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THIS IS A COPY
THE ORIGINAL HAS BEEN RETAINED
IN THE DEPARTMENT UNDER SECTION 3 (4) OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT 1958
Our acquisition of Gibraltar occurred during this early 18th centu
period of Anglo-Spanish rivalry, captured by us during the War of the
Spanish Succession, 1701-13, and confirmed to us (very unwillingly) by
Spain -and largely at France's behest by the treaty of Utrecht in the
latter year. Its acquisition was purely naval/strategic in motive and,
oddly enough, was directed by us much more at France's naval power (und
the agressive Louis XIV) than Spain.
The only W. Indian possession among the S.D's at present concerned which we acquired in our later phase of colonial (in this case really maritime) policy was St. Lucia. This, largely because of the strategic value of its excellent harbour at Castries, (together with Trinidad with which we are not here concerned) we acquired by cession from France at
the treaty of Paris ending the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic War, in 1815. The motive here, as with so many other of our small but navally significant acquisitions under that treaty (like Malta, the Cape, Ceylon Mauritius etc) was purely to fortify and protect the absolute maritime
supremacy which we had secured at the end of the Napoleonic War.
BIOT, then forming part of the Seychelles (and in a sense of Mauriti was also acquired by us by the same treaty and for the same faval reasons and Ascension Is. (thitherto unoccupied) was taken by us at the same time though partly as a precaution against any renewed attempt by Napoleon to евсаре from St Helena, -then held by the E. India Company since peacefully taking it over from the Dutch in 1662.