The Origin of Weird: The Whiskey War

0:16 Oh, hey there. Oh, hey there. How's it going? I'm well, how are you? I'm doing well, thank you. Good yeah. We are the History Buffoons. That's right, and this is the origin of weird and I'm kate and I'm bradley that's right you are. That's right, you are um, I'm gonna get right to it let's do it. Yeah, okay, let's find out something weird okay, so I don't even remember how I found this okay but there is a tiny, desolate island called hans island hans like on solo yes, yes weird. Okay, where is this?

0:56 it's basically a big rock covered in snow and ice oh stuck in the middle of the nares straight okay, where is that? It is what separates canada and greenland. Oh, all right and this part of greenland is is denmark. Actually, it's like doesn't denmark technically run? yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, so this desolate island, hans island, it's basically the center of a really strange border dispute okay between canada and greenland okay, well denmark, yeah, and nobody knows who this island belongs to.

1:37 Okay so they just like never decided, like hey, this is ours or no, this is ours. So both Canada and Denmark claim it, it's mine and they actually both have a point. Okay. So the island falls within a 12 mile territorial limit of both countries according to international law. So there is a 22 mile wide street. Take that in half. Yeah, it's 12 miles, right? So they basically split this near straight down the middle, right? So what? Like the west half is greenland and the east half is canada, sure?

2:19 And hans island is right in the center oh, jesus, yeah and Hans. Island is right in the center. Oh Jesus, yeah, so that's why they each lay claim to it, yes, okay. So they've actually tried figuring out a bunch of times. Even back in the 70s they were trying to draw the border through the Strait but had no luck. Okay, when they were mapping out the border, they easily agreed that there was a couple of islands that are a little bit more west Franklin and Crozier Islands and that became part of Greenland no problem, but for some reason Greenland's like no. Hans Island is also ours. They just really want that island yeah.

3:01 Right in the middle Right. So splitting was the only option option and they couldn't even agree on that. So they just kind of shrugged and said we'll figure it out later let's uh pause on this, for a moment exactly jesus so instead of fighting over it, they did something a little bit more entertaining, okay in 1984, canadian troops went to the island, not to invade, but to plant their flag and leave a bottle of Canadian whiskey. Really. Yes. Did they say what kind of Canadian whiskey it was? I think it's actual Canadian whiskey. That's what it is. That is the name.

3:41 Oh, is it yeah. Oh, okay. Yeah, there's an actual canadian whiskey I didn't realize that. Yeah, okay um. Denmark's response was they sent their minister of greenland affairs over to swap out the canadian stuff with the danish flags and a bottle of danish schnapps with a note saying welcome to danish. That's funny and that's how the Whiskey War begins. The Whiskey War. The Whiskey War, that's what it's called. That's funny. Why isn't it called the Schnapps War? Because it's whiskey and whatever Whiskey War is an alliteration. It sounds better. Well, it definitely sounds better than Schnapps War. Schnapps War Well, it definitely sounds better than Schnapps War.

4:23 Schnapps War. So a few years after the initial flag and Schnapps incident, the Danes were back at Hans. Island in 1988. Okay. And the Arctic Ocean Patrol built a cairn which is a pile of rocks Okay. And then put up another Danish flag, oh geez. So the Danes were there. And then they came back again for a second flag, right. And then, to really drive the point home, in 1995, a Danish environment officer flew in and added a third flag. So they just keep adding flags. Yes. So in this time the Canadians have not added. They haven't been out there.

5:04 No, that's so weird. Okay, but they did get the message, but apparently, wow, so in 2002. So again, the canadians really haven't been there. But in 2002, a danish inspection ship called the jody miss villain how awesome a name is that, jody miss villain? Yeah, that's pretty great. Um, when that ship showed up, they found that the 1988 flag was gone. Oh, someone took it and the 1990 flag was all torn up interesting so they. There were two theories. First, maybe canadians took it or took it. So they were actually two canadian geologists who were there before. Okay, they weren't one to like lay claim or anything.

5:45 They were just there to study right um, and they were literally the only ones on this island in between the danes being there and then in 2002 right gotcha so they were the obvious suspects. But makes sense, it was probably the weather well, yeah, I mean, especially if one's torn up. I mean if it gets very inclement there, it can do damage to a flag, I mean it's exposed to some serious storms and those flags were bound to get wrecked eventually. I mean, my neighbor has an American flag that really doesn't look like an American flag anymore, it's all tattered yeah and also geologists really aren't known for their vandalism.

6:26 Are you sure? So what did the Danes? do oh dear. Any rational action. Of course they put up another flag. So this is four total flags they put up, yeah they wanted that island. Apparently, it took another three years, until 2005, for the Canadians to return. Okay, maybe they were intimidated, maybe they didn't care, who knows, because it took them a long time to get back. Oh, yeah, for them. But when they did come back, they did make a statement Okay, they built their own pile of rocks, oh dear, like the Danish cairn. Yeah, and put the Canadian flag on top, grab the danish schnapps and left some canadian whiskey in its place.

7:09 Do you think they drank the schnapps then? I mean, it would be a waste if you didn't right. I feel like just don't throw it away. Yeah, who would that have gone to the water? arctic, yeah, so things are about to get super serious sounds like it just a week after that canadian visit, canadian defense minister bill graham showed up on hans island and the danish officials were like we're gonna have to have a formal protest here. This is our island. Three days later, the danish ambassador wrote an article in the ottawa citizens basically saying hands off hans island, it's ours hands off hans island and just a week after that, denmark sent a naval ship to hans island to really emphasize their claim okay, so they actually sent a whole naval ship.

8:02 Yeah, yeah it. Yeah, it's called the HDMS Toluga, toluga, well or Tolugak. It's. T-U-L-U-G-A-K. Oh, but it's Danish, so Right. Either way, I'm going to say Toluga. How's that? go Toluga. I like that one better. That's great. So that finally got Canada to the table to talk about the island's future. So after all the flag planting and whiskey swapping, the Danish prime minister finally stepped in and was like this flag war is Kind of ridiculous, you guys. Yeah, this is a little nonsense going on. It's time to stop. We're civilized countries.

8:43 We should be able to figure this out, you would think, Peacefully. Right, as if it wasn't already. That's funny. So Canada agreed and they decided okay, let's meet in New York in 2005 and sort this all out. Okay. So the Danish foreign minister and his canadian counterpart got together. All right, okay, now the danish foreign. This is just funny, the danish foreign minister. His name is perstig muller, muller that is different muller, perstig muller, and the canadian counterpart was pierre pettigrew. Pierre, pettigrew, pettigrew wow, it's kind of is that, like peter pettigrew, pierre. Pettigrew. Pettigrew. Wow, it's kind of is that like Peter Pettigrew's, like distant? cousin, fancy cousin, yeah, fancy cousin, yeah.

9:25 So they even agreed that if they couldn't reach a deal in New York, that they would actually take it to international court of justice in the Hague. Oh, really, yeah. Do you know what the Hague is? I've heard of it. It's an international city of peace. Okay, so it's home to a lot of international organizations, including the International Court of Justice, and it's been the site of many peace conferences. And where is that? I think it's in the Netherlands. Oh is it? Yeah, I almost forgot that. I didn't write it down, that's okay. So they didn't write it down, that's okay. So they didn't reach an agreement.

10:06 Of course they didn't. Fast forward to 2012. Can I ask real quick yeah, did they each bring a bottle to that meeting? I don't know, and a little flag that sat on the table. Should we swap some shots while we do this? Yeah, I'd like some of your schnapps, please. Here's some whiskey. So in 2012, they agreed to a process to solve the issue, but nothing had actually happened. Hans Island was still in limbo. Like they keep saying, like hey, we'll do this, yeah, okay, we'll do this, but then nothing like legally is happening? Did any of this that you? Did you come across as to why it was so important? Yes, yes okay cool because I'm really curious as to why you're gonna be really disappointed I know I had a feeling I would be, but the fact that they're going through this lengths with the and obviously it's non-violent, it's right and it's lasting decades.

10:55 Yeah, that's. That's the weird part is how long it lasts but like hey, have you been to the island lately? you should probably go leave another bottle of whiskey. It's like or schnapps, or whatever side you're on it's like. That is just weird so at this time they finally decided let's split the island like come on did you say how big it was in the beginning? um, I don't think I did, but I do have it okay. Yeah, I'm curious, yeah I, I'm, yeah, I do have that All right. Six more years passed, jesus Christ, and then they finally announced a joint task force to finally settle this. A joint task force. Come on Okay. Okay, so several years since that announcement and then now we finally do have a resolution, okay.

11:38 And then, now we finally do have a resolution, okay. So a lot of folks think that Denmark should have gotten Hans Island because they argue that it was discovered back in the late 1800s by American expeditions. But the expeditions were working with Danish authorities. Oh, so, since they were working with them. Yes, they should have went to them. Yes. I feel like the United States needs to lay claim to this now I know right go plant an american flag up there with some beer and then there was a greenlandic explorer named hans hendrick, okay, who was along for the ride, right. So, yeah, um, so they're, uh, they also have, like greenland Inuits, and they used to stop on that island heading over to Canada, and remember, it's a 22-mile straight between these two points, right, so they would, you know, let's say they're going to swim, because, why not?

12:35 They're going to swim the Arctic straight here. They're going to swim the. Arctic. Straight here they're going to freeze, they're going to hop on this rock and then swim another 12 miles to get to Canada to do some exploring or 11 miles. Yes, whatever. That would be a really cold swim. So the Danish Inuits or the Greenlandic Inuits, right, so they used that as like a stopping point. Sure, canada Inuits never did. Oh really, yeah, they were happy in Canada, they didn't need to go to Greenland. They didn't want to partake in their festivities. Okay. So everybody thinks that Denmark pretty much had a good case, right, Right. So this rock it's 1.3 square kilometers, which is about a half a square mile.

13:22 So not very big. So about 321 acres. Oh really, that's how many acres it is, mm-hmm. And it's nothing but rock Well right. It's literally rock. So it's just a giant rock coming like the surface of the water. Yeah, it's like a flat rock, Right. Yeah, that's weird yeah. So there, right, yeah, that's weird. Yeah, so there's no oil, there's no treasure, nothing, right? It's just literally a stopping point in the middle of the strait. Yes, wow, yes. So the only thing that was kind of mentioned about why is to extend their territorial waters oh really, yes, that's literally all they wanted us for so the the straight is frozen most of the time year round I'd say yes, being up there so maybe it would be valuable once global warming kind of kicks in and the arctic starts melting I mean maybe, I guess but, you know, nobody's in a hurry to solve this thing either.

14:17 So, no, it doesn't seem that important, yet important enough to like keep doing this. So can they literally walk from? Like what, since it's frozen most of the year, can they just walk to it? Probably that's wild, probably I don't think I'd feel comfortable doing it let's do it I bet that ice is pretty thick. Let's do it okay yeah. Oh look, there's a danish flag. Oh look, there's a canadian flag let's leave some booze, okay, so after all this back and forth, all the flags, all the whiskey, all the schnapps, they finally figured out what to do with hans island. All right, tell us june 14th 2022 so almost three years ago, jeez denmark, greenland, canada and Nunavut, which is one of the big northern Canadian territories where most of their Inuit live.

15:09 Okay, they all agreed to just split the island right down the middle along the natural fault line. Okay. That makes sense. Sure, so they had the Canadian and the Danish foreign ministers and even the Greenlandic prime minister sign an agreement, but it wasn't official just yet. They still needed parliaments in Denmark and Greenland to say, yeah, go ahead. That sounds good. Sure, on October 5th 2023. Jesus, the Danish parliament started working on the laws to actually create the land and the sea borders. Okay, they finally made it official on december 19th 2023.

15:49 Good lord and here's here's kind of a cool part. So, even though there's now like a quote-unquote border, yeah, they're not gonna have any border controls on the island of course not I know, but it's funny to think about. I mean yeah this, yeah this little island. This little post with one guy with a stamp. Let me see your passport. It's got like just a single, like metal detector on it With a little dude sitting at a desk little desk. Stamping passports. So the law actually says that anyone going to hans island, whether it's for official, business, just to visit, because you can you can go anywhere on the whole island without checks I like how you say it for official business, what?

16:35 Business? I don't know it's still a rock. Even though it's technically two countries, it's one big, nice, friendly island. Right, so do they still share booze? I don't think so. I think that's gone and passed. That's too bad, isn't that so? weird. The whiskey war, that's so strange. I mean all over for a piece of rock. Literally a rock. That literally does nothing for either side. Yeah, that's weird rock, literally a rock. That literally does nothing for either side. Yeah, that's weird. Yeah, half a square mile. I didn't realize. That's how many acres are in a half a square mile. I'm pretty sure. You said 321? Yeah, I'm pretty sure I did some calculations, but you know how I am at math and numbers in general.

17:19 You don't math always the greatest. I really don't, but I like, don't so but I like that you try. Let's see what. Half a square mile in acres is 3.20 acres. So yeah, oh, 3.2 sorry not 3.2, 320, 320 and I said 321 so it's close. Yeah, so that's funny half a square mile I would do. They still each have a flag on the island? Then too, I would assume. I would assume, I would imagine they do. Let me show you a picture of the rock, okay, because literally it is so silly, I would imagine, at least in my brain. I just think of some desolate rock in the middle of water. But if it's mostly frozen, that's crazy too.

18:03 So the rock? It looks like rock, rock, sure, um, and then there's ice all around it. Yeah, I kind of figured that but here's what it looks like oh, my word it's a rock that is literally just a rock, that's funny, I like, yeah, where are they going to set up their little stamping passport post? that's funny they're gonna have to build a new cairn, I guess. Put up a new flag, uh-huh yeah, you're not wrong, that is literally just a rock in the water I know, that is so funny, isn't? That awesome I mean, there's not like you can farm on there no, there's nothing.

18:44 You can't do anything that's just the funny part about it is they're again not aggressively. It's all been friendly um. So if you kind of look here, canada okay, has all these like little tiny yeah, little tiny um islands, and then there is an island called elsm and that's where there are some inhabitants there, okay, and that's where the Inuits would travel from Hans Island to this island in particular, oh, but it's so tiny compared to Canada and Greenland that you can't even see it on a freaking map. So Ellesmere is part of Canada, though. It is, and then they would cross over to Hans Island and then to Greenland if they went that way, and vice versa yes if they're going to greenland was going to canada okay, wow, yeah, um, and then okay describe what you see well, I see the canadian flag and the the danish flag.

19:41 Right, that's what that is and a bunch of people like yeah, like basically putting them up at different times of the of that's so funny yeah so then this is a picture, this is all going to be on our social media. But yeah, you can see, like the fault line here, hans island, here is like right, smack dab in the middle, and then this kosher island and franklin island are towards the greenland side so those are Greenland Island, nope. Nope. So funny, isn't that cool? Yeah, definitely. This is the middle of that straight. So that's wild Right in the middle, right down the center. Yeah, that's funny, the whiskey war, the whiskey war. Yeah. Never heard of that, but that's pretty cool. Yeah, so thank you for that one.

20:21 Yeah, that's funny yeah. Well. I guess, that's it, I suppose, I suppose. All right, buffoons, that's it for today's episode. Buckle up, because we've got another historical adventure waiting for you. Next time Feeling hungry for more buffoonery, or maybe you have a burning question or a wild historical theory for us to explore. Hit us up on social media. We're History Buffoons Podcast on YouTube X, instagram and Facebook. You can also email us at historybuffoonspodcast at gmailcom. We are Bradley and Kate. Music by Corey Akers. Follow us wherever you get your podcasts and turn those notifications on to stay in the loop.

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