MEMORY OF THE WORLD REGISTER

The Federal Archives Fonds
(Barbados)

Ref N° 2008-01

PART A – ESSENTIAL INFORMATION

1 SUMMARY
The West Indies Federation (1958-1962) was a political federation of ten territories in the Anglophone West Indies. Its formation signaled the beginning of a new era of decolonization for the region of the West Indies in the post-World War II period. The history of the West Indies is inextricably linked with the histories of other former British colonies, which include portions of Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States of America. The Federal Archives reflect the interconnectivity of these histories and document one of the decisive periods of twentieth century history when territories, under the colonial rule of the British Empire, first flexed their ‘political muscles’ and sought to become sovereign nation-states.
Undoubtedly, the West Indies Federation shared some commonalities with other contemporary federations particularly with regard to issues such as constitutional reform and overcoming nationalist interests. However, the West Indian experience was unique and distinct from all others mainly as a result of the geographical separateness of the territories by sea and the insularity of the territories, which historically related bi-laterally with England. Additionally, there was the impact of extra- and intra-regional migrations on account of the colonial plantation economies that were based on indentured servitude, slavery and imported labour. The most striking characteristic, however, was the swiftness of the time in which Federation of the West Indies was established despite of the diversity and disparity in physical size, demographics and economies of the territories that made up the West Indies Federation.
The West Indies Federation comprised of ten territories namely,