| Abstrakt: |
Canada’s claim to the Arctic received a significant boost when, on July 1, 1909, Captain J. E. Bernier placed a bronze plaque on Melville Island that declared the Arctic Archipelago to be Canadian territory. This action, however, was merely one of several that attempted to secure Canada’s claim to the frozen lands that extended from the Canadian mainland to the North Pole. The raising of flags and erecting of plaques, however, were largely symbolic events that carried little weight in international law. These lands were neither occupied nor administered by Canada. |
