in one walk

Stanley's heritage runs along one road. From the Jetty Visitor Centre, Ross Road follows the harbour past the cathedral and its arch, the museum and the Liberation Memorial. Out on the water lies the hulk of the Lady Elizabeth. You need no ticket and no guide to see any of it from the street.

The town is small. The 2021 census counted 2,964 people in Stanley, about 81% of the islands’ 3,662. On a cruise day the waterfront is where most of them work, and where you will meet them.

Christ Church Cathedral, consecrated 1892

Christ Church Cathedral is the southernmost Anglican cathedral in the world. It was consecrated on 21 February 1892, and its brick tower is the landmark you see from the tender as you come in. It stands on the waterfront, a few minutes’ walk from the jetty.

The Whalebone Arch, 1933

Beside the cathedral stands the Whalebone Arch. It was raised in 1933 to mark the centenary of British rule, and it is made from the jawbones of two blue whales. It is the photograph almost everyone takes on a first walk through Stanley.

Several tours drive past it on the way out to the beaches. If yours does not stop, you can walk back to it from the jetty in minutes.

The Lady Elizabeth: Sunderland 1879 to Whalebone Cove 1936

The Lady Elizabeth is an iron barque, built in Sunderland in 1879. In March 1913 she was damaged on Uranie Rock. She was condemned, and spent years in Stanley as a warehouse.

In February 1936 she broke free and drifted into Whalebone Cove. Her hulk has stood there ever since, three masts still raised above the water. Many of the short tours stop to let you see her.

Cape Pembroke Lighthouse, first lit in 1855

Cape Pembroke Lighthouse stands at the easternmost point of the islands, about seven miles east of Stanley. The first tower was prefabricated in London in 1854 and first lit in December 1855. It was rebuilt in 1906 and relit in June 1907.

The Falkland Islands Museum and National Trust looks after it today. The lighthouse sits on the same peninsula as Gypsy Cove, so a coastal tour can pair the two.

The Historic Dockyard Museum and its two timetables

The Historic Dockyard Museum stands on Ross Road, on the waterfront. It covers farming life, a wash-house and a smithy, and the islands’ maritime relics. It also holds the world’s oldest remains of the warrah.

It keeps a winter and a summer timetable. In summer it opens for longer on cruise-ship days, Mondays included. The museum does not publish an admission price on its page, so ask at the desk or call +500 27428.

1982: the landings, Goose Green and the heights

British forces landed at San Carlos on 21 May 1982. The battle for Goose Green was fought on 28 and 29 May. The war ended with the battles for the heights around Stanley on the night of 13 and 14 June. 255 British servicemen died.

San Carlos and Goose Green lie a long way from Stanley, on the far side of East Falkland. The heights where the war ended are the hills you see behind the town.

The 1982 memorials in Stanley and beyond

The Liberation Memorial stands on Ross Road. Falkland Islanders paid for it themselves. Stanley also has the 1982 Memorial Wood, the Mount Longdon memorial and the Cross of Sacrifice.

Two cemeteries lie further out. Blue Beach Cemetery, at San Carlos, is laid out in the shape of a corral. The Argentine War Cemetery at Darwin has rows of white crosses and a memorial wall.

Mine-free since November 2020

For more than 38 years after the war, the islands still held landmines. Between 2009 and 2020, civilian deminers destroyed over 10,000 mines and other pieces of ordnance. On 14 November 2020 the Falklands were declared free of landmines under the Ottawa Convention.

Gypsy Cove and Yorke Bay were the last two beaches cleared. The penguin beaches most visitors walk today were among the final ground to open.

Heritage stops on the port tours

Most tours from the jetty mix wildlife with a little history. These are the ones that give the heritage real time.

The 1982 day is priced for a group of up to four and starts from Mount Pleasant Airport, so confirm your pickup when you book.

Official sources:

• 1982 battlefields
• Falkland Islands Museum and National Trust