Fish Wars

While the general public sees recreational angling as a peaceful and relaxing activity, commercial fishing is a multi-billion pound business. Indeed, so much money is involved that nations have come into conflict over the access to fishing grounds, and, at times, came close to war to protect their own fisheries. The Turbot War caused a major diplomatic incident between Canada and Spain, Britain deployed thirty-seven Royal Navy warships at the height of the Cod Wars with Iceland, and many European nations clashed over fishing rights in the so-called Mackerel War. Click on the links below to find out more about the times when disputes about fishing have sparked conflict between nations.

Cod WarsThe Cod Wars | A series of three separate conflicts between Britain and Iceland between the 1950s and the 1970s over the rights to fish for cod and other whitefish in the North Atlantic.

The Turbot War | A dispute in the 1990s between Canada (backed by Britain and Ireland) and Spain (backed by the EU) over the fishing rights for Greenland Turbot in international waters which saw Canadian naval vessels intercept Spanish fishing boats.

The Dogger Bank Incident | In the early years of the twentieth century Britain and Russia nearly came to war when Russian naval vessels mistakenly attacked British trawlers in the Dogger Bank area of the North Sea.

Scarborough Shoal DisputeThe Scarborough Shoal Dispute | Nothing to do with the North Yorkshire town, but an ongoing dispute between China and the Philippines over a fishing ground in the South China Sea.

Cherbourg DisputeThe Cherbourg Dispute | A dispute between British and French fishermen flared up when the law governing access to the waters around the Channel Islands changed. French fishermen were barred from the area, leading to conflict with the British authorities.

Mackerel WarsThe Mackerel Wars | A long-running dispute between the Faroe Islands/Iceland and Britain, Ireland, Norway and other EU countries played out over the amount of mackerel each nation was entitled to catch.

Falklands Squid WarFalkland Island’s Squid War | Since the Falkland War of the early 1980s tension between the Islands and Argentina has risen. In 2012 this spilt over into a conflict over commercial fishing for squid.

TN HMS Ferret (1893)Newlyn Riots | In 1896 rioting in Newlyn was only stopped when the army and Royal Navy were called in. The cause of the trouble: fishermen protesting over outsiders landing fish on a Sunday.

The Flying Fish Dispute | The Caribbean nations of Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago clashed over the rights to catch flying fish when this species changed its migratory pattern.

Scallop Conflict | A dispute between British and French shellfish fishermen over the rights to dredge for scallops in the Bay of Seine took place in 2012. The dispute re-ignited in 2018 and 2020.