Early European exploration A
Spanish expedition of three ships, led by Portuguese explorer
Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, landed in 1606 at Big Bay on the north side of the island. Queirós named the land
La del Espíritu Santo in acknowledgment of the Spanish king's descent from the royal
House of Austria, and believing he had arrived in the Great Southern Continent,
Terra Australis. They entered the bay on 1 and 2 May: the latter being the day of Saints Philip and James, Queirós named it . The local chief tried to chase the Spanish explorers back to their ships, which led to an exchange of arrows and musket-fire, in which the chief was killed. The ships remained for a month at their anchorage "", with armed sailors making incursions inland for provisions. Queirós announced his intention to found a city, Nova Jerusalem, and appointed municipal officers. In early June, with provisions running low, they left the bay to explore the neighbouring coastline. Queirós' lead ship became separated, and, whether through adverse weather or mutiny, was unable to make anchor in the bay. The (second-in-command, and captain of the second ship),
Luis Váez de Torres, searched the coast for signs of shipwreck but found none. He remained until late June, then sailed to the west coast with the intention of circumnavigating what he considered to be an island, not a continent. The wind and current were against this aim, so he left the island sailing west, eventually encountering the previously unexplored southern coast of
New Guinea. Torres then found the
strait that bears his name between northern Australia and southern
New Guinea. After the departure of Queirós and Torres, Espiritu Santo was not visited again by Europeans until 160 years later, by
Louis de Bougainville in 1768 and
James Cook in 1774.
European settlement During the 19th century,
Australian,
British,
French, and
German settlers settled in the territory of the New Hebrides. In 1878, the
United Kingdom and
France declared all of the
New Hebrides to be neutral territory. In 1887, the
Anglo-French Joint Naval Commission took charge of the territory. On 9 August 1889,
Franceville, an area around present-day Port Vila, declared itself an independent commune under the leadership of elected
mayor/
president Ferdinand-Albert Chevillard, and with its own red, white and blue flag with five stars. It became one of the first
self-governing administrations in recorded history to practise
universal suffrage without distinction of sex or race. However, this was short-lived as it was soon suppressed, and by June 1890, Franceville as a commune was reported to have been "practically broken up", and the Naval Commission had resumed control. Between 1903 and 1905, one of the first major geological studies of
Melanesia was produced by Australian geologist Sir
Douglas Mawson (later renowned for his expeditions to
Antarctica). After spending from April to September 1903 exploring the islands with W.T. Quaife, Mawson produced a report which included geological maps of the islands of
Efate and Santo. This was his first major independent geological work. The men travelled to the islands aboard the
Ysabel, under the auspices of the British Deputy Commissioner of the New Hebrides, Captain Ernest Rason.
HMS Archer was also used on the trip. In 1906, the naval commission was replaced by a more structured British-French
Condominium.
World War II During
World War II, particularly after the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the island was used by American naval and air forces as a large military supply and support base, naval harbour, and airfield.
Luganville Airfield, also called Bomber Field #3, was a large airfield built by the
Seabees of the
40th Naval Construction Battalion in 1943. Also built on the island was Bomber Field No.2 which became
Santo-Pekoa International Airport after the war.
Palikulo Bay Airfield, also called Bomber Field #1, became part of the main road after the war.
Luganville Seaplane Base served the
seaplane and
Turtle Bay Airfield also called Fighter Field #1 served the fighter planes. The
SS President Coolidge was a converted luxury liner that hit a
sea mine during the war and was sunk. The shipwreck off Espiritu Santo later became a popular diving spot. The presence of the Americans contributed later to the island's tourism in
scuba diving, as the Americans dumped most of their used military and naval equipment, and their refuse, at what is now known as "Million Dollar Point". In highly fictionalized form, this was the location of
James A. Michener's
Tales of the South Pacific, and of the following
Rodgers and Hammerstein musical,
South Pacific.
1980s rebellion Between May and August 1980 the island was the site of a rebellion known as the "
Coconut War", during the transfer of power over the colonial New Hebrides from the condominium to the independent Vanuatu.
Jimmy Stevens'
Nagriamel movement, in alliance with private French interests and backed by the Phoenix Foundation and American libertarians hoping to establish a tax-free haven, declared the island of Espiritu Santo to be independent of the new government. The "
Republic of Vemerana" was proclaimed on 28 May. France recognised the independence on 3 June. On 5 June, the tribal chiefs of Santo named the French Ambassador Philippe Allonneau the "King of Vemerana", and Jimmy Stevens became the prime minister. Luganville was renamed Allonneaupolis. Next, negotiations with Port Vila failed, and from 27 July to 18 August, British
Royal Marines and a unit of the French
Garde Mobile were deployed to Vanuatu's capital island, but they did not enter Espiritu Santo as the soon-to-be government had hoped. The troops were recalled shortly before independence. Following independence on 31 July 1980, Vanuatu, now governed by the Vanuaku Party with Father
Walter Lini as
Prime Minister of Vanuatu, requested assistance from
Papua New Guinea, whose army suppressed the rebellion, keeping Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu. ==Geography==