St Alouarn Islands
island group near Cape Leeuwin
St Alouarn Islands are a group of islands and rocks south-east of Cape Leeuwin in Western Australia, approximately 11 km south of Augusta in Flinders Bay.
History
In March 1772, the crew of the French naval vessel Le Gros Ventre, commanded by Louis Aleno de St Aloüarn, became the first Europeans known to have visited the islands. A few weeks later, at Dirk Hartog Island, St Aloüarn formally claimed part of Western Australia for France. The islands were named after St Aloüarn in 1792, by Antoine d'Entrecasteaux, as the leader of a subsequent French expedition.
Location
The Point Matthew lookout on the road between Augusta and Cape Leeuwin has the islands identified in a brass compass plate that also identifies distances.
Wrecks
There are a number of wrecks in the vicinity of Cape Leeuwin.
The best-known wreck near the islands was that of the Aberdeen White Star ship SS Pericles on an uncharted rock on 13 March 1910, within sight of the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse in daylight hours.
Whale watching Boats leaving from Augusta Port tend not to venture into this group of islands and rocks, but travel around Flinders Bay to the east of the islands.
The islands are significant for their bird colonies – with Seal Island and St Alouarn Island being reserves for that purpose.
The named islands, in order of distance from mainland are:
Named islands and rocks
Seal Island
Seal Island (Augusta, Western Australia) – is a large flat brownish rock, 1.5 km south of Point Matthew.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “St Alouarn Islands” is island group near Cape Leeuwin. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Alouarn, Islands and island, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “island group near Cape Leeuwin” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 7, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q432451. Authority coordinates are -34.400, 115.200. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1772, 1792 and 1910.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “St Alouarn Islands”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow St Alouarn Islands primary sources, St Alouarn Islands archive and Alouarn research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “St Alouarn Islands”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “St Alouarn Islands” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.