The day of delivery, which takes place twice a year, is one of the few occasions when visitors are allowed to approach this 200 meter long island, one of the few in the world.
Pheasant Island, the smallest territory in the world with shared custody, will change its nationality from Spanish to French on Wednesday in a biannual transfer.
Irun (Spain) and Hendaye (France) are responsible for its custody for six months a year each one, since a series of protection measures have been taken to stabilize its surface in the Bidasoa River.
From February 1 to July 31, Spain is in charge of condominium, a term used to refer to a political territory in which several sovereign powers formally agree to share it equally. The other six months, this small island becomes an official part of France.
This unique event occurred after a ceasefire at the end of the Thirty Years’ War from 1618-1648 between these two countries, when it was designated as a neutral space to delimit the new border lands.
The island, 200 meters long, became a peace metaphor.
The evolution of the name of Pheasant Island
The little island has many names. In Roman times, it was known as Pausoa, a Basque word that means step or step.
The French then translated it as Paysans, meaning peasant, before changing it to Faisans, meaning pheasant.
“In Basque, some still call it Compassiona name that undoubtedly derives from the meetings that were held on the island during the 17th century,” says the website of Turismo of the Basque Country.
Entry is only allowed to the isla on rare occasions. For example, the days of the transfer of power, when the isla hold an official ceremony with flags, delegates, diplomats and much formal pomp, or as part of heritage visits.
Where to find the other condos?
Currently, There are only a handful of condos in the world. In Europe, Lake Constance is a tridomain between Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Another is the Moselle River and its tributaries, the Sauer and the Our, a condominium shared by Germany and Luxembourg.
Then there is the Joint Regime Areaa maritime zone shared between Colombia and Jamaica, which was established by a bilateral agreement reached in 1993 but which did not come into force until 1994.
And there is also the Abyei area, disputed by South Sudan and Sudan.
The Gulf of Fonseca is another tridomain divided between Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua. Antarctica is the last but also the largest and most important theoretical continental condominium governed by the 28 signatories of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty.
