World War II Camps in Jamaica: Evacuees, Refugees, Internees, Prisoners of War

Between 1939 and 1947, the Caribbean island of Jamaica -then a British colony - was haven or detention centre for thousands ofdisplaced Europeans; an often under-recognized contribution to the Allied war effort.A civilian camp accommodated evacuees from Gibraltar and, belatedly, providedsanctuary for groups of mainly Jewish refugees. Others who had fled Europeahead of looming fascist threats would be interned in military detention campswhose populations were swollen by German and Italian civilians from severalBritish West African colonies, co-mingled for convenience with hundreds ofGerman and Italian merchant mariners captured at sea during the early months ofthe war.

World War II Camps in Jamaica disentangles the conditionsunder which these various populations were held, drawing on primary records,personal accounts and media coverage; noting differences and similarities intheir management; considering the camps and their populations within the localcontext; and considering the extent of interface and interaction that ensueddespite official efforts to keep the incoming populations separate and transitory.