What happened to the people of Tristan da cuna in 1961?

Answer 1

The island is volcanic and in 1961 the volcano became active. Because the island was "claimed" by the British they had an obligation to the people and duly evacuated them to Portsmouth where they lived in army barracks. The life in England was not good for them as they had to find work in unfamiliar factories etc. they caught many diseases because they lacked natural immunity and of course a city is a far cry from island life. 1961 was the early days of nuclear testing and the cold war As such remote islands were valuable as potential testing grounds for nuclear weapons. The British decided to lie to the islanders and tell them that the volcano had totally destroyed the island and thus it would be impossible for them to return. Somehow however, the found out the truth, raised enough money for a boat and returned. Out of interest the islanders are all direct descendants of seven shipwrecked sailors who decided to stay, they managed to send word that they needed seven wives and these where duly delivered. The 1961 evacuees all had the original seven surnames, I hate to think of the effects of such close interbreeding. The same problems arose of course on Pitcairn island, the original home of the mutiny on the bounty