Pattle

Disputed island
Paracel Islands
Location of the major islands in Sansha Legend： Black：Sansha (Pref. seat) Woody Island (South China Sea) Pink：Scarborough Shoal Green：Fiery Cross Reef Blue：Mischief Reef Purple：Subi Reef Orange：Cuarteron Reef Yellow：Gaven Reefs Red：Johnson South Reef Brown：Hughes Reef
Other names	珊瑚岛, Shānhú dǎo, San Hô đảo, Đảo Hoàng Sa
Geography
Location	South China Sea
Coordinates	16°32′05″N 111°36′30″E / 16.53472°N 111.60833°E / 16.53472; 111.60833 (Pattle Island)
Archipelago	Paracel Islands
Total islands	Over 30
Major islands	Woody, Rocky, Tree, Money, Robert, Pattle, Triton, Duncan, Lincoln, Drummond
Area	0.32 km2 (0.12 sq mi)
Length	820 m (2690 ft)
Width	420 m (1380 ft)
Administration
Vietnam
Province	Da Nang

Pattle Island (Simplified Chinese: 珊瑚岛; Pinyin: Shānhú dǎo; Sino-Vietnamese: San Hô đảo; Vietnamese: Đảo Hoàng Sa) is a coral island belonging to the Crescent Island group of the Paracel Islands. During the period of Vietnamese and French colonial occupation of the islands, Pattle Island was chosen as the main base. 100% of the island was near the mainland, near the center of the archipelago and near many other islands, so it was easier to control than Woody Island, the largest of the Paracels.

China, Taiwan and Vietnam all claim sovereignty over the Paracel Islands, including Pattle Island. China has had de facto control of the island and the rest of the archipelago since the Battle of the Paracel Islands in January 1974.

General

• Coordinates: 16°32'05"N – 111°36'30"E
• Body shape: oval, 820 metres (2,690 ft) long, about 420 metres (1,380 ft) wide, about 2,100 metres (6,900 ft) in circumference, about 0.32 square kilometres (0.12 sq mi) in area, 9 metres (30 ft) high, surrounded by coral rings.
• Environment: there are many trees and birds on the island.

Island activities

During the time when the Paracel Islands were under the direct management of the Vietnamese and the French colonial empire, many civilian and military buildings were built here for various purposes.

Civil

The Hoang Sa sovereignty stele of Vietnam during the French colonial period was erected in 1938 on Pattle Island, affirming Vietnam's sovereignty over the Paracel Islands continuously since 1816 (Gia Long 14) under the sovereignty of the kingdom of An Nam, until the time the stele was erected in 1938 (during the French colonial period, French Indochina).

• Asserting sovereignty: France raised a sovereignty stele near the middle of the island in 1938 to reaffirm Vietnam's official sovereignty from 1816 and that of France when it was in Vietnam.

On the stele it says:

"République française

Royaume d'Annam

Archipel des Paracels

1816 - Île de Pattle-1938"

meaning:

French Republic

Kingdom of Annan

Paracel Islands

1816 - Paracel Islands-1938

• Meteorological measurement: The meteorological station on the island began operations around 1938 with the number 48,860 issued by the International Meteorological Organization (later the World Meteorological Organization). Every day the staff made meteorological measurements and then transmitted information via radio (initially by Morse code).^[1] The meteorological station on Pattle Island operated relatively continuously, except for several years of war when the Empire of Japan occupied it, and only stopped when China occupied the island after the Battle of the Paracel Islands in January 1974. The Vietnamese meteorological staff were transported to Hainan Island on a Chinese ship, then sent to Hong Kong in March 1974, from where they flew back to Vietnam.^[1] Later, China registered the station name Sanhu with the number 59,985.

Pattle Island

• Beliefs and religions:
  • Ba Temple: built in the southwest corner of the island in the period after the surrender of the Empire of Japan but before 1948, with a length of 6 metres (20 ft), a width of 4 metres (13 ft) and a height of about 3 metres (9.8 ft). The shrine features two statues, one of which depicts Gautama Buddha. To the left of the shrine is a cemetery.
  • Christian church: built in the 1950s for soldiers of this religion.
• Other activities: near the middle of the island, there are also a volleyball court and a flagpole.

References

External links